Children's awkward questions put parents on spot

Parents are being asked to act as experts on a range of subjects from the origin of black holes to whether there is life after death, according to a survey published yesterday.

As if proving that being a parent is the hardest job in the world, a range of tough questions from offspring have been revealed following an online poll of 2,500 British parents.

The top questions parents struggle to answer include "how is electricity made?", followed closely by "what are black holes?", "what is infinity?", "why is the sky blue?" and even "why does cutting onions make you cry?"

Parents are also being asked to tackle issues such as whether God exists and "where do you go when you die?" as well as the more predictable "where do babies come from?"

More than half of parents (56 per cent) refer to the internet when approached with difficult questions, with nine per cent taking children to the library to seek out enlightenment.

One in 10 parents admitted to making up the answers as they felt "too embarrassed" to admit they did not have the answers.