Kourtney Kardashian’s In Hot Water For Promoting Extreme Food Restrictions For Kids
The mother of three is under fire for promoting what many believe is an "obsessive" and "unhealthy" relationship with food.
It’s no secret that Kourtney Kardashian-Barker is something of a health freak. The Kardashians star famously did an Ayurvedic cleanse last year with husband Travis Barker that included abstaining from sex, caffeine, alcohol, and sugar in an effort to boost the success of IVF treatments. And while watching what you eat can be a good thing — especially for those who deal with ailments like Crohn’s disease and IBF — some fans think the mother-of-three is setting up her children to have a very unhealthy relationship with food.
In a new interview promoting her new line of vitamins and supplements, Lemme, with WSJ, Kardashian-Barker talked not only her health regimen, but how proud she was that her eldest, Mason Disick, 12, said that people who let him eat junk food are “bad.”
Talking about her own diet as a kid, Kardashian-Barker admitted it was wildly different from how she is raising Mason, Penelope (10), and Reign (7). “It was the ’80s!” she said. “We had really unhealthy food in our house Everyone ate chips and Lunchables and the animal cookies that were pink and white with sprinkles.”
Ultimately it was having Mason that inspired Kardashian-Barker to take a meticulous look at her diet, saying, “When I had Mason is when I really started my wellness journey, he’s very smart. He’ll tell me, ‘A person was bad because they let me have Cheetos.’”
She also said that when Mason recently asked her McDonald’s french fries, she shut it down. Today I was having my one-on-one time with my son [Mason] and he said, “Mom, I need McDonald’s french fries today, please. It’s been a year since I’ve had it.” I was like, “Today’s not the day, sorry.”
Fans quickly recognized some red flags and took to social media to condemn Kourt’s decision to impose restrictive diets on her kids. Many who had grown up in similar households noted that their mom’s “healthy” limits on food had a negative impact on their relationship with food as adolescents and adults. “my mom deprived us of any “fun” foods in the house and once i was old enough to buy my own food when i was out with friends, i would go crazy!! it’s been hard to learn how to balance foods as an adult and try to have a good relationship with food,” noted one fan on the KUTWK subreddit.
“This is a great way to raise a little boy with a bad relationship with food!” added another. Other eagle-eyed fans noted that there is definitely junk food at dad Scott Disick’s house, as evidenced by Penelope’s TikToks.
“By restricting those foods at one house and having them easily available at another, you could lead to them binging while they’re at Scotts or trying to sneak food between houses. It’s so problematic,” said one fan.
Others noted that not only was the restrictive diet a surefire way to give her kids unhealthy eating habits down the line, but the fact that Mason labeled someone who offered him Cheetos as “bad” moralizes food choices and leads to unnecessary judgement of people who just want some cheese-dusted corn puffs.
“Me eating a f*cking hot Cheetos doesn’t make me a bad person,” notes on commenter, who quickly rattled off dozens of habits Kardashian-Barker has rank higher on the “bad” scale: “Watering my acres of lawn during a drought, emitting LOADS of carbon emissions cause I don’t wanna fly commercial, leather galore, real fur, excessive wealth, mingling among shady creeps near my kids, and openly lying about sh*t DOES make me a bad person.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with eating disorder recovery, reach out the the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD) for help and services near you.
