A sad reality of our culture is that children have negative thoughts about their bodies at younger and younger ages.
The media and advertisers continue to skew children’s perceptions of what they should look like. And, it seems like these negative messages are everywhere.
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Now, one mom is calling out a line of lunchboxes that she says promote dieting to young girls.
Sonni Abatta is a former television news anchor who launched her own blog.
She shares articles and videos about her life as a mom to two young daughters and a son.
When it comes to posting updates about her life, almost nothing is off limits.
Sonni has been very honest with her followers when it comes to the challenges of motherhood.
She’s also shared body positive photos like this one that was taken shortly after she gave birth.
However, it was a recent trip to Nordstrom Rack that lead to the creation of Sonni’s most viral post to date.
Like a lot of moms, Sonni was at her local Nordstrom Rack just trying to scope out some deals. She then spotted something in the girl’s section that made her livid.
This pink lunchbox with the words “Cheat Day” in gold sequins caught Sonni’s eye for all the wrong reasons.
“We wonder, ‘Why do our girls worry so much about their bodies so young?’ … ‘Why does my five-year-old call herself ‘fat?” … ‘Why does my middle schooler stand in front of the mirror and find all her flaws?’
THIS. This is part of the reason why,” she wrote in her Facebook post that accompanied this photo.
For context, a “cheat day” is when someone who is dieting allows themselves to indulge in treats or other non-diet foods.
Since this phrase was printed on a lunchbox that is most likely intended for little girls, you can see why Sonni was upset.
Girls that young shouldn’t be worrying about diets or cheat days at all, and they shouldn’t be reminded of it by the bag they’re supposed to use for their lunch.
Others chimed in agreeing with Sonni that the bag was inappropriate.
Little girls inherit their body image from the world around them, and yes, sadly girls as young as five can begin to feel self-conscious about their bodies.
Merchandise like this sends the wrong message.
However, a few people wondered if the bags were actually intended for adults.
That would make a lot of sense, but, as Sonni pointed out, this pink and gold design is clearly appealing to little girls.
Even if it is for adults, it’s still a problematic message to send to anyone’s body.
Take a look at Sonni’s full post.
She raises a lot of good points and even if you don’t totally agree with her, this is a good reminder that parents should always be aware of the messaging that targets our children.
