Naked kids on the beach - would you let them?

[ssd]

I mean would you let your say 6 year old play naked on the beach?

Today thanks to the sun at last we went to the beach, it was fairly busy. A family next to us let their approx. 6 year old boy play around the waters edge naked for a while before the cold got to him and he put on pants as in underpants. The other kids ages about 3 - 9 years old were playing in their underpants (all boys).

Now I'm not prudish but I don't think its acceptable to let a child play on a beach naked, nor would I want an older child playing in his pants. My ds1 would never play and run around in front of strangers in only his pants and he's 7, the other kids I mean were older than him.

I don't care what anyone does at home or in their garden, but I'd want them dressed more appropriately at a beach.

What do you think?

Couldn't agree more stitch.

Wish I'd never started it .........

I still think its weird that people who let their kids go nude think people who put cozzies on their kids are weird. FGS (and I never swear on mumsnet) it is normal to wear swimwear on a beach, at a pool, etc.

and appropriate (as in appropriate clothing for the circumstances)

I dont think its people putting cozzies on their kids that people are finding weird, it's some of the reasoning, based on fear that some people are finding hard to understand. At the end of the day we all do what we think is best for our kids and that is the most important thing.

Yep, I don't think it's wierd at all to put a cozzie on a kid - but I do object to being told it's appropriate, because the implication is that children being naked is inappropriate. (Although I don't suppose that's the implication the poster meant.) I think for pre-pubescent children, being naked or being clothed on a beach is equally appropriate - unless they're fair-skinned and aren't wearing sun-tan protection! It is totally down to personal preference, which is why I think I object to the A word!

no i don't let my children, play naked at the beach. i think it's perfectly natural and i was a naked kid on a beach once myself but things have changed and i hate the thought of some perv secretly getting off on my children ,so definatly no. kids naked in the back garden in and out of paddling pool, not over looked, no problem. the other thing that worries me about kids on beaches is the digital camara and zoom lenses,they could be on the net and in the hands of, well who knows. i know that 99.9% of people on the beach are other mums and dads, but i wouldn't take that risk.

I wouldn't want to do anything in public that makes other people feel uncomfortable, therefore it is inappropriate (in my view).

But it does, as has been said here, why is that so hard to understand?

sigh
I can't help myself - I just have to post one more thing as I think I made the 'muslim in purdah' comment (not using those words)
to explain: it reminded me of this issue(not saying it is the same thing, it just reminded me) because covering children up in headscarf, burkha etc is not a religious choice because the koran doesn't say that female children should be covered up but I have always presumed that people make that cultural choice since they also make the association female flesh (of any age) = temptation to male adult onlooker. So I saw a connection with parent covers up child because child's naked flesh = temptation to paedophile onlooker. Just as many judges have said 'lots of long legs on show in miniskirt' = temptation to weirdo rapist. The second reason I saw a connection is because I think all those arguments are flawed.
didn't mean to be rude to anyone and I'm sure lots of people will post that I am totally wrong about cultural reasoning behind burkha wearing prepubescents - am entirely open to being corrected on this issue.
to clarify somewhat further, I am not comparing parents who put swimsuits on their children to anyone else at all. It is quite obviously the norm in our society. I was interested in the reasons some people gave for not letting their kids go naked. I was trying to think beyond the individuals making the choices to the reasoning beyond it. Obviously not very well, but then I don't pretend to be the world's greatest debater either.
sincerely hoping not to offend people, but not entirely sure I have achieved my aim

feel "better" (ie more comfortable) when dd & ds have their privates covered. must be my prudish upbringing. but love to see dd (almost 5) in just a bikini bottom. wish I could wander around topless... sigh!

Can't correlate the wearing of swimwear with making children ashamed of their bodies at all. My dd has always worn swimwear at beach or pool, there has never been an issue. For her, it is normal.

Don't worry about it Morocco - have taken a chill pill now.

But the muslim in purdah thing (which did annoy me originally, hence when it sort of came up again I let rip when poor Beety mentioned burkhas)is a little inflammatory - although I am sure you didn't mean it that way.

I equate purda and burkhas - from the standpoint of my western feminist leanings - as a form of oppression of women...so the analogy when compared to children covered up with a swimsuit didn't sit well with me; because I don't think that I am oppressing my children iyswim. Hence all the bluster and indignation....which is long gone now.

And I am loving everybody again (could be to do with it being after the kids' bed time so wine has come out and is being imbibed in great quantities)

ah but cam - I can definitely correlate wearing of swimwear to making adult mother of two with flabby tummy feeling ashamed of her body (although sadly, not all seem to share my self consiousness )

And feel that I should add a postscript - that I am definitely not anti muslim!

(phew, it's hard work fathoming out what might and might not offend isn't it?)

I have always put DD in a swim nappy/swimsuit when playing on the beach or similar public place. When tiny it was more so that the nappy caught any accidents. Also because I wanted to protect her baby fair skin from too much sun exposure. DD has always had proper UV suits to help with this. Now she gets a choice - she is 3yo - and she always chooses to wear a swim suit - either her UV suit if hot and/or sunny, or a swimsuit if not so bad. She loves her swimsuits - they are pretty and chosen by her.

At home DD is often running about with no clothes on. Always has since being tiny. She has no hang ups about this, desite covering up in public.

i'm really interested in why people think things have changed, there are no more paedophiles out there than there used to be - the government & society have just created a culture of fear

i'm really interested in why people think things have changed, there are no more paedophiles out there than there used to be - the government & society have just created a culture of fear

{grin} hmc - glad we are friends again - stupid of me to even start down that road anyway, it's so hard to say things how you mean them on the net
I'm on my second huge baileys - hurrah for early nights for kids.

When I used to live in Brighton my nearest beach was the nudist beach (just below Sussex Square
where Cate Blanchett lives now). Believe me I 've seen everything.

Morocco,

Of course we are friends again