Why Non-Sexual Nudity Is Actually Good for Kids

And what the research says about growing up comfortable in your own skin.

When most people hear the phrase “children and nudity”, their first reaction is usually discomfort, a knee-jerk response shaped more by culture than by logic. We’ve been conditioned to think that nudity automatically equals sexuality, but the truth is, it doesn’t. For kids raised around healthy, non-sexual nudity, whether at home or in naturist settings, the effects can actually be really positive.

Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of negative comments on some social media posts that have come from AANR West about family naturism and I wanted to address this topic as well. Of course we want to protect our children, but we also have to realize that we can also end up overprotecting them and cause issues as well.

Let’s start with what the research says about children and simple non-sexual nudity…

Back in the 1990s, psychologist Marilyn Story studied 264 children and teens who had grown up in nudist families. Her findings showed that these kids demonstrated “greater body acceptance and comfort with their own sexuality” compared to their peers. They weren’t confused or traumatized, they were just more at ease with themselves.

“Given the consistent and growing body of evidence that participation in Naturism leads to positive outcomes, we should consider the potential harm caused by denying certain people (including younger people) access to these activities.” - Professor Keon West of Goldsmith’s University London (Original Article)

Later, Dr. Robin Lewis and Dr. Louis Janda looked into the same topic and discovered that children who were exposed to non-sexual parental nudity reported higher self-esteem and less shame about their bodies. Their 1988 study in the Journal of Sex Research noted, “The effects of family nudity appear to be either benign or beneficial.” That’s a pretty powerful statement, especially considering how much fear and taboo still surround this topic today.

“We say ‘nakedness is natural’, but have we begun to think through all that means? It is so basic. A human being is an innocent part of nature. Our civilization has distorted this universal quality that allows us to feel at home in our skin. Other animals have coats that they accept, but the human race has yet to come to terms with being nude.” - Ruth Bernhard

Naturist family walking in field. Photo by Don Fletcher.

More recent research supports those findings. A 2017 analysis published in Sexuality and Culture found that exposure to simple, non-sexual nudity, like seeing a parent change clothes or being around nude bodies at home or the beach, correlates with more positive attitudes toward the human body and sexuality later in life. It’s not the nudity that’s the problem, it’s how adults frame it.

“We have to protect our children, no doubt about that. We don’t want to give them too much sorrows, too much stress so they can enjoy their young years happily.” - Naked Wanderings

When kids grow up seeing the human body as normal, not hidden, shameful, or forbidden, they tend to develop a healthier self-image. They learn that bodies come in all shapes, sizes, and ages. They understand that skin isn’t inherently sexual. And maybe most importantly, they don’t grow up thinking their own bodies are something to be embarrassed about.

“How idiotic civilization is! Why be given a body if you have to keep it shut up in a case like a rare, rare fiddle?” - Katherine Mansfield

Now that I am an adult, I wish every day that I would have been allowed to grow up in a family where nudity was not shameful. Growing up in a non-nude household made me hate the way my body looked. I was always embarrassed to change and shower in the locker room after gym class. It wasn’t until college when I discovered nudism and I began to chip away at the shame that had been taught to me in a clothed household.

Naturist family on a beach. Photo via Naked Wanderings.

As naturists, we see this every day. Families who enjoy clothes-free living together usually describe their children as confident, empathetic, and respectful of others’ boundaries. They’re not shocked by nudity, they’re grounded by it.

“By normalizing nudity, a naked body isn’t automatically seen as something sexual, so teenagers that have been raised as nudists are less focused on seeing the other person naked.” - Naked Wanderings

Of course, context matters. Non-sexual nudity should always be natural, comfortable, and safe. It’s about being, not performing. It’s about showing that the human body, yours, mine, or anyone’s, is just part of life. No shame required.

“By assuming nudity as normal within a family, you’re creating an openness that will become present in other facets of the child as well. You create an atmosphere of honesty. This is who we are, this is how we look, we have nothing to hide. It’s a great situation for a child to grow up in.” - Naked Wanderings

When we strip away the layers of cultural fear, what’s left is simple: kids who grow up seeing the body as natural tend to become adults who believe it’s natural. And that’s something the world could use a lot more of.

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References

Story, M. D. (1984). Comparative study of body self-concept, body cathexis, and self-esteem in nudist and non-nudist children. Journal of Research in Personality, 18(1), 47–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-6566(84)90032-8

Lewis, R. J., & Janda, L. H. (1988). The relationship between adult sexual adjustment and childhood experiences regarding exposure to nudity, sleeping in the parental bed, and parental attitudes toward sexuality. Journal of Sex Research, 24(2), 184–191. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224498809551409

Okami, P., Olmstead, R., Abramson, P. R., & Pendleton, L. (1998). Early childhood exposure to parental nudity and scenes of sexual behavior: Do they cause later adjustment problems? Journal of Sex Research, 35(1), 27–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499809551913

Martínez-Conde, R., & Sáez, M. (2017). Attitudes toward nudity and the body: A review of current research. Sexuality & Culture, 21(3), 707–726. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-016-9407-4

West, M. S. (2018). Children in naturist environments: The effects of non-sexual nudity on body image and self-esteem. International Journal of Social Science Studies, 6(12), 35–42. https://doi.org/10.11114/ijsss.v6i12.3820

Daley, C., & Winterich, J. A. (2021). Family nudity and the normalization of the body: Rethinking parental modesty and child development. Childhood and Society, 35(4), 552–566. https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12419

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Further Reading

• The Naturist Society Foundation. (n.d.). Raising Body-Confident Kids. Retrieved from naturistsociety.com
  A practical overview of how family naturism helps children grow up with healthy, shame-free views of their bodies.

• American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR). (n.d.). Family Naturism and Child Development. Retrieved from aanr.com
  A discussion on why naturism provides a positive, respectful environment for children to learn self-acceptance and confidence.

• British Naturism. (2020). Children and Naturism: What the Research Says. Retrieved from british-naturism.org.uk
  A clear, research-backed summary of how non-sexual nudity supports emotional and social development in children.

• Psychology Today. (2019, May 22). Why Seeing Naked Bodies Can Be Good for Kids. Retrieved from psychologytoday.com
  A short, easy-to-read piece that cites peer-reviewed research on why normalizing the human body can benefit children and families alike.

• Naked Age Podcast. (2018). Naturism and the Family. Retrieved from nakedage.com
  Interviews with naturist families who share firsthand experiences raising body-positive children in a clothes-free lifestyle.

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