A mother was furious when she discovered her daughter’s preschool wants to enforce its bizarre lunch rule.
Caroline was distraught when her three-year-old came home and claimed she wasn’t allowed to eat any of her ‘bad’ food (a cookie) until she had finished her ‘good’ food (a sandwich and cucumbers).
‘I felt a little frustrated by the teacher’s outdated instructions, but I told my daughter, “Well, that’s stupid. There is no good or bad food. Food is just food,’” she shared on TikTok.
The mother of four said she does her best to teach her children healthy stories about food and unfortunately grew up with a different perspective.
So the next day she left a note in her daughter’s lunchbox.
The note read: ‘Hi! Evelyn has our permission to eat lunch in any order she wants. None of her foods are ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – they’re just food! Thank you!’
A mother left her daughter’s teacher a hearty note in her lunchbox
“I am grateful for those who gave me the knowledge and confidence to write this note to my three-year-old’s kindergarten teacher. Food is food,” Caroline said.
“I will say that this wasn’t my internal dialogue growing up, but thanks to the information I have from so many moms and childhood and nutrition experts, I am armed with better responses, knowledge, and practices for my children.
‘When she was three years old, someone told her that food is good or bad. I’m so proud that she felt something was wrong – to know that wasn’t good enough to tell me about it.”
A 2019 Mission Australia survey found that more than 30 percent of young people are overly concerned about their body image and food intake.
Eating disorders and other food problems can begin in children and continue well into adulthood.
Sometimes parents and teachers who try to enforce “healthy” eating end up doing the opposite.
“Almond mom” is a term used to describe mothers who impose restrictive eating and fitness habits on their children.
The viral phrase was inspired by Yolanda Hadid advising her then-teenage daughter supermodel Gigi Hadid to “take some almonds and chew them really well” to satisfy her hunger in a resurfaced clip from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
“We talk about (food) all the time at home – if you only eat carrots or broccoli, your body won’t have the protein it needs to grow strong muscles,” Caroline said.
‘If you only eat chicken, your body won’t have enough energy to do things like run and play. We need pieces of everything to ensure that we can learn, play and grow all day long.’
The mother revealed that this stance has “changed her family for the better.”
Many other parents and educators praised Caroline’s parenting method and adherence to her principles.
‘Teachers are not allowed to comment on the way children eat. Telling children that some foods are more important than others is harmful,” one person said.
“As I teach, your answer is 100 percent correct. The narrative of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ food can actually encourage the development of harmful eating habits,” says another.
Another shared, “I had a daycare teacher force us to eat EVERYTHING on our plate, and the first one to finish was rewarded by choosing the movie to watch, and the last one was punished and had to eat it instead.” to take a nap. Since then I have had a bad relationship with food.’
But a few thought the mother was being melodramatic.
“I’m sure the teacher wasn’t trying to be cruel,” one woman wrote. “Maybe you could have talked to her instead of a passive-aggressive tone at your three-year-old lunch?”
Another echoed: ‘It’s very passive-aggressive and face-to-face or phone conversations are a better way to resolve issues with your child’s teacher.’
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, please contact us Butterfly Foundation on 1800 33 4673. Talk to someone now.