JustParents Blog

Should you have kids?

To procreate or not to procreate -- that is the question. Here is the answer.

With shared parental leave legislation impending, 44% of working women consider sharing their entitlement

From April next year, it's expected that new legislation in the UK will mean that parents finally have more options over who takes time off work to care for their new arrival.

Although this is a breakthrough both for parental equality and hopefully for gender pay equality in the workplace, the impact will completely depend on how many couples take the newly available options.

A recent survey by Workingmums.co.uk suggests that 44% of working mothers would consider sharing their parental leave with their partner - up 3% on last year's figure.

17% of…

Big babies

The average weight of babies has been going up for the last 30 years but the number of 'large' babies has gone up by a staggering 20% in the last decade - and the trend seems to be continuing. The question is why?

According to an article in The Guardian recently, the average birth weight is now 7lb 8oz and while this is not far from the 1970 average of 7lb 6oz, the number of babies over 9lb 15oz has increased significantly. The article goes on to say that most health professionals class a baby over 9lb 15oz as…