Children are often given a little reward or a treat when friends call over, at parties or even out and about shopping. However, while the kids are usually delighted with the gift, the same can't always said for us mums.
We asked our MummyPages Mums what items they really don’t like people giving to their little ones and we had a fantastic response.
Make-up in general came in at number one with nearly 70% of our 475 respondents saying they didn’t like it being given to their kids. Children’s perfume came in a very close second and unsurprisingly, given the fact that make-up was top of the list, glitter make-up and fake tattoos came in joint third.
Some respondants also felt that bubbles, Play Doh, bubble baths, window stickers and even plastic jewellery were not good items to give to children.
For some mums it wasn’t really what they were given but rather if the gift was deemed age inappropriate: “Children should be children not teenagers before their time”.
Another mum felt the health of a child should also be considered saying: “Anything that a child could be allergic to should not be offered” which is obviously a concern for most parents.
However, it wasn’t all about the item itself. Some felt that gender stereotypes were a problem saying,” I don't like when gifts are genderised,” and “Highly gender stereotyped toys are a no no”.
Here are the top 10 items that mums don’t like being given to their children:
- Make-up 68%
- Children’s perfume 63%
- Glitter make-up 62%
- Tattoos 62%
- Nail polish 56%
- Lollipops 50.74%
- Sweets 49%
- Crisps 40%
- Oversized toys 32%
- Food 32%
