Child Beauty Pageants Essay example

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Child Beauty Pageants

Beauty pageants featuring children have become increasingly popular in the last decade and especially popular in the last couple of years. Today you have shows such as Toddlers and Tiaras, and -Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. These shows show the somewhat glamorous side of beauty pageants. However there are many negative aspects of children beauty pageants that they don't show you on television. This paper is typed with the sole purpose of showing you haw wrong children beauty pageants are. A ban on children beauty pageants or at least strict rules on what you can and can't do for pageants would greatly benefit the children involved. Beauty pageants can have a negative effect on how children view themselves. Beauty pageants teach children that image and how you look are the most important things in the world. This can cause children who think they aren't pretty enough to have a low self-esteem. This view of themselves can led to problems, such as eating disorders, for children later on who think a perfect body is the most important thing. It is especially difficult for children to view themselves as pretty when parents insist on heavy makeup, false eyelashes, flippers, which are false teeth to cap missing teeth, and spray tans to be worn at pageants. There are also problems with how the children are viewed while on stage. All the hair, makeup, and the clothing kids have to where get them viewed as not only mini adults but as sex objects. There are sources that say girls can lose points if there clothing or dance moves are not age appropriate however, I personally know this is not always true. While watching an episode of Toddlers and Tiaras, I watched a five-year old girl dress up as Daisy Duke, dance provocatively and still win the highest title at the pageant, Ultimate Grand Supreme. This just helps prove experts' points that pageants sexualize young girls. There is also the problem of how pageants effect the children's physical well-being. Parents often limit or strictly control what their children eat up to two weeks before the pageant. This can keep the young girls from getting all the nutrients they need to grow properly. Some parents also put their kids on strange diets to help them lose weight and gain energy. "Crash diets" don't allow children to eat anything, or next to nothing several hours or even as long as one day before the pageant in hope that the children quickly lose weight. There are also special diets that allow children to eat and drink products high in sugar, in the hopes of helping the children gain energy and enthusiasm. Throughout the day of the pageant, there are also ways parents make sure their children have the energy to shine on stage. Things like caffeinated beverages, energy drinks, and Pixy Stixs, often known as "pageant crack" are often given to children in large, unhealthy quantities to keep them awake and alert through the whole pageant. "The smell in the hallways was so sweet it was like being in a carnival "(Cartwright). Besides food kids can also be denied naps and breaks which make them moody and upset. Time, money, and the child's happiness can all be compromised to win the crown. A single glitz pageants, which require full hair, makeup, and the glitziest gown can run anywhere from $400 to upwards of $3,500. When there are some kids participating in a pageant every weekend the coast can add up rather quickly. Some parents spend way upwards of $10,000 a year on pageants. Some even go into debt to finance this hobby. Some parents risk losing everything just to win the big crown. There are also hours of time involved with getting ready for and participating in pageants. Some kids are forced to meet with a coach for an hour every week to perfect their routines. This is taking time away from what really matters, running outside, hanging out with friends and family, and just being kids. With so much time and effort being devoted to pageants, kids can
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