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Nude in Front of Kids?

Tuesday, July 8, 2008
filed under: kid logic

Christina Aguilera says motherhood won't stop her from enjoying "naked Sundays" with her husband. But when is it not OK to be nude in front of your kids, or for them to be nude in front of you...or others? Pediatrician Dr. Cara Natterson gives us the naked truth.

nude_infront_of_kids270.jpg

When it comes to nudity, my advice is to take cues from your child. As soon as your son or daughter becomes modest, respect that desire for privacy.

Generally, toddlers love to run around naked and they don't take notice whether an adult has clothes on or not. By the early school years -- kindergarten or certainly first grade -- you will often hear your child make comments about adult nudity. This is a reasonable time to think about covering up a little more in front of your child.

If your child simply doesn't notice or doesn't care, then I recommend imposing a little more modesty once your child starts to develop. This occurs in the tween years. But nudity should not be demonized--rather modesty should be encouraged. This shift in the tween years is especially important as you are starting to have discussions about personal privacy and the most basic conversations about sexual behavior.

Many parents are concerned about bath time. Siblings often bathe together for years. This is not a bad thing. Use similar guideposts as to when you should impose separate bath times--when your children start taking notice of each other's bodies and definitely if they are embarrassed or uncomfortable in the bath, end the routine. I find that by kindergarten or first grade, most kids want to shower by themselves instead of bathing with siblings.

It is important to note that conversations about private parts, inappropriate touching, strangers and the like should start well before any of this. I encourage parents to begin having regular conversations about these things around age 3.

Do you walk around naked in front of your kids?



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filed under: kid logic

49 comments so far | Post a comment now >>

 
If you are trying to raise well-adjusted children who don’t grow up to become deviated or perverted,there should be NO age when nudity becomes taboo.It should be just as natural for the child at the age of 13,or 23 or 53 as it is at the age of 3.Children raised in such a way almost NEVER develop deviate tendancies,it’s repression that creates perversion.
- M
Posted 05/04/09 03:41 AM
 
I agree with you, M (05/04/09 - 03:41 AM) and others who also agree that this is okay. As my name imples, I am a nudist so nudity is no big deal for me. However, I live with a family of textiles (I’m the only nudist in my family). I was never taught the right way about nudity and my family (except for grandma on my dad’s side…and my dad) has never been nude around me. The thought of such a thing would be too embarrassing for them. But, why? Why are people in general embarrassed about the body they were born with? I live in the USA, New Jersey, in fact. While I don’t have any children myself, if I did, it would not bother me if they and/or myself were nude around each other in non-sexual settings. While nudism may not be for everyone, nudists deserve the same respect as anyone else. That means not shunning them away to secluded resorts/beaches/etc. while clothed people are free to go everywhere. Unfortunately, especially in this country, the freedom to be nude outside of those secluded places usually results in being arrested for quote “indecent exposure”. Why? Why do most people make a big deal about something so natural as the human body, the one we all were born with? And, since this article mentions kids, someone answer me this…why is it okay for babies and very small toddlers to be nude, but once they reach a certain age, they suddenly MUST be kept covered outside of private places?
- David4Nudist
Posted 06/13/09 09:45 PM
 
i get naked on front of my 15 year old boy..i am always taking showers with the doors open or even in the restroom open it doesnt bother him..he does the same thing…sometimes we sleep in the same bed together or just walk around naked..it is just me and him so it doesnt bother us
- luvy-wubby
Posted 06/18/09 12:27 AM
 
I don’t care about my boys running around naked. Playing hide and seek running around.
- Rez
Posted 06/20/09 10:27 AM
 
my dad use to be naked after the shower all the time and it never bothered me until i grew up and got married and my husband told me that’s not normal and it offended me because i didnt have a problem with it. i was old enough to walk into another room
- billieblubird
Posted 06/29/09 09:30 PM
 
I don’t argree with cc who said a naked body is as wrong as an adult film lying on the table. My mom walks naked infront of me and my sister and we think nothing of it. My nephews mom walks around naked infront of him and his sister, and they don’t really mind. In my opinion family members of the opposite sex don’t have to cover up unless they can clearly see someone is uncomfortable with it. When your child reaches the age of 12, it might be a good idea to ask him/her is he/she is uncomfortable if you walk around nude. Or age 10 maybe.
- Tim
Posted 07/08/09 07:49 AM
 
I’m from Europe and I live with my mom and sister. I always walk from the shower to my bedroom naked and I’m a male. My mom does it too. It’s not weird if no one is uncomfortable with it. We have a healthy attitude towards nudity. I mean, if opposite sex members can’t see eachother naked, aren’t you saying that a naked body is always associated with sex???? I mean, it’s cool if you’re household likes to cover up, but I always hate it when people hear about a girl walking naked infront of her father and they comment like: isn’t she too old?, what’s wrong with her, she’s immature etc. It’s like they don’t accept the fact that some girls are very comfortable with their bodies and have a healthy attitude towards nudity. There’s nothing wrong with modest people, but there’s also nothing wrong with people who walk around naked.
- Sjoerd
Posted 08/09/09 05:57 AM
 
I think the first sentence says it all: When it comes to nudity, my advice is to take cues from your child. In the age of hysteria, many people become overprotective of their kids’ “rights” without considering their emotional wellbeing. How can we teach our kids to feel good about our body without having the same feeling in front of them? There is a MAJOR difference between nudity and sex and this difference starts … in your mind.
- Family Matters
Posted 10/11/09 09:08 PM
 
nude
- Anonymous
Posted 10/31/09 10:51 AM

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