A father has explained why he won't stop kissing his son on the lips after a TikTok video sparked controversy online.
Over on the video sharing platform, UK-based Tom, who goes by @tom_leeds, hit back at followers who criticised him for kissing his son on the lips.
After pecking his five-year-old son in one video, Tom took to the platform to respond to one particular comment from a follower who slammed him over the clip.
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They wrote: "Don't kiss your children on the lips fact!
"Because not all humans have the same intentions, do you see what I'm saying? Don't make it acceptable."
But Tom wasn't having any of it and took to TikTok to hit back at the comment.
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He said: "So, the logic here is if I kiss my five-year-old, he will think that he can go off and it's okay to kiss strangers.
"So, let's apply that logic. I can't have him in my car anymore to take him places because he could get in a stranger's car and think that's normal.
"He can't live in my house anymore because he could just walk into a stranger's house and think that that's normal.
"Or, we could teach him that he's got a mummy and a daddy and kissing them is normal but kissing dodgy Barry down the road is a bit weird. Let's do that."
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Tom explained that he would continue kissing his son on the lips for as long as he 'deems necessary'.
"I find it worrying that it bothers you," he said in another video.
"I will kiss my son, my five-year-old child, on the lips for as long as I deem necessary and as long as he lets me, right, 'cause I love him to bits and he's my best pal and one day he won't want me to and he probably won't want much to do with me.
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"So for now, I'll carry on as I am."
Not all of the comments Tom received were negative, with many parents backing him up.
One person wrote online: "Comments like that makes me so angry!! It’s the people the write them that have the issues not the parents!"
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While another commented: "I will continue to grab my 3 boys by their faces and give them big kisses. I adore my babies."
And a third added: "Ffs!!! Folks need to grow up. From my view u are an awesome dad who loves his son."
Lucy Devine