The rule of thumb that many children work by is 'you get what you can bargain for'. Marketers now recognising the effectiveness of children's pester power increasingly cater to children in the advertising of even household goods.

Children also place a great deal of pressure on each other to acquire the latest fashion item, toy or foodstuff. Invariably, it is parents who are the butt of this pressure as children turn to them to fund their consumer-driven lifestyles. 'Mum, can you buy me a.......' seems to be the new modern mantra heard in kitchens around the country as weary parents put their hands in their pockets to purchase items for their children before they provide for themselves.

If your child places you under inordinate pressure to buy, buy, buy the following ideas may help combat his or her pester power:

* Avoid feeling guilty for saying no to a child's request for material goods. Bear in mind that delaying gratification is not only virtuous but is actually good for children in the long run. There have been some interesting studies done that have shown that educational and social outcomes tend to be better for children who are able to defer gratification rather than get what they want immediately.

* Help children differentiate between a want and a need. Children want many things but in actual fact need far less than they think to get by.

* Introduce pocket-money from an early age and encourage them to save for the things they want. Not only does saving encourage child

ren to work toward goals but it places responsibility for purchases on children.

* When children say everyone else in their class has the latest fad ask them for the names of three so you can contact their parents to find out where they purchased it.

* Encourage a sense of generosity to match children's growing consumerism. When new items are bought then maybe old items can be given to a sibling, a friend or someone else who can use them.

The consumer culture is both all-embracing and persuasive. There is little that can't be bought these days. Gifts and snacks are bought rather than homemade. Clothing is rarely mended. Even simple games such as noughts and crosses have commercial versions that bought in a store. Kids place enormous pressure on their parents to keep up with the Jones' kids but that doesn't mean that parents should give in.

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