How young is too young?

In recent weeks, amid the breaking news of tornadoes across the southeast and plains states, there has been another story in the news, that of the so-called "Botox Mom," Kerry Campbell, aka Sheena Upton.

This mother of eight-year-old daughter, Britney, hit the news when an article first published in the UK tabloid, The Sun, landed Upton a spot on Good Morning America and Inside Edition here in the United States after she boasted of injecting her daughter with Botox in order to hide fine lines and wrinkles to improve her daughter’s chances of winning in the very competitive field of child beauty pageants. Upton, a part-time aesthetician, was not at all apologetic about the practice of injecting her daughter with Botox. However, she refused to tell either American reporter just who was supplying her with the substance.

In addition to the Botox treatments, ABC.com reports that Upton also revealed to Good Morning America's Lara Spencer that she also waxes her daughter’s legs regularly. She went on to say that it was her daughter who asked for the Botox treatments. Upton said, “We were getting into the pageants. I knew she was complaining about her face, having wrinkles and thinks like that. When I brought it up to Britney, she was all for it.”

Upton generally administers a total of five Botox shots in three areas of Britney's face. According to both mother and daughter, it would lessen the lines and make enough difference to continue the treatments despite the pain. Britney says, “It hurts me sometimes. It makes me nervous. But I get used to it.”

Dr. Charles Sophy, a psychiatrist, who has heard about the case is more concerned that “there’s a lot of psychological damage that can be caused” by performing unnecessary cosmetic treatments on children.

Cosmetic treatments for young girls are an everyday practice in the world of child beauty pageants. For those of you who receive The Learning Channel (TLC) on your cable or satellite packages, there is a television show about to launch its fourth season called “Toddlers and Tiaras” which chronicles the journeys of a handful of the top competitors in the most prestigious nationwide pageants each season. TLC.com writes, “On any given weekend, on stages across the country, little girls and boys parade around wearing makeup, false eyelashes, spray tans and fake hair to be judged on their beauty, personality and costumes. Toddlers and Tiaras follows families on their quest for sparkly crowns, big titles and lots of cash. The preparation is intense as it gets to the final week before the pageant. From hair and nail appointments, to finishing touches on gowns and suits, to numerous coaching sessions and rehearsals, each child preps for their performance. But once at the pageant, it’s all up to the judges and drama ensues when every parent wants to prove that their child is beautiful.”

Dr. Nancy Irwin, a Los Angeles based psychotherapist ranks pageant parents behind only sexually abusive parents when she speaks of the “worst possible parents,” according to Fox News.com. She claims that these parents are selfish, spoiling their children and training them to believe that their value is based on their beauty. And according to childhood behavioral health psychologist and executive director of Wellspring Camps, Dr. Mike Bishop, says that performing in the pageant world from such an early age (some begin as infants) can trigger a raft of developmental problems.

“Toddler beauty pageants set a superficial expectation about what makes someone beautiful – that beauty is primarily about your pose, your smile, your hair and the clothes you wear. Self-worth should not be tied to competitions. Toddlers are not old enough to make an informed decision as to whether they should compete. Nor are they able to separate the competition from reality, which can make competition even more damaging to their self-esteem.”

Whatever happened to raising our children to know that beauty comes from the inside? What happened to not letting our daughters wear make-up until they’re sixteen? And aren’t there other ways to help our children gain self-esteem?

One thing I can tell you is that what one woman, Kerry Campbell, aka Sheena Upton, did to help her daughter win a children’s beauty pageant, resulted in her losing young Britney to Child Protective Services pending a full investigation.

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