Too Fat to Be a Princess—Worries for the Modern Preschooler

We all know the American obsession with skinny people and body image—but I didn’t know until I read this report how pervasive worries about appearance has become. According to a recent study at the University of Central Florida, about half of 3-6 year old girls say they worry about being too fat.

This makes me sad.

On the flip side, these girls don’t appear to react negatively to videos showing your stereotypical thin, gorgeous princess figure. This differs from the responses of older girls and women, who tend to feel worse about themselves after viewing videos of thin, lovely models. I’m thinking this is a plus, although I can’t quite put my finger on why. Maybe it’s that these girls don’t compare their bodies to animated princesses?

When I write for middle schoolers and young adults, I think about tackling issues of body image, healthy living, and eating disorders—but I don’t usually think about those things when writing a story for 3-6 year-olds. I wonder if there’s a need.