Barbie Celebrates Her 50th And Beauty Doctors Question Her Cult Status

Psychiatrist Eva Ritvo, M.D. and co-author of The Beauty Prescription, a new guide to looking and feeling beautiful, questions the "cult" of Barbie and her influence, especially on young girls and women. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) March 06, 2009 - March 9th marks the 50th Anniversary of Mattel’s Barbie doll, but not everyone is in the mood to celebrate.

Dr. Eva Ritvo (psychiatrist) and Dr. Debra Luftman (dermatologist) have co-written The Beauty Prescription: The Complete Formula for Looking and Feeling Beautiful. This book presents their ground-breaking concept that redefines beauty: The Beauty-Brain Loop. In this revealing, candid look at the science and spirit of beauty. Drs. Debra and Eva give women of all ages a prescription for mastering the Beauty-Brain Loop.

Dr. Ritvo has a joint appointment in the departments of Dermatology and Psychiatry at the Miller School of Medicine.

Within this helpful beauty guide -- for both inner and outer beauty – they devote two pages to the "cult of Barbie."

Say’s Eva, "Barbie is an exaggerated female figure and appeals mainly to very young girls. Kids don't do well with subtlety and Barbie has none! Many things contribute to poor body image -- mostly low self esteem."

Here's what the authors wrote in The Beauty Prescription:

"Consider Barbie. She's got quite the life. First of all she's built like a Greek goddess. She's got castles, Corvettes, and beach houses. She's got cool friends such as Skipper and a handsome-yet-sensitive boyfriend, Ken who never asks for a commitment. With that package of attributes going for her, Barbie has become part of our pop-culture mythos. Songs are written about her. She's the main playmate of millions of young girls and has been for more than forty years. Like it or not, the Mattel temptress has become something of a feminine ideal.

To explore that phenomenon, a group of Canadian media researchers generated a computer model of a woman with Barbie's generous measurements and found that her back would be too weak to support the weight of her well-endowed upper body, and her emaciated torso would be too narrow to hold more than half a liver and a few inches of colon.
If she were a real woman, they concluded, Barbie would eventually die from malnutrition.

THE CULT OF BARBIE
Poor Barbie. Behind the smiling facade, doomed by her tiny gastrointestinal tract. It should be obvious from one look that they are not the proportions of a real human being, but that doesn't stop millions of women, young and old, from wanting to look like her. The influence of the "cult of Barbie" can be seen in the spread of eating disorders and in "tween" girls begging their parents for breast augmentation when they should be getting worked up about Hello Kitty backpacks."

To arrange for interviews and get copies of The Beauty Prescription written by Dr. Eva Ritvo or Dr. Debra Luftman, please contact Charlotte Tomic, 917-882-5243.

Dr. Ritvo can also discuss body dysmorphic disorder and the psychiatric treatment of women (and men) who suffer from it.

About the authors:

Debra B. Luftman, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist, has a busy private practice in Beverly Hills. In addition Debra lectures on topics including laser surgery, liposuction, skin aging, and sun protection. She has appeared as an expert on "Good Morning America" and "Extra" and has been quoted in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA TODAY, Vogue, Allure, InStyle, and O. She has developed her own skin care product line called Therapeutix.
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Eva C. Ritvo, M.D., a board-certified psychiatrist, is vice chair and associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, where she also has a unique joint appointment in the Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery. She serves as the chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida. A published author, Eva has appeared as an expert on "Today" and "Extra;" has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Self, O, and Psychology Today; and is a frequent contributor to the Miami Herald, Miami Sun-Sentinel, and local news programs.

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