Real Men Wear Their Babies
As social trends change,and men are more involved with child-rearing, it seems theyare now more comfortable wearing their babies, according toNew Zealand baby-wearing advocates, Louisa Currie and HeidiRiley. “Men are wearing their babies and it seems to bewith some pride. It’s like they’re telling the world,look at me, I’m a hands-on dad,” says Louisa, whoseonline baby store Belly Beyond, which she runs with bestfriend and business partner Heidi, promotes baby-wearing inNew Zealand and Australia.
They say that men wearing orcarrying babies has become more of an everyday sight in NewZealand, where it was only previously seen overseas or inalternative hippy communities.
“Dads want to be moreinvolved and baby-wearing fits the bill. Let’s face it,men should have no trouble baby-wearing,” says Heidi,“They tend to have stronger arms and broader shoulders andfind carrying babies physically much easier.”
In fact,baby-wearing has been found to release natural hormones inmen; which trigger paternal protective behaviours. Theseinitiate a healthy fathering cycle, leading to relaxed andconfident dads, who enjoy being identified as care-givers.“Most women identify as mothers from very early in apregnancy. The fatherhood identity has a slower start andcarrying baby and being involved helps hasten theprocess,” Louisa says.
Baby-wearing comes in all shapesand sizes; including slings, pouches and wraps. Manyfamilies use two or more styles of baby carrier over thelife of a child, depending on age and need. Heidi notes thatmen look for baby carriers that are not too feminine anddon’t inhibit their everyday activities. And, it was onlya matter of time before the maternity industry began to lookat paternity needs, says Louisa, whose company sells severalbaby carriers designed with dads in mind.
Louisa says thepopular American-designed ERGObaby Sports Carrier wasdesigned to appeal to men. ERGObaby will launch a newPerformance Carrier, for active families, in September,which will be the lightest weight baby carrier available andhas many other dad-friendly features. “Men are consciousof body temperature, so they like lighter-weight fabrics.They also prefer neutral and dark colours, avoiding femininepatterns and many
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