From pretty much the day we're born toys are thrown at us, most of these toys are already setting us up to fit into a gender role before we can even speak; the play kitchens, hair salons and the checkout tills. Nearly all of these products are covered in pink, a colour we are soon taught to love.
Barbie is one of those toys, I had a few Barbie's myself and yes I did love them. A women with the exact same proportions as Barbie would be 5ft 9in at 1/6 ‘playscale’. They predict that she would not be able to menstruate and she would have to walk on all fours due to her proportions, weighting in at around 7.8 stone and being a UK size 2 with a BMI of 16.24.
We are buying children an image they can never achieve and should never want to achieve. Not only do I think its a horrendous product that causes eating disorders and body dysmorphia, the Barbie play sets, which can be bought alongside, push girls even deeper into the idea of gender roles (For example Barbie Kitchen, Barbie Chef and the Barbie Wedding Sets). Without girls even realising it these playsets are turning into goals, girls wanting to have their own kitchen and associating cooking with fun. The dream of getting married and "having" to wear a white wedding dress. We are made to be feminine from the start.
Now toymakers Mattel have released three new body shapes. Original Barbie is being joined by Curvy Barbie, Tall Barbie and Petite Barbie, they also feature a wide range of skin tones reflecting many different ethnicities. I'm glad this range has finally been released (don't really know why its taken until 2016 but never mind). Mattel focus groups have found many of the young girls called the Curvy Barbie 'fat'. The "Curvy" Barbie is a UK size 6/8. The fact that young girls are growing up with these expectations of aspiring to be Barbie is shocking and frankly detrimental. We perfectly well know enough about children to know how easily infulenced they are and the fact that Mattel are being blind to think they're not having a negative effect on young girls. I think Barbie should be taken off the shelves for the unrealistic expectations of young girls and to stop the idea of gender roles.