Parent ban comfort toys for fear of loss
The fear and heartache of losing that precious comfort toy has seen today’s young parents ditch the concept.
According to nationwide research of 5,000 adults, 43 per cent of women and 21 per cent of men still keep their favourite comfort toy from childhood fairly close by.
Though 4 out of 5 adults remember that special toy they turned to during the sad times, only 1 in 3 children today are allowed one.
A twelve per cent of parents aged under 24 said they will not let their child have a comfort toy because they are too difficult to replace if lost.
Some parents even believe a child should learn to cope and cry without having a toy to cling to.
A one in five parents who have gone through the headache of their child losing their precious friend have simply nipped out and purchased a replacement without saying.
The most popular toys adults tend to hold onto from childhood include: Teddy bear (61%), Blanket (26%), Dolly (9%), Special book (6%) or Clothing (5%).
The findings were discovered by Colief as part of their research for their new Comforting with Colief campaign.
The stress a crying baby causes left 45 per cent of parents to admitting they struggled to soothe them, with 1 in 3 mothers driven to the end of their tether by it.
From Cry-Sis, a charity offering support for families with excessively crying, sleepless and demanding babies, John Bullen said: “Crying in babies is a normal response but excessive crying, especially if it continues for many hours, is not and is very difficult to manage.”