Changing a baby’s diapers is part and parcel of having a child in the first place.
It’s messy and can be off-putting for new parents, but at the end of the day, it becomes another routine task in taking good care of a little one.
According to the American Pregnancy Association, on average, a nappy should be changed every two or three hours, and a large majority of parents definitely seem to stick to this schedule.
But some parents believe that it shouldn’t be up to them to decide when a diaper gets changed.
Lottie Daley is one of many parents who believes that parents should request consent from their children before changing their diaper – a controversial idea, to say the least.
Recently, she went onto talk show This Morning to speak about her opinions, which are rooted in the idea that teaching kids about consent and bodily autonomy starts at a young age.
Essentially, she thinks that these lessons can and should be taught from the moment a baby is born.
Of course, she says that it isn’t about a baby responding “no” or “yes” to a request for permission.
After all, babies can’t talk, and they can’t understand what’s being asked, either.
But Daley states that this is still a good practice as it teaches little ones that their body is their own.
They become accustomed to the habit that they are asked something before they are touched, and they learn that this is standard and necessary behavior.
Daley says this doesn’t just apply to diaper changes, either. It applies to things like washing them, wiping them, or even tickling them.
She herself as older daughters aged five and seven who she always asks for permission before washing them.
Daley thinks that the entire issue of consent needs rethinking and should be enforced from the time a baby is born, not just when a child approaches their teenage years.
Perhaps most outrageously, she has also suggested that the act of tickling – for children or others – is outlawed!
Interestingly, comedian Russell Brand has been on the show too and has expressed similar opinions. Coincidentally, he’s friends with Daley.
Brand believes that, if you wouldn’t do it to an adult without consent, you shouldn’t do it to a child without consent, as that violates a person’s sense of bodily autonomy.
He used the example of poking an adult’s stomach or tickling their sides randomly and illustrated how improper that would be, and how we should apply those rules to kids, too.
After her appearance on This Morning, Daley was criticized by social media users across all platforms.
Some consider her stance ridiculous and think she’s going much too far, with some going down a slippery slope to suggest that, someday, these rules might mean we can’t touch our kids at all!
Others bring up hygiene and health concerns involved with not changing a baby’s diaper unless they want it to be changed.
Where do you stand on this argument? Share your thoughts!