Has anyone ever had a day where they have come home from school and said, “I wish I was skinnier?” The ideal image, what we strive for everyday with exercise healthy eating...not eating at all. Our society has been influenced by tv, media, and yes even toys that tell us how to dress look and act on a daily basis. The shocker is children, teenagers, and adults are being badly influenced by the image of a specific toy...Barbie. Barbie's super skinny image gives girls and boys an unrealistic and unattainable body image that causes them to not be happy with who they are and hinders their success as a person. Today I am going to talk to you about the ways barbies effect us, how they effect young children, and people who have gone after the dream of becoming barbie and ken and how to be happy with yourself.
According to studies done by several eating disorder clinics 36 million people are effected by eating disorders. The way we look at ourselves on a daily basis effects how we feel for the day. Many of us ask ourselves how will people feel about me today? Everywhere we look there is a picture of a gorgeous model who is “perfect in every way”. From the time we were little we have played with the amazing Barbie who has had almost every career imaginable along with running for President five times. We want to be her, gorgeous, rich, perfect. Children are seeing images of the so called “perfect” body and as young as age five asking their mothers if they are fat according to a Sussex University study. Helga Dittmar from SU said, “These ultra thin images not only lowered young girls body esteem, but also decreased their satisfaction with their actual body size, making them desire a thinner body.” We want to improve ourselves, which is fine until we get to the point of no return the point of really looking like Barbie.
This brings me to my second point of people who have gone to the point of really becoming Barbie through plastic surgery. According to an article called, “One Woman's Quest to become Barbie” A woman named Cindy Jackson has had 20 plastic surgeries and spent around $100,000. The real kicker is she has a man who has decided to become her Ken, Tim Whitfield-Lynn. Jackson has held the the World Record foor the most plastic surgeries for the past ten years. She now owns her own business where she gives people the help they need to look like Barbie too.
Bill Cosby once said, “I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.” My final point is how can we be happy with ourselves? We have to realize that we will never look like the perfect Barbie. If Barbie were a real human she would be 6 feet tall weigh 101 lbs and have dimensions of 35”, 18”, 34”, which are quite unrealistic. As a teenager we need to stand up and say it is ok to look different, to be the one who is not perfect, to really make a difference.
We have talked about the ways Barbies effect us, people who have done it, and now, today. I am challenging you to overcome the status quo and to live life to the fullest. You are beautiful and there isn't another person on this Earth like you. You have so much potential, now go to the world and say Carpe Diem, I will live life to the fullest and seize the day.
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