'There Is No Right Way To Parent': Mom's Post About Food-Shaming Goes Viral

In a spectacular viral post, one mom explains why we shouldn’t be shaming parents about what they feed their kids.

A mom took to Facebook recently to vent over how tired she is of having the food choices she makes for her children called into question by others. Calling it “mum shaming” because of course, this is usually not criticism lobbed at dads, she explains how it’s not anyone’s place to tell parents what they should and shouldn’t be feeding their kids. And she’s absolutely right.

In a post she says was never intended to “go viral,” Paige-Alexis Cunningham touched a nerve with her thoughts on what children eat and what the rest of the world has to say about it. Her post has over 17,000 likes and has been shared almost 1200 times. She writes:

Lately my feed has been flooded with people sharing ‘what not to feed your kids’ ‘I’ll never let my kids have that again’ and so on. So much mum shaming within these posts!

Indeed. You know you see this type of post while scrolling Facebook and it’s maddening. Why do some moms think they’ve got the corner on what’s best to feed any kid other than their own? Cunningham touches on that next:

We’re having watermelon for afternoon tea. For lunch we had McDonald’s happy meals. For breakfast one kid had rice bubbles, the other refused to eat. At some stage they had some apple juice. One drinks cows milk bottles all the frikken time, too much in anyone’s opinion. Oh and the dairy industry is apparently really cruel, cows milk is filled with tonnes of gross stuff like puss – you’ve got to be kidding me!

As she mentions, some people think dairy is unhealthy. But as we all know, there are people who think soy is unhealthy. Or that veganism isn’t appropriate for small children. Or that too little meat isn’t good for a growing kid. Or that fast food is literal poison and if it so much as touches your child’s lips, they’ll turn into a snarling gargoyle.

To sum it up, someone will have an issue with anything you choose depending on their personal nutrition philosophy, so maybe we should all just shut the fuck up about what other parents feed their kids?

Cunningham goes on to defend her own kids eating fast food. As if she should even need to. Again, pointing out that literally anything she feeds her kids could be called into question by the Google-certified “nutritionists” out there.

Why did they have happy meals and juice? Because they wanted it, we were out in public and I was bloody exhausted and didn’t want to fight with them. They picked at it, and then demolished my sushi – which is terrible for kids by the way;The rice is full of sugar and the tuna is full of mercury!

Who hasn’t been there? If you’re tired and don’t feel like cooking and those big golden arches are calling your name, who has the right to shame you for it? She also mentions the “horrors” of apples and yogurt pouches having too much sugar and the dangers of processed meats. It’s exhausting trying to meet all of the criteria laid out by the Judgy McJudgersons of the world.

So Cunningham’s ultimate point is, why bother trying to? Starting with a plea to stop the mom shaming, she wraps up by saying all that matters is that your kids are fed.

Did you feed your kids some crap today? Yeah cool, you fed them! It’s the same debate as breast is best, not formula. Breast IS best, if it’s best for you. At the end of the day, fed children are best. Don’t let them eat junk all the time, but don’t lay the guilt on yourself or any other parent if they ate 2-minute noodles and Nutella today. Educate yourself about positive food choices by all means, but don’t feel the need to share every bit of crap you read and further the mum shaming, everything in moderation and well done for feeding your kids!

Mic drop. She is totally correct and if you are a mom who researches every bite and follows a very strict philosophy for your child’s diet? Good for you. Cunningham isn’t saying there’s anything wrong with that. Only with suggesting that one mom’s way is the only way and giving other parents grief in an effort to “help” or feel superior isn’t at all helpful. Because judging simply never helps. All this mom is saying is to do what’s best for your family. And that’s something we should all agree with.