One mum's controversial call; time to ban party bags at kid's birthdays.

If you’re a parent, you’ve probably got an opinion on party bags. There aren’t too many parties where a kid walks away without clutching one in their sticky hands. They’re generally stuffed with lollies, plus a couple of cheap toys and maybe a balloon.

The sugar high lasts longer than the toys, which tend to break quickly and end up in the rubbish.

So should we just junk the whole party bag tradition?

Renee Kaiman, the Canadian blogger behind My So-Called Mommy Life, was the brave mum who called for parents to stop this nonsense of handing out party bags.

“Parents, please keep your dollar store crap to yourself,” she wrote in her original post.

“I get that everyone wants to keep up with those Pinterest moms, but sending my kid home with junk that you won’t even feed your kid, or toys that will break into a million pieces five minutes after they’ve played with it, is ridiculous.”

On This Glorious Mess, Holly Wainwright voiced her agreement with Kaiman. 

Kaiman has a problem with the idea that kids need to leave a party with a gift.

“Why is it that are kids need to be given a reward (which the loot bag totally is) for coming to celebrate with a friend! A friend!

“Our kids should learn the feeling of giving to others without expecting anything in return.”

Plenty of parents supported her.

“They’re more like grab bags or, as I call them, landfill bags,” Philippa Howell posted.

“When my daughter was four, we mutually agreed to make a donation to a charity of her choice rather than give lootbags and just let her friends know,” Rosalie Taylor Fine wrote.

“Stop paying people to like you,” John Windisman added. “It’s sad, and will not help your child when they become adults!”

Has anyone thought of asking the kids? Photo via iStock.

But there were others who stood up for the tradition.

"I will continue to aid in the downfall of society and give lootbags," Nadia Daniell-Colarossi declared. "I love putting them together and giving them out at the end of a party."

"Good Lord, I'm glad I grew up when I did," Alessio Torres commented. "It must suck to be a kid these days."

Andrew Daddo from This Glorious Mess has three teenagers and has lived through more party bags than he can count. He says he can't see the harm; he says if parties are only occasional, then the occasional treat can't be too damaging.

But co-host Holly Wainwright says they're pointless, and they can go.

"You fill it with crap and it's just the same old nonsense. And it's stuff we don't need. Why are we making lives more difficult for ourselves by filling our houses with rubbish we don't need, or sugar that the kids don't need?" she says.

"Why can't we all agree that it's a pointless tradition? Let's save some money, save some time, make life a bit simpler, and say 'It's a party. You get to go home with a piece of cake'."

What do you think?

Listen to the full episode of This Glorious Mess here:

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