For many, a birthday celebration isn’t complete without serving some delicious cake. This beloved tradition has been around in America for decades and is normally met with much anticipation from children of all ages. Unfortunately, Lara, the 34-year-old stepmother of a six-year-old girl came under fire recently after revealing that she doesn’t allow her stepdaughter to have cake on her birthdays because it’s considered too “unhealthy”. Reddit users responded harshly to this news as they could not understand why such an important ritual would be denied due to its supposed lack of healthiness.
After Lara had second thoughts on whether her decision to stop Gwen, her six-year-old stepdaughter, from having a birthday cake was too extreme, she sought out the advice of Reddit. She explained that she is merely trying to guide Gwen towards making “better choices” when it comes to food.
In her Reddit post, the stepmom was alarmed by Gwen’s biological mother’s failure to limit junk and fatty foods, which is worrisome for Gwen’s future health. As a primary caregiver of the child, she should be doing everything in her power to ensure that Gwen grows up healthy and strong.
Affirming her commitment to healthier eating habits, Lara promised Gwen a low-fat ice cream treat in place of the typical full-fat birthday cake. She intended this shift as an attempt to balance out some of the junk food she consumes at home with her biological mom during their visits.
“It makes me sad for this child and her health, so I try to teach Gwen about healthy eating and moving around during our weekends with her,” Lara stated.
Owing to the fact that Gwen spends most of her time with her birth mother, she doesn’t get exposed to healthy eating. Instead, she only visits her father’s home every other weekend – where she is surrounded by his wife and two stepbrothers.
“We are a healthful household, and we teach moderation and controlling how much we take when we have treats,” Lara posted on Reddit. “However, Gwen is only here two weekends a month, and her mother has the exact opposite attitude. In all honesty, that woman’s blood type is probably ketchup. Similarly, Gwen is about 20lb (9kg) heavier than a six-year-old girl is supposed to be.”
To help her children, including her stepdaughter, form healthy eating habits from a young age and avoid the potential health issues that often arise from an unhealthy diet in childhood, Lara is determined to teach them how to make nutritious food choices.
“I ask my kids if they want to make a healthier choice whenever I see them reaching for a treat from the pantry.”
On Gwen’s birthday, which happened to be one of the days she was staying with her father, Lara refused to allow her daughter to indulge in a sugary cake. Rather than let Gwen experience the full joys of celebrating her special day, Lara served up a healthier dessert option and dished out low-fat ice cream instead.
“We were talking about what kind of cake to have when I asked Gwen about the healthier choice. My reasoning was that she gets all of that garbage at home, and it’s just not good for a growing girl,” Lara stated.
Gwen’s mother was outraged when she discovered that her daughter had not received a slice of cake.
“She said Gwen started crying because she really did want a cake but didn’t want to make a ‘bad choice’ – she also accused me of fat-shaming her daughter and said I owe Gwen a cake and a big apology.”
Lara continued, “I’m just looking out for a child in my care. I never said she couldn’t have cake – she should have told us she wanted one.”
