Every generation of parents think they know best when it comes to raising kids – but one thing we can all probably agree on is that those in the 16th century very much did not.
An analysis of books from the 1500s has revealed some rather eye-opening parenting techniques used by mums and dads of the time.
Dr Joan Fitzpatrick, from Loughborough University, analysed dietary literature – historic books that offered advice to all sorts of people, including parents, on health and wellbeing.
“We know that they were popular and widely read because they were frequently reprinted in the decades after they first appeared,” said Dr Fitzpatrick.
Here’s what she found.
Diet and exercise
Parents of the 16th century were told they needed to help maintain “an ideal humoral balance in the body” – a priority for raising healthy kids.
“According to humoral theory, to be in good health involved maintaining an equal balance of the four humours that flowed through the body,” says Dr Fitzpatrick.
So what are the four “humours”? Blood, choler (yellow bile), melancholy (black bile) and phlegm, explains the expert. OK we definitely regret asking.
“The dietaries recommended women’s breast milk for sick adults as well as children, but care was needed if employing a wet nurse since it was believed that a child could develop the character of its nurse through her milk,” added Dr Fitzpatrick.
Natural suppositories were also recommended for “weak people or children” to purge the body, while “overfed” children were made to exercise and fast.
Parents or caregivers were also encouraged to diligently search their child’s poo to perceive what “digesteth well and what doth the contrary.” Fun!
Development and safety
One piece of literature encouraged parents to keep their children away from pigs as “they are vile creatures.”
Another bit of health advice looking at what could be done to help with teething recommended rubbing brains from a hare onto a child’s gums to make their teeth grow. Lovely.
And – probably the more preferable treatment – using butter “when their teeth do grow or ache.”
Punishment
As you can imagine, views on punishment were a lot more extreme, with one book suggesting parents will feel shame if they “spare the rod and spoil the child”.
Good parents were also likened to *checks notes* gardeners.
The guidance implied that parents should protect their offspring from bad or silly behaviour, just as gardeners watch out for tender plants that might be harmed by harsh weather.
It was also quite key that parents should punish swearing, “which is a detestable thing to hear and no man doth go about to punish it.”
Behaviour
A book about manners for children, which was translated into English from Latin in 1532, has also unveiled some pretty fascinating findings about how kids were expected to behave.
Some of the advice for children included:
Don’t grin and laugh to excess or show your teeth like a dog,
Turn your face when you spit so you don’t spit on anyone,
Don’t scratch, it is filthy,
Hair shouldn’t cover your eyebrows or be shoulder length,
If you must fart, disguise it with a cough,
Don’t play with your toes or fingers,
Don’t wear too many bright colours,
Make sure your clothing is clean, with no spots of urine on the hems of your linen.
Dr Fitzpatrick, who is author of Three Sixteenth-Century Dietaries: A Critical Edition, said it’s “remarkable” how much of the advice given on manners has stood the test of time.
“The dietary literature is perhaps more hit-and-miss when it comes to giving advice to today’s parents – for example, how many would rub the brains of a hare onto their child’s gums?!” she said.
“But there are gems to be found amongst the more useful advice, not least that the good parent should care for their children as they would a tender, young plant.”