Family Upset After Guy Stops Toddler From Ruining Expensive Cake: “Everyone Glared”

You don’t have to be a parent to know that toddlers aren’t exactly the GOAT when it comes to personal hygiene and washing hands. Those little fingers go (almost) everywhere as kids explore their surroundings and learn about the big, wide, germ-filled world. And often, those hands go straight into the mouth afterwards.

One man was horrified when they watched a 2-year-old stick their icky hands into a family member’s expensive birthday cake. In a bid to discreetly save the cake from a party of germs, the guy moved it out of the toddler’s reach. All hell broke loose, as it often does when you take something away from an invested child. But the anger didn’t only come from the little human. The person has now been accused of ruining the entire event. And they’re left wondering if it’s true.

Little kids are still learning the ways of the world, and they depend on their parents to guide them

Toddler with cake smudged on face and hands sitting in high chair after cake was moved away from destroying it.

Image credits: EyeEm/Freepik (not the actual photo)

One man took matters into his own hands when a toddler’s mom and dad chose not to

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it, while parents give major side-eye at a family birthday party.

Toddler destroying cake at birthday while guy moves it away, receiving major side-eye from parents at the party.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it, receiving major side-eye from parents in a family setting.

Toddler crying and destroying cake while a guy moves the cake away, getting side-eye from parents nearby.

Image credits: shurkin_son/Freepik (not the actual photo)

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give major side-eye in a tense family moment.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents watch with disapproving expressions at a birthday party.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give major side-eye in a tense family moment at birthday party

Image credits: Reno_Potato

Researchers have found fecal matter under the fingernails of young kids

Toddler laughing joyfully outdoors in a red swing, capturing playful moments with major side-eye from parents nearby.

Image credits: Joshua Earle/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

How many different germs would you say are on your hands? 10? 100? 1,000? No. According to Pfizer, our hands carry on average 3,200 different germs belonging to more than 150 species.

And the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that only 19% of people in the world wash their hands after using the toilet. The CDC says a single gram of human feces can contain one trillion germs. But we also know that many children love to play on the floor, or outdoors, digging in dirt, petting animals and touching whatever tickles their fancy.

“Older children with increased mobility and motor skills are likely to have increased exposure to fecal sources in the domestic environment, are more likely to spend time on dirt floors or courtyards (rather than an elevated surface such as bed or mat) and also have the ability to pick up contaminated objects and/or feces,” notes a 2019 research paper.

The research was carried out in rural Bangladesh, with the aim of finding out just how many germs are present on the hands of young kids, whether their age plays a part and whether visibly dirty fingernails and hands contain more bacteria than those that appear clean. The team found that 43% of the children they inspected had E. coli on their little hands.

Adult hand holding grass as toddler’s hand reaches in, capturing a moment linked to toddler destroying cake.

Image credits: Cristofer Maximilian/Unsplash (not the actual photo)

According to the CDC, E. coli are “bacteria found in many places like the intestines of people and animals.” Most are harmless but some can make you sick and give you diarrhea. While a bout of diarrhea might not always sound serious, the CDC says that diarrheal diseases and pneumonia are the leading causes of child deaths around the world. The CDC website states that about 1.8 million children under the age of 5 die from those illnesses each year.

In Bangladesh, the researchers found that kids who are mobile (crawling, walking or running) are more likely to have fecal matter on their hands than very young babies. Out of the 584 children who took part in the study, almost half had E. coli in their hand rinse samples. 46% of the kids had visible dirt particles under their nails, 31% appeared unclean, and 23% appeared clean. Most of the children’s finger pads were clean.

E. coli wasn’t all the researchers found crawling under the fingernails of toddlers. “Soil-transmitted helminth ova and larvae have also been detected,” they said.

In a totally separate study, or experiment, an American mom, who works as a microbiology lab technician, once found staphylococcus and yeast on her children’s hands. But she wasn’t too worried, and here’s why.

Getting dirty isn’t always bad. In fact, scientists say keeping your child too clean can be detrimental to their health. Exposure to certain bacteria can actually help children develop stronger immune systems. “Several studies suggest that early exposure to dirt may reduce kids’ risk of developing allergies and autoimmune conditions,” reads the Live Science site.

The American lab tech mom told Today.com that our skin protects us from a lot of the germs and bacteria we encounter. “To have a healthy immune system, you’ve got to be exposed to stuff,” said Tasha Sturm. The expert believes that kids getting dirty is not the problem. As long as children are taught to wash their hands before eating.

People wanted more information and the guy was happy to share

Reddit user explains girlfriend’s fear due to youngest sibling and brother being a complete bully in family conflict.

Guy moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give major side-eye at the event.

“You were the only adult in the room”: Many netizens sided with the man

Reddit thread discussing parenting challenges with toddler destroying cake and family reactions, highlighting major side-eye from parents.

Comment thread discussing toddler destroying cake, guy moving cake away, and parents giving side-eye reactions.

Reddit comment thread discussing a guy moving cake away from toddler destroying it, receiving side-eye from parents.

Comment section with users discussing family drama, highlighting tension over a toddler destroying a cake and family side-eye.

Guy moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give a major side-eye reaction during family event.

Online discussion where a guy moves cake away from toddler destroying it, receiving major side-eye from parents.

Guy moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give a major side-eye reaction in a family setting.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give major side-eye during family event.

Comment discussion about a toddler destroying a cake and adults managing the situation with parental disapproval.

Comment thread about guy moving cake away from toddler destroying it, with parents giving major side-eye reactions.

Some people felt the person should have minded their own business

Reddit comments discussing a guy moving cake away from toddler destroying it and getting side-eye from parents at a party.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give major side-eye in a family gathering setting.

Man moves cake away from toddler destroying it while parents give a major side-eye in a tense family moment.

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