Mum shaming as a phenomenon has just gone way too far

And Julia Stiles has had enough of it.

Mum shaming is a horrible and harmful modern phenomenon surrounding public shaming whereby mothers are publicly judged and criticised for how they are raising their children – with the insults focusing on everything from balancing motherhood and work to the foods their children eat or the clothes they are dressing them in.

Essentially – mum shaming is mothers tearing each other down – and it needs to stop.

No one knows this more than celebrity mums, whose parenting skills are constantly on display, with every move and decision scrutinised and debated by a global audience.

Victoria Beckham was mum shamed for kissing her daughter Harper on the lips, Reese Witherspoon received hate for letting her son have a cinnamon roll for breakfast and Chrissy Teigen was slated by mum shamers for going out to dinner a month after giving birth to her daughter, Luna.

While these A-list women rise above the mum shamers, they really shouldn’t have to, with daily parenting criticism on such a mass scale actually being pretty harmful.

The latest A-lister to speak out on the subject is 36-year-old actress Julia Stiles who just took down her mum shamers in the best possible way.

Having given birth five weeks ago, the actress posted a photo of her new son Strummer to her Instagram account over the weekend - but her fans and followers didn’t seem too happy.

The photo in question saw the 36-year-old holding her son in a carrier on her front and a rucksack on her back, captioned: ’I haven't worn a back pack since middle school. Now I have a front pack. #jujube #tulababycarriers.’

While that seems like a perfectly normal post, mum shaming comments came in force to tell Stiles that she was carrying her baby wrong, questioning her motherhood skills.

Proving that she’s above the mum shamers, Stiles returned to her Instagram this morning to put the trolls in their place.

‘It was brought to my attention that in the previous photo I am not holding my baby correctly,’ she posted to her feed. ‘Wow, I didn't expect that. What was supposed to be a shout out of products I like, suddenly becomes an invitation to comment on my baby, and my ability as a mother. That's the internet for you, the carnivorous plant from Little Shop of Horrors,’ she posted with a photo of the band The Clash.

She continued: ‘I was trying to keep as much of my son's image private, including, I guess, his little feet. And it was just a photo taken at home, not how I normally carry him around. Thanks for the concern, anyway. Yes, Mothers, always read the safety instructions. But also, Instagrammers: instead of writing snarky comments about a 5 week old, try dancing around your living room to a Clash record. It's way more fun.’

Well said Julia.