Victoria Beckham recently shared a photo of herself kissing her daughter Harper on the lips and wishing her a happy birthday on Instagram. It sparked a lively debate in the comments over whether it was appropriate or not. Kids, according to doctors, need to feel loved and healthy in their homes. Kissing on the mouth, on the other hand, is not the safest way to show parental affection.
It has the potential to change the child’s perception of personal boundaries.
According to psychologist Charlotte Reznick, the lips and mouth are the personal borders of a child’s body. When you kiss a child on the lips, you are showing them that their body boundary is open and that anyone can easily intrude into their domain.
Tight swaddling, force-feeding, and vigorous tickling are all examples of this. As a result of their inability to say “no” and manage their own personal boundaries, intrusive parents may put their children at risk of developing “victim syndrome.”
It’s unsanitary.
Doctors, especially dentists, warn that our mouths contain a large number of microbes that may not infect adults but can be transmitted to children and cause significant damage. Since the child’s immune system is weakened, some dangerous infections will reach their body through saliva, according to Charlotte Reznick.
As a sign of sympathy, the child can begin kissing other people on the lips.
Outside of the family circle, the child can begin acting in the same way you taught them at home, such as kissing other children or adults on the lips to show sympathy. Even if it was an innocent act on the part of the parents, children learn by imitation, according to the psychologist. As a result, they might attempt to replicate the gesture with others, oblivious to the intimate implications of the gesture. As a result, she advises only kissing the child on the cheeks or the forehead.
Do you think it’s okay to kiss kids on the lips? If so, how long before you reach that age? Is a kiss on the lips between a parent and a child acceptable if they are of different genders? In the comments section below, we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Preview photo credit Leonid Mamchenkov / flickr
