26 Parenting Practices From Around The World That Would Blow Your Tiny American Mind
Different cultures have their own unique parenting styles that are shaped by local customs, traditions, and societal values.
Different parenting practices around the world reflect cultural beliefs about child development and the roles of parents and communities.
Some cultures may prioritize collective responsibility for a child's upbringing, while Western cultures often emphasize independence and self-reliance in parenting.
These Redditors shared their thoughts on different parenting practices from around the world:
1.Australia
"I’m in Australia. There is a lot of healthy positivity with the mums in my mum’s group and mum's friends. Lots of encouragement and permission to share when things are both hard and good. Everyone seems to say, 'This worked for us, but every family is different, so there is no pressure if it doesn’t work for you.' Lots of support for mums, like no guilt if you need to / choose to use formula. It seems like everyone is careful not to seem like they are judging, which is nice. Trends include Toshi sun hats. Have your partner do an expressed bottle feed so you can go to bed early."
2.Australia
"In Australia, it is fairly common for males to take an equal part in parenting, at least in my own experience. No one really bats an eye if a male takes his child/grandchild out to the loo, to the park, or what have you. It's also common to see kids at the local pub or beer garden. Some pubs even have play equipment/toys/sandboxes in the garden section so parents can drink, eat, and/or have a smoko while out."
3.Azerbaijan
"Raising kids is mostly the mom's job.
Taboo subjects like sex are not discussed.
There is a huge gap between how girls and boys are treated.
Increasing pressure on girls to cover up, including their hair.
Corporal punishment is much more accepted.
Dad's job is basically to grease the wheels of power, getting you into the right school and good grades, keeping you out of the army, getting you a job, and marrying you off if he can swing it."
4.Bulgaria
"You have a 14-day paid leave as a father. The mother gets 24 months. The mother going back to work in a couple of months is unheard of and just ridiculous. A fellow dad here said that his wife puts 100 hours a week at work, and I can't even comprehend it. 40 is the norm here, and if you need to take off for your kid, you just do it. People are, in general, much more supportive."
5.Canada
"I’m from Quebec, Canada. I think we’re pretty much the same as everywhere else regarding parenting philosophies and trends. But what’s awesome is the government gives us this massive instruction book before we give birth, so we don’t feel like we have to Google everything.Unlike our US neighbors, we have 1-year parental leave, but similar to the US, we have a culture of no postpartum care: You are discharged quickly, with only one medical follow-up appointment (basically to see if your vagina or C-section scar is healing), but no mental, sexual, or physical well-being support. No feeding support. Free lactation services were scarce, so we had to pay a private nurse to see us after her hospital shifts. Usually, you have a nurse visit your home two days after being discharged to ensure your baby is feeding well. Still, mine refused to come to my home because of Covid and did the consultation over the phone; she didn’t even introduce herself; she just asked how much the baby peed and pooped and hung up (quite hilarious, actually). We have subsidized daycare, but my neighborhood has no spots, and the waiting list is years long. This has happened with all of my other children, too.
One thing I’ve noticed is that senior women here feel SUPER comfortable scolding moms in public and handing out advice. Yesterday, a lady scolded me loudly at the supermarket for wearing my baby ‘face out’ rather than ‘face in’ because of Covid. I'm not sure if that’s the same elsewhere since I’ve never lived anywhere else. But holy shit try leaving the house without socks or a hat here, it’s wild!"
6.Denmark
"As a Danish dad in Denmark, I was most stunned (or no, I knew it was different) by the short length of maternity leave in the US. We have an average of 12 months for the mother or shared. I have two weeks, but my work days are eight in the morning to 14 in the afternoon. As a teacher, I have all the vacation days the kids in the school have. I've since changed, but the vacations and holidays are still much the same as when I still teach. It's not standard for kids to start kindergarten before ten months old or one year old. I'm not super certain, but do parents in the US get access to a health nurse? In Denmark, we get a visit each month at home and sometimes more for guidance in all things parental. All of this is paid for through taxes."
7.Finland
"Finland here, we let them sleep outside too; the leaflet we get when we're pregnant recommends us too. Mine would nap for hours outside but barely 45 minutes inside, so sleeping outside definitely rules! It's the same with outside play. At my 4-year-old's daycare, the kids play outside every morning and every afternoon, no matter what the weather pretty much (there's only been once in the past year that they didn't go outside, and it was close to -30C with windchill). Parenting is pretty free-range here. Kids usually get themselves to and from school from first grade, and afterschool care ends after second grade (at least in my town), so after that, it's considered ok for them to be home alone after school if both parents are working. Kids play out unsupervised, and no one bats an eyelid at that (on my street, they start playing out from two to three years old). And not so much parenting, but a kid-related cultural thing, is that there doesn't seem to be an equivalent of kids calling adults sir or ma'am; it's more normal to be on first-name terms with adults, even teachers. I grew up in the UK where we had to call our teachers Sir or Miss and you rarely called a friend's parent by their first name so this seems very different to me, but I like it, it's much more relaxed and friendly, I think."
8.France
"My wife was told absolutely NO ALCOHOL, but a little bit of wine is OK."
9.Germany
"American Dad raising his son in Germany. I can't speak completely, but something is interesting to say about the environment. We recently had his cousins over for ten days and some things about the kids. (two boys, both four years old; ten months apart)
Independence is probably the biggest thing. My son is content with entertaining himself but also needs time to himself. His cousin is much more clingy and seemed to have a harder time with boundaries that my son would set and then enforce. I am not sure if this is from different socialization because my son has been in day-care since he was 1.5 (because it only costs us 100 euros a month for full-time care)
With that, being able to navigate the city was a huge difference. My son stops at all cross streets on his own. He knows the green light means go, and red means stop and wait. He knows how to stand on a train platform and where it is safe to stand. In addition to the lack of independence, the four-year-old wanted to be carried all the time. Ours was able to get around on his own. But when he saw his cousin being held, he wanted to be held. I denied him most of the time because I knew he could walk around the city all day.
Also, he knows more about how to behave in public places and restaurants. Although some of that was negated by having his cousin there, generally, there was a difference between the boys and, of course, the parents."
10.Germany
"I'm an American in Germany. Specifically, Berlin, so it might be different in other areas.
Tea. Babies drink a lot of tea.
Parents give their infants chocolate.
Breastfeeding usually only happens until six months and is greatly frowned upon after a year.
Most basket strollers don't have any straps or harnesses to keep the kid in the basket.
They use super-heavy blankets that almost look like pillows for infants. Many parents also use pillows in strollers.
Most mothers stay home for a year after birth. The baby starts daycare around a year later, but they have teachers and learn various things. For example, my husband started doing dishes when he was three, and the kids helped make lunch every day.
People give their babies a lot of carbs. I have seen many kids from around nine months up gnawing on a roll, pretzel, or cookie.
It kind of goes with seven, but parents will feed their toddlers cut-up dark bread covered in butter or noodles covered in butter for many meals.
On their first day, the kids get a bouquet of school supplies. It is a huge deal. Photos are taken. Families gather. Education is celebrated.
Baby clothes are ugly and super gender specific.
Tights. Even baby boys wear tights.
Parents drive with their babies and toddlers in the front seat.
House shoes. Even babies wear house shoes in the house."
11.Ghana
"Children rearing is a communal thing. Great-grandma > grandma > mom of the child is in charge (in that order).
Speaking of moms, they are waited on hand and foot while they're breastfeeding. As in, as long as the baby is done feeding, someone will take the baby to care for/soothe/bathe/rock to sleep while mom's energy levels are replenished via rest and excessive feeding.
At month 1, there is a party bigger than most American weddings for the baby (because the baby has 'decided' to stay with the family/this world and must now be given a proper name). It's called an 'out-dooring.'
Twins are double blessings, so the party is even bigger.
Babies wear only white/bright-colored clothing (joyful colors).
So much prayer with a new baby in the house!"
—-D-_
12.Great Britain
"In GB there's much less emphasis on being a winner and much more about trying your best. It has its cons, but also, nobody grows up with the 'if you're not first, you're last' opinion."
13.India
"Indian here: Pregnant women are allowed to eat as much as they can. They are supposed to eat all their favorite foods and cravings because it's believed that whatever mom eats satisfies the baby's craving. The mother-in-law is available throughout the pregnancy until the toddler is up and ready to join kindergarten. The support never stops, and so is the interference. It's a double-edged sword, but it's more beneficial than harmful. The woman postpartum is supposed to rest for at least 40 days. Her only job is to breastfeed. The baby and the mom both get a professional massage daily. There are special homemade delicacies and ayurvedic tonics that help with fast healing. The pressure to bring up the child is so much that a lot of women (not all, though) either take a sabbatical or leave work post-birth. There are always a lot of comparisons between the methods of upbringing, and mom is always under the spotlight. People at work are quite understanding and handle a pregnant woman very delicately and flexibly. It doesn't matter if the mother is working as much as the father; her presence is always more in the upbringing of a child than the 'man of the house.' Overall, a woman is treated well but deals with a lot of pressure, too."
14.Italy
"British dad raising a child in Italy: They were pretty adamant about giving the kid Parmesan during weaning, 'you want them to like food.' That one killed me. Also, there is a surprising amount of focus during pregnancy on mortadella (Bologna to the Yanks, I think?) as pregnant women shouldn’t eat salami ('No, no salami, but mortadella is God’s gift to you' a literal quote from a literal medical professional to my wife)."
15.Italy
"Italy here, the far north. I feel like parenting (like many aspects of life here) is on the right edge between past and future generations, between Mediterranean and Nordic styles.
You hear as many people say that you shouldn’t nurse to sleep as you hear saying cosleeping is best. This, of course, is to be located within a broader parenting philosophy that touches on aspects such as autonomy and discipline.
Similarly, both the infamous 'car seat as a stroller' and babywearing are popular.
Feeding-wise, BLW is on the rise, but I would say pediatrician-prescribed purée introduction is still the norm. There’s a sort of calendar with specific recipes (which are ridiculous—boiling vegetables for 20 minutes) for what to feed and when. My favorite part is that they say absolutely no salt but always add some parmesan.
An epitome of old-school Italian parenting (which is fading but present to this day) is hygiene/cleanliness. Many babies are raised in a sterile environment, and toys and even food are washed with specific disinfectants. Corona has probably further contributed to this. Many parents want their babies to be perfectly clean (clothes included) and look 'proper.'
Daycare also lives a cultural divide of sorts: Mediterranean families tend to prefer bigger daycare settings with multiple groups, where they feel like the staff is under more control (therefore, they can 'trust' them, in my opinion, feeling the need for control is the opposite of trust) and where the children 'learn more' because it’s more similar to a school setting. Northern parents tend to prefer more family-like settings, such as childminders or in-home daycare (one caretaker with up to five children in the caretaker's own home).
In a way, I see many similarities between Mediterranean Italian parenting and what I learned about US parenting here on Reddit, whereas the Northern Italian style is more similar to German/Nordic approaches. Where I live, I’d say we have 50/50."
16.Jamaica
"Jamaican dad here. There are a lot of differences:
Corporal punishment is the norm (though we don't do that in my house).
Kids eat the same food as adults. My kids have been eating the same traditional Jamaican food I eat since they started on solids.
Kids are taught to do chores ASAP.
Mom vs. Dad roles are more based on traditional gender roles, especially when the kids are very little.
Grandparents (especially grandmothers) do a lot of the child care."
17.Japan
"I'm an American dad, but I live in Japan, more specifically Okinawa, which is a mixture of Japanese Culture and island life.
Some things I’ve noticed. Kind of cultural differences/parenting differences.
It’s not uncommon to leave a baby in the car (running), especially if they’re sleeping. I got weird looks when I told my Japanese friends it’s difficult to just run into the store real quick with my son. They asked why he didn’t just stay in the car.
Kids walk to school and ride public transportation VERY early on. It’s not uncommon to see a 4-year-old walking down the street.
My wife got two years of paid leave. Maternity leave and child care leave.
Some restaurants are smoking, but kids are allowed. Yet if a kid comes in, no one says anything. People just go outside to smoke instead.
You don’t have to worry about circumcising because no hospital will do it (at least that we found. I just wanted info from a Dr.)."
18.Netherlands
"We're expats in the Netherlands.
It's normal for parents to leave their young children/babies home alone (asleep) when they run out to the shop or to pick up older children. Ditto for in the car. Nobody would bat an eye to see a child in a car while the parent ran in to pay for gas or whatever.
Kids as young as three or four are often left to play in the street with other children and with little or no adult supervision.
Kids call their teachers by their first name, with either Juf or Meester added. My son's teachers are Juf Michelle and Juf Annemieke. I'm not sure if this continues after elementary school, though.
Almost all mothers and many fathers work part-time, so children spend less time at daycare than in some other countries.
It used to be common for kids to sleep outside here, but they don't do it much anymore.
Many schools run on a schedule where elementary kids have Wednesday and Friday afternoons off school. Older kids may only have Wednesday afternoons off.
There are no cafeterias at school. Kids bring sandwiches for lunch or go home to eat lunch.
Petting zoos are everywhere. They're free and usually include goats, chickens, and various other animals. We have a little one right in the middle of our neighborhood."
19.New Zealand
"I'm not sure if it's parenting per se, but most kids here in NZ rarely wear shoes. It's probably not unusual to most of the world, but in a 'western' country, it gets a lot of comments. I moved here from the UK, and whenever my parents visit, they constantly comment on my kids not wearing shoes. They keep asking if the people are just poor. I think Auckland's increasingly large Chinese diaspora hasn't accepted this tradition yet either."
20.Poland
"In Poland, co-sleeping is seen as normal and healthy for both mom and baby (when done safely). I use a crib because I’m extremely anxious, but almost everyone I speak to has successfully co-slept with their little one."
21.Russia
"We don't leave them unattended, but at least 3-4 hours daily walk is mandatory for every parent to be considered 'good,' no matter the weather. Sometimes, sleeping on the apartment's balcony can be substituted for sleeping in a stroller. When kids go to a kindergarten, they also spend about the same time playing outside, even if it's -25C. Now I live in Bulgaria, and kindergartens don't take children outside at all during the winter! Come oooon, it's like what, 0C at coldest here, and usually closer to +10C! But no, it's too cold for Bulgarians."
22.Sweden
"Swedish here, I think there is a lot of emphasis on breastfeeding, and co-sleeping is common. Sleep training is a big no-no, and many see it as child abuse. Speaking of that, corporal punishment, such as spankings, is forbidden by law and very socially unacceptable. It’s seen as important for kids to be outside a lot, no matter the weather. Babies often sleep outside, bundled up in prams, even in winter, and winters here can get really cold.
Parental leave is very long—two years is not uncommon—and almost fully paid. It’s common for the parents to split the leave equally (but mums still take more time)."
23.United Kingdom
"It seems that the Americans have a big debate on whether to circumcise or not. In the UK, we just don't unless needed."
24.Venezuela
"Venezuelan here, living in the US.
We had our child through IVF, and my family thinks it’s voodoo, basically. They don’t understand that some couples may have fertility issues (no matter how much I explain). It’s always the woman’s fault for not being able to conceive.
Also, they seem to believe that women choose the sex of the baby and not the sperm?!
Anyway, my baby is almost two months old, and I get sent all sorts of advice daily: feed the baby orange juice, cereal, and water. Don’t use a pacifier because it’ll ruin their teeth. Don’t hold the baby too much, or they will be spoiled. Bathe the baby every single day. Start the formula as soon as possible.
Oh, and the best one I got yesterday when my baby had hiccups was hovering a wet thread over the forehead to get rid of hiccups."
25.Vietnam
"I live in Vietnam (I'm from NYC, though).
Our kid is being potty trained from birth using the age-old Vietnamese whistle method. There is a name for it in the West, but I forgot what it is called. Apparently, my wife was potty trained by nine months, so we'll see how it turns out. You don't see a lot of 1-year-olds + in diapers here, though, so it must work. Of course, it's not at all strange to see a mom or nanny holding a toddler over a trash can or sewer drain to let the kids relieve themselves."
26.Zimbabwe
"Zimbabwe checking in. Cosleeping is the norm and not the exception. Kids can speak two languages by the time they're in first grade (English and the native language). Spanking is absolutely acceptable, and it's weird if you don't spank your child. Babies are carried on mother's backs from the day they're born to about three years of age, and they are an easy and secure form of transportation for quieting a fussy child. The baby cards here explicitly state that babies should be breastfed until 24 months. Breastfeeding in any location is normal and acceptable; in a shopping mall, restaurant, church, bus, etc., it's also normal for kids to play at a neighbor's house or in the street until dinner time, and parents are not worried. When a baby is born, and people come to see the baby, they usually hand a token over to the mother as 'permission' to hold the baby, usually a dollar. Car seats are rare. We use one because we are more 'enlightened,' but most folks ride free with babies of any age. Many people still believe that a sunken fontanelle is a result of witchcraft or some other disease (they scoff at the idea of dehydration), and they resort to traditional methods of treatment. Usually, an old lady rubs salt on the roof of the baby's mouth. (Go figure). Of course, some of this is changing with westernization, but this is all normal for most parts of Southern Africa."
H/T: /r/daddit, /r/Parenting, and /r/New Parents
Are there other unique parenting practices from different countries that aren't here? Let me know in the comments.
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length/clarity.
