36-18-33: An Unrealistic Image

The Barbie doll was introduced in 1959, defining what the so-called "ideal" woman looked like. She had an impossibly small waist, accompanied by full-figured breasts and hips.

Interestingly, research conducted by University Central Hospital in Helsinki, Finland a few years ago, revealed that if a real woman had Barbie's 39-18-33 figure, she would actually lack the 17-22% body fat needed to menstruate.

Now, you could argue that Barbie is just a plastic doll ... an unrealistic icon. But, according to USA Today, today's super-models are somewhat similar in size to a Barbie. The average runway model is 16 to 17 years. Most stand 5'10" to 5'11" in height, weigh 120 to 124 pounds, and wear either a size 2 or size 4.

Impossibly thin young woman who capture the adoration of young girls across the world.

A great deal of press has been dedicated to the question of whether the common Barbie doll our children play with or the sexy runway model that teens aspire to be is psychologically damaging. Do we set our nation's young girls up for serious eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia as they strive to become our view of what an ideal woman looks like?

But, I think there is one more question that I haven't heard discussed. Is this standard of an ideal woman so unattainable by our nation's youth, that they make the decision early on that it's not even worth their effort? Let's face it, most people don't have a body type that would ever allow them to look like Barbie or like Heidi Klum ... even if they ate 500 calories a day and worked out for hours on end, day after day after day.

I think it's time that we, as a nation, start encouraging young ladies to do a few things:

1) Accept that they are who they are, not someone else
2) Live a lifestyle that will encourage them to "be the best me" they can be
3) Find ways to educate them on what a healthy body really looks like

If we can encourage our youth to be the "healthiest me I can be," we can make serious psychological disorders like anorexia and bulimia a thing of the past.

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