It has become an occasion when girls as young as three are getting exposed to premature sexualisation. Playing dress ups has now turned into caking on foundation, waxing legs, tanning, false lashes and hair extensions. Overall it is becoming normal see young girls wearing high heels and false lashes. With the thought of appearances constantly in the back of their minds girls as young as three are worrying about appearances instead of playing with toys. According to the American Psychological Association, "girls who are sexualised early will tend to gather their self-worth as an adult based on their appearance” making them feel self-conscious. The sinking feeling you get when you look at someone prettier than you are becoming too common amongst young girls. This encourages depression making young girls feel as if they are never good enough, never beautiful enough, never the prettiest girl in the room. Girls at the young age of 3 are being paraded around trying to achieve a form of perfection which should not exist at such a young age. These pageants are suggesting that beauty only come from the outside, one that is polished, poised and primed to flawlessness. What happened to beauty comes from …show more content…
Pageant participants endure extraordinary efforts in obtaining the right body image, which can lead to depression, anorexia and many other serious issues. Scant research was conducted in order to see if former child pageant participants were more likely to suffer from eating disorders. The results showed that former pageant participants had a higher rate of body dissatisfaction, verifying that body dissatisfaction and eating disorders can take a toll in their adulthood.
Studies show that most child pageant participants grow up suffering from what is known as the “princess syndrome”. The princess syndrome is when young girls live life as a fairy tale, making herself the centre of the universe, obsessing about their looks. Girls influenced by this place an unhealthy emphasis on beauty which