It takes an average of 40 minutes to get a child out of the house, thanks to rows over cleaning their teeth, brushing their hair and what they wear, a poll found.
A survey of 1,000 parents found that 91 per cent have daily battles with their offspring, including whether they should go to school, wear sun lotion, eat vegetables or drink water. Mums and dads struggle to get children to wear their glasses, go to bed on time and wash their hands after using the toilet.
As a result, 69 per cent of parents feel frustrated as they are trying to do what is best for their children, with 67 per cent thinking tasks such as cleaning teeth and wearing glasses are key to improving self-esteem. But 63 per cent believe that going through a single day without some kind of disagreement with their child would be a miracle. As parents, 66 per cent said they had gained a new understanding of how their own mothers and fathers felt raising them.
Of the 37 per cent of those polled whose children wear glasses, 69 per cent struggle to get them to wear their spectacles, even though 19 per cent considered this a priority.
The poll was commissioned by the manufacturer Hoya Lens UK. Its spokeswoman Professor Kathryn Saunders, head of optometry and vision science at Ulster University, said: “Parents invest a lot of time and energy in making sure their children are healthy and happy. A key component of wellbeing for those who need glasses is making sure they are worn.”
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She added: “Researchers have also proven a clear relationship between being short-sighted and spending less time outdoors in childhood. There’s no better time than the new school term to have a fresh focus on encouraging children to put down their phones or tablets and get outdoors.”
The poll found that of those parents whose children have glasses, 61 per cent blame the fact that none of their friends wear spectacles on their struggle to put them on. Others said children find them uncomfortable, 60 per cent, or have been teased, 52 per cent. But 79 per cent have tried making glasses more appealing, by buying fashionable frames or reminding them their favourite film characters, such as Harry Potter, also wear spectacles.