Is one child enough?

With the mounting problems overpopulation is bringing to the planet, many morally conscious couples will question whether they should have children at all, or maybe just one is enough? This article is about the problems and advantages of having just one child.

There are lots of advantages for having just one child. The child will not have to share the love and attention of the parents with other siblings, the parents will have more money for the child's upbringing and education than if they have several children. The first born child is always the golden child, the one who gets most of the attention and the best of everything, where as second children just get hand me downs and a life full of being an after thought and second best, this is avoided when you only have one child. There will be no favouritism in a one child family and no sibling rivalry.

Studies have shown that often first born children are not only more intelligent and healthier than second born children, they also do better in life than their younger siblings. If you grow up feeling loved and wanted, you are much more likely to develop strong and healthy, those who are brought up feeling unloved often lag behind in their mental development, and have the tendency to have physical and mental health problems. Of course there are always exceptions, but in general this has been found to be true.

Parents might think they are treating all their children equally, even if they do secretly admit to themselves that they have a favourite. But children are very perceptive and the second born will know they are not as important and often won't try at school. They grow up with a sense of not being good enough, they are doomed to be the black sheep of the family and in their teenage years will often play up on this, usually as a cry for help and attention seeking. They don't feel loved and will probably suffer throughout life with depression and many failed relationships, deep down they don't feel like they deserve to be loved. If given the choice would you be a first or second born?

The bad side of having one child - the spoilt brat syndrome - oh yes, we all know someone with this. The child who has been mollycoddled by their parents so much that they have a sense of entitlement that continues on into their adulthood. It can lead to terrible mood swings when they don't get their own way. Children with no siblings can get too much attention from their doting parents and end up never wanting to leave home, the big bad world is scary to them because they have lived a life of being wrapped in cotton wool. And although the only child might excel at school and in academia, they rarely want to leave their home town to pursue their career to the full. They need an extra push to do things. Sometimes the only child might meet and marry someone who provides this push they need and with this they can achieve great things.

As the only child is a first born they usually have excellent health, however they have a tendency to be hypochondriacs. This is because it gets them even more attention and affection from their doting parents.

Having siblings can be positive in many ways too, especially if they are of a similar age. They can look out for each other, protect each other and learn to share their toys. These are all positives to having more than one child.

So there is good side to having one child and a bad side, although the bad sides are things that can be corrected easily with better parenting skills. The child also needn't miss out having something similar to a sibling if you have friends with similar aged children.

Do you think the bad side of having just one child outweighs the good?