Are You An Almond Mom?

I passed a mom at the pool hauling her double wide stroller with buckets and sand toys and towels draped over the sides. It was a scorcher and the smell of sunscreen hit the nose at the same time the sound of happy splashers hit the ears. But what caught my attention most was what my eyes saw. Her two toddlers holding ice cream cones filled with fruit. 

We did a little stop and chat and she laughed at herself saying that she wanted her kids to have a cone so they didn’t feel totally deprived. “It’s still something sweet, right?” she laughed. 

“Next time just let them have the real thing!” I said half jokingly. 

This encounter reminded me of the “almond mom” sweeping TikTok. The almond mom was coined from a controversial comment made by Real Housewives alum Yolanda Hadid (yes, Gigi Hadid’s mom). Back in 2014, her daughter called her sounding shaky after eating half an almond and her mom’s reply was to eat two almonds and chew them really well. 

Yikes, 🤦‍♀️. 

In general, the almond mom has taken on the personality of someone being stuck in diet culture with a heavy dose of internalized fatphobia who projects their weight and body image fears onto their child. These moms use phrases like, “a moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips”, “are you sure you want that?” and, “you’re not hungry, you’re bored”.  Do you know an almond mom? Maybe you had an almond mom? 

The Almond Mom encourages dieting, second guesses their child’s hunger and is overly focused on body size. 

What do parents focus on these days? Should it be food, exercise, feelings or all of the above? Parents have a tough gig trying to do what they think is best while living in a very fatphobic world. I get it and it’s one of the main reasons why I wrote my book: Raising Anti-Diet Kids: A Parent’s Actionable Guide to Ditching Diets and Cultivating Body Respect. How do you make sense of all the “diet” and “health” advice out there? How do you give your child the best tools to understand and respond to their body’s wants and needs? How do you break the cycle if you grew up with an Almond Mom or Grandma or Aunt?

I’ve got you and can’t wait to share my book on September 12th! Pre-orders from my dear friend’s bookstore in Oregon (and all the other major retailers) will be available in the coming weeks. 

I don’t want you to be labeled an Almond Mom. You can keep your skinny jeans, your Facebook and your fanny pack, but let’s get you cool mom status when it comes to talking with your kids about food and body. 

Pro tip for today: give your kids the ice cream cone with ice cream. Deprivation and labeling foods as good and bad is not ok.