What is a ‘boy mom’? TikTok trend sparks controversy

Moms across the world have been criticized in a new controversy on TikTok, with many viewers claiming boy moms are “toxic” for their parenting style.

While most trends on TikTok are wholesome and fun, you may occasionally find problematic ones, like the chroming challenge, or the smashing ice cubes trend.

The latest one to spark backlash across TikTok is the viral ‘boy moms’ trend, which sees mothers explaining why they’re teaching their sons to cook. Here’s everything to know about it.

What is the controversial ‘boy moms’ TikTok trend?

On TikTok, the term ‘boy moms’ usually refers to moms who treat their sons differently from their daughters in a way that becomes problematic.

The ‘boy moms’ trend started after TikToker lauraelizabethgraham posted a video of herself and her young son in the kitchen cooking. “Making sure my son can cook so he’s not impressed by your daughter’s [Stouffer’s] lasagna,” she wrote over the clip. “He’s gonna need a home-cooked meal, Felicia.”

Soon enough, many ‘boy moms’ started sharing similar videos. “Teaching my son to cook so he’s not impressed by your frozen pizza daughter,” content creator chezchanelle wrote on her post.

“Teaching my son how to cook so he’s not impressed with your dusty daughter’s takeout skills” sivanaylarichards captioned her clip.

However, many other mothers slammed the trend, dubbing the moms “toxic” for their dubious logic behind teaching their boys to cook. One posted a video of her son preparing food, writing “teaching my son how to cook in case he ever needs to… feed himself. I’m not putting that dusty MIL energy out there.”

“Taught my 12-year-old son how to cook so you daughter doesn’t have to deal with a man who thinks cooking is a [woman’s] job,” another mother shared in her clip, throwing shade at the ‘boy moms’ trend.

TikTok users also criticized the fad in the comments, suggesting that parents should be teaching their sons to cook because it’s an “essential life skill,” rather than belittling women and perpetuating the notion that they should be confined to domestic roles in relationships.