Parenting Poll Results

Parenting Advice Basics

I have always been a big fan of polls. Seeing how other people vote and how they feel about important issues is interesting to me. Not because I want to copy what they are doing. Afterall, if all of the other parents were potty training their kids by throwing their diapers off a bridge, it doesn't mean I would too. But it is helpful to know that most other parents didn't start potty training until their children were 2 to 2 1/2 years old and most weren't finished until they were at least 3 (see our Potty Training Polls).

Polls also help me to learn a lot about my visitors, including that:

• most of you (over 80%) are afraid of fever and think that it can cause brain damage (fever phobia poll)
  
  
• half of you let your kids drink too much juice (over 7-24 ounces) (fruit juice poll)
  
  
• most of you don't expect antibiotics every time your child has a green runny nose (antibiotic usage poll)
  
  
• most of you spank your children at least occasionally (spanking poll)
  
  
• most of you don't expect antibiotics every time your child has a green runny nose (antibiotic usage poll)
  
  
• many of you take your kids to the dentist by the time they are 3 years old (dentist visit poll)
  
  
• most of you get same day sick visit appointments with your Pediatrician (doctor visit poll)
  
  
• most of you don't let your children stay home alone until they are 11-12 years old (home alone poll)
  
  
• 2/3 of you give your child a daily multivitamin
  
  

And they help me learn about your kids, including that:

• over 30% of your kids were on antibiotics more than 3 times last year (antibiotics poll)
  
  
• most get less than $5 in allowance each week (allowance poll)
  
  
• about half of your boys are circumcised (circumcision poll)
  
  
• most of your kids wear a bicycle helmet (bike helmet poll)
  
  
• most of your children's have up-to-date immunizations (immunizations poll)
  
  
• many of your kids were sleeping through the night by 4 months old (infant sleep poll)
  
  
• most of your kids only watch about 6-10 hours of TV each week (TV watching poll)
  
  

What do you think? Do you like polls?