29 Of The Toughest Parenting Questions Answered

    Shaming? Spanking? Circumcision? BuzzFeed Life asked parents where they stood.

    by
    Morgan Shanahan
    by Morgan Shanahan

    BuzzFeed Staff

    ,
    Mike Spohr
    by Mike Spohr

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Do most people love their kids more than their spouse? When is the right time to let your kid have a cell phone? Do most people breastfeed? Last week, BuzzFeed Life published a survey using our very technical polling feature to find out where readers stood on some of the biggest parenting debates of today and around 117,000 people responded. So now you can finally know.

    1. Who do you love the most?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Our first question was no contest; 70% of respondents couldn't compare the two.

    2. To spank or not to spank?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    This surprised us -- one of the most debated topics in the comments was also our only even split.

    3. Is public shaming good parenting?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    The overwhelming majority of readers opted out of public shaming as a disciplinary tactic.

    4. How'd you feed your baby?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    100% of respondents fed their children one way or another.

    5. Do you share photos of your kids online?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    We were impressed that 14% of readers were able to resist the lure to share.

    6. How good of a parent do you think you are?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Just under half of parents considered themselves average at the job.

    7. How good of a parent do you think your partner is?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Respondents had a slightly better view of their spouses than themselves.

    8. At what age is it appropriate for a kid to get a cell phone?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    1,040 people felt Kindergarten was the right age for a cell phone.

    9. Co-sleeping, yes or no?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Also surprisingly neck in neck were the dangers of co-sleeping vs the benefits of sleep.

    10. Let's talk about vaccinations.

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    The overwhelming majority of parents said they vaccinate without question.

    11. Kids and screen time?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    98% of reader's kids are using some form of technology.

    12. Do you kiss your kids on the lips?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Aw, we're sorry 10%.

    13. Have you ever caught yourself repeating something your parents said to you?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Looks like the majority of us are turning in to our parents.

    14. Where do you stand on circumcision?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Another issue that sparked hot debate in the comments, the circumcision question was also shared the most via social media.

    15. How do you deal with picky eaters?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Most parents were unwilling to sway to their little ones culinary whims.

    16. Let's talk about GMOs.

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    More people were concerned about the effect of GMOs than we had anticipated.

    17. Are you cool with underage drinking?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    24% of parents said they would not tolerate any underage drinking whatsoever.

    18. Who has it harder?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    78% of parents weren't going to touch this one.

    19. Cry it out?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    22% of us are weak-willed.

    20. Home birth?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    If only the women of the olden days could see us now.

    21. Epidural or not.

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    52% of respondents were not down with pain.

    22. Do you have a favorite kid?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    32% of parents took this poll with only one of their kids in the room.

    23. Do you party in front of your kid?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Apparently 5% of us can't stop won't stop.

    24. Who will teach your kids about sex?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    78% of parents should probably read this post before moving forward with that talk.

    25. How's your relationship with your partner?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Contrary to what "they" always tell you, it seems having kids has brought 33% of readers closer to their partner.

    26. How is your sex life?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Surprisingly, kids haven't put a damper on as many sex lives as we would have thought.

    27. What's your ideal number of kids?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Most parents said they'd stop at two if things went their way.

    28. What do you think of the Duggars?

    Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed

    59% of parents didn't dig the Duggar vibe.

    29. Do you judge other parents?

    Jennny Chang / BuzzFeed

    Are you doing it right now?