Psychiatrists in Australia and New Zealand have supported calls to ban child beauty pageants, saying they encourage the sexualization of children and can harm their development (Park). Beauty pageants are a controversial topic across the country because they make children look "sexy", can cause eating disorders/body image issues, and in some cases are forced to participate in competitions. competition because their mothers want to live their dreams through their child. Children should not be allowed to participate in beauty pageants. Hair, skimpy outfits and makeup play an important role in beauty pageants. After all, kids compete to be the cutest, and if their looks make them cute, they might win. They're kids and they're wearing more makeup and cosmetics than I've ever worn, "some as young as 3 or 4 wearing makeup, wearing high heels and fake tans" ( Wallace). These children learn to look and behave much older than they are. Psychologist Wendy Walsh said the danger here is normalizing behavior that would once have been considered extreme and strange. "And now it seems completely normal for a 6-year-old girl to walk around in thigh-high boots and short shorts and slap her butt when she dances on a catwalk? Come on! That's what a stripper does teaser." Children should not be “sexy” or have to worry about their appearance. “Over the past 10 years, the number of girls hospitalized for eating disorders has increased by 270%” (Loannou). Beauty pageants teach young girls that to succeed in life, they have to be beautiful, and when people think of beauty, they don't usually imagine a curvy girl, if you know what I mean. This causes girls to starve their bodies to such an extent that they are in the middle of paper......u.au/2011/09/16/beauty-pageants-expose-ugly-troites/>. Maliakal, Lalan. “Beauty contests for children – Pros and cons.” Buzz. Buzzle.com, and Web. April 16, 2014. .Park, Nicky. “Children’s competitions are bad for mental health.” The Sydney Morning Herald. Np, ndWeb. April 17, 2014. for-mental-health-20110525-1f430.html>. Wallace, Kelly and Do you think child beauty pageants should be banned in the United States? Let us know what you think in the comments below. “The French decide to ban beauty pageants for children: should we do it?” CNN. Cable News Network, January 1, 1970. Web. April 16, 2014. www.cnn.com/2013/09/19/living/parents-ban-child-beauty-pageants/>. MLA formatting by BibMe.org.