Golden Ages 70s and 80s child rearing perceived as easier time

Families who did the main bulk of their parenting in the 1970s and 80s, didn’t know they had it so good, according to today’s young mums.

New research looking at the perceptions of motherhood from the 1930s to 2011, has just been released Procter & Gamble (P&G).

Referred to by today’s hard pressed mothers as the ‘Golden Ages’ to bring up a baby, the 70s and 80s are perceived to be less pressured than contemporary living.

The Changing Face of Motherhood report, also found that 34 per cent of mums believe they have less time for themselves than their mothers did, with 18 per cent of them having just 26 minutes a day.

The demands of having to go out to work and too much pressure to be a perfect parent were two of the main reasons mums quoted for less ‘me time’.

The research also found that mums spend 126 minutes every day looking after their children, with 20 per cent spending more than 28 hours a week of ‘active time’ with their children.

But whilst modern mothers are lamenting their lack of personal time, a staggering 68 per cent of mums still manage to Skype, text and use online social networks. .

Kate Fox, spokesperson for (SIRC) who conducted the research said: “Motherhood has never been, and never should be, a solitary endeavour. With the increasing pressure on mothers to work a ‘double shift’ – to be the perfect mother as well as a wage-earner – support networks are more important than ever. And mothers are using every means of communication available to build the strong communities and networks of family and friends that they need.”