It's the ultimate taboo. Openly revealing that you were disappointed by your baby's appearance is something not many parents would do, but a survey has revealed that actually 1 in 5 of us secretly felt that our new arrival was ugly and half of those told their other halves so.
They weren't so honest with their friends and family, though - only 8% of those who believed their child to be ugly shared their feelings with others apart from the child's other parent.
It may be a shocking result, but the fact that 18% of parents are disappointed with their offspring's looks means, of course, that 82% of mums and dads think their child is the most beautiful creature they've ever seen. And, even more heartening, 99% of the 1,000 parents polled by PromotionalCodes.co.uk said that they fell in love with their baby the moment they saw them, whatever their feelings about their visual appearance.
One anonymous father said: 'My daughter is three now and she is gorgeous, but when she arrived she was the most disgusting little thing I'd ever seen. She had a face only a mother could love, but even my wife admitted she was ugly. It doesn't mean you love them any less of course. In fact it brings out some very intense feelings of protection. You really feel you have to root for them in life because they aren't as good looking.'
Have any of your friends confided they felt their baby wasn't good-looking? Did you feel your baby wasn't as good-looking as others but didn't dare admit it? What do you think of parents who make this confession? Tell us in the comments box below, or on Facebook.
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