A Mom Was Outraged After a Teacher Refused to Open Her Son’s Cake Because It Was “Not Healthy”

When Ashy Anne’s son returned home from school with the slice of cake still intact, just as she had packed it for him in his lunch, she was initially surprised. However, when she learned the reason why he hadn’t even tried the cake, she was left absolutely baffled.

The teacher of Ashy’s son didn’t open the cake in his lunch box for him because she believed that eating cake wasn’t healthy.

Ashy makes sure to always pack balanced meals in her son’s lunch box, so he can get everything he needs, from dairy to food, from sandwiches to cold meats, and lots of selection and variety. She believes that as an adult she is responsible to provide enough food and variety for her son’s nutritional needs to be met.

In their home, they also allow him to listen to his body and make decisions based on that, which means having sweet food sometimes is completely normal.

In her video on TikTok, Ashy shared that they don’t attach moral value to food.

Ashy revealed that her son is going through a growth spurt and is eating everything in sight, which surprised her when she found the cake uneaten in his lunch box. And when she asked him why he didn’t eat the cake he said that the teacher on duty at lunchtime wouldn’t open it for him because it was “not healthy.”

This struck a chord in Ashy because a teacher who doesn’t know her and her family, and barely knows her child made a decision about what her son can and can’t eat.

If her son eats the rest of the food she packed for him, Ashy is completely fine if he eats cake too.

However, now she feels bad because her son was ashamed in front of his friends for not having healthy foods in his lunch box.

“As far as I’m concerned, if my son has eaten his ham, and his cheese, and his yogurt, and his fruit, and his sandwich, he can have the cake if he’s hungry because it’s not in there to be a decoration. I made the decision to put it in there for him,” Ashy said.

Ashy wonders whether she should bring up the issue with the school or she should let it slide and bring it up if it happens again.

And people’s comments on her TikTok video all say that she should tell the school.

A teacher also joined the discussion, “As a teacher, I agree with you. So many children have food aversions and sensory challenges, so getting them to eat anything is a success. I only encourage eating the lunch item first before snacky things.”

Another mom with a similar experience also commented, “My son’s kindy did this... So I just put everything opened in containers and told him to tell them, ’Mum said yes, and she’s the boss’...he did that.”

Teachers occasionally find themselves in situations where their actions or statements may not align with the beliefs of some parents. For instance, another time that an educator sparked attention is when a teacher told a boy in the class that painting nails is only for girls.