Gemma Atkinson has opened up about her mum’s reaction to the controversy surrounding her parenting decision last year.
The 40-year-old sparked backlash after telling fans she had pinched her then one-year-old son Thiago, after he did it to his five-year-old sister Mia.
Following her admission, Parenting Expert founder Jo Studholme was among those who criticised Gemma’s method.
She told Mail Online: “It teaches children that violence is an acceptable way to resolve conflict. Instead, try using positive discipline techniques such as time-outs, loss of privileges, or talking calmly to the child about their behaviour.”
Addressing the controversy in her latest interview with Women’s Health magazine, Gemma insisted her mum Sandra was surprised by the backlash.
She shared: “When that whole thing came up, my mum said, ‘Christ Gemma, I used to chase you around the house with a b****y slipper’.”
Gemma went on to say that she often turns to her mum for parenting advice.
Recalling a challenging moment with her daughter Mia, she said: “Mia, bless her, went through a biting phase.
“At the time, I was saying to my mum, ‘Why is she biting everything?’ Like, everyone who comes round, she’s trying to bite them!’
“She said, ‘They do, she’s finding her teeth. It’s frustration, it’s what they do’.”
Following the initial backlash regarding Thiago, Gemma defended her actions on Instagram.
She explained: “Thiago is going through that phase where he’s nipping and biting. I said he really nipped Mia the other day so I went like this back to him (gesturing pinching), and said, ‘Aye, we don’t nip’.
“I didn’t ‘ugh’ (insinuating pain as she pinched her own arm), as if I would!”.
Gemma shares her two children with Strictly Come Dancing star Gorka Marquez, whom she met on the BBC programme in 2017.
Four years after making their relationship official, the pair got engaged on Valentine’s Day, but they are yet to marry.