Still petty in pink

At 55 years old, this doll is still in the hot seat for having an impossibly perfect figure.

Barbie celebrated her birthday on Sunday to mixed emotions around the globe.

Online, her detractors wrestled with the age-old issue - that girls who play with the iconic toy may yearn for an exaggerated hour-glass silhouette.

But in Singapore, celebrity mums who attended Barbie's 55th Anniversary Celebration at the United Square Atrium on Saturday were all for their daughters enjoying the Barbie-themed event, which runs at the mall daily until March 23, from 11am to 9pm.

There are stations and activities such as creating your own Barbie doll dress and an augmented reality closet where children can try on different outfits.

The mums' consensus? That children are smart enough to know that a doll is just a doll.

DJ Jamie Yeo, former VJ Teh May Wan and host Diana Ser weigh in on the long-running debate.

Mum's figure not perfect, but...

Barbie is not to blame - parents are.

Former VJ Teh May Wan is confident of her body, thanks to her mother whom she says has never "complained" about her own figure in front of her.

Teh believes that by employing that same parenting technique, her daughters Leala and Siena will grow up without body issues.

Said Teh, 32, who is married to an Indonesian-Chinese businessman: "My mum didn't have the perfect figure, but she never once spoke negatively about it.

"I also married a man who nourishes my soul. He tells me he loves my booty, my small chest and told me I was beautiful even though I had a big tummy post-pregnancy.

"My husband always teaches my daughters that the most important thing is to have a beautiful heart so they know all about inner beauty.

"I'm so lucky to be surrounded by good, positive people."

Like Jamie Yeo, Teh also felt the same way about owning a Barbie doll.

She said: "Having a Barbie doll never made me want a small waist and big boobs.

"My husband is the only one who sees me naked and if he has nothing bad to say, then that makes me self-assured."

At the Barbie event, Leala took to the catwalk and was eagerly kissed by Teh after.

Although she loves her toys, Leala is into puzzles and enjoys cracking her head over them.

Said Teh: "My own mum had asked me to choose toys or books when I was young, and I chose books. I'm so proud that my girls are bookworms too."

'I grew up with Barbie, but...'

By the time Jamie Yeo was 12, she already had 15 Barbies.

The 36-year-old DJ and former actress, who is married to Briton Thorsten Nolte, told The New Paper: "I'm not the stereotypical type of woman, I'm strong and have my own opinions.

"I grew up with Barbie, but I didn't take my toys seriously.

"My Barbies didn't make me want to go out and get a bigger chest or longer legs.

"They are just for little girls to play with and if they make my daughter happy, I'm happy."

Citing the example of computer games, she said that kids who play them won't necessarily grow up to steal cars or shoot people.

Yeo added that if anything, it is fashion magazines filled with glossy pictures of sexy models that are likely to make young girls feel insecure about their bodies.

Little Alysia, whom Yeo calls Aly, loves anything princessy or pink. But instea of wanting to be like Barbie, Aly has taken to playing mummy with the doll.

Yeo gets tickled when she watches her daughter play, especially when she mimics Yeo.

Said Yeo: "Sometimes she would tell the doll, 'I'm going to feed you some milk. Lie down and drink it. Don't puke okay!'

"That's really cute because that's exactly what I tell her."

When Aly is older, she will be receiving a special present from her mum.

Said Yeo: "I remember I used boxes and paint and put together a scrappy dollhouse when I was young.

"I told myself that if I ever had a daughter, I would buy her a nice, big dollhouse."

They've never owned a Barbie doll, but...

They have never owned a Barbie doll.

Local host Diana Ser, married to former actor James Lye, took their daughter Christy to Barbie's 55th Anniversary Celebration for her first encounter with the doll.

Ser, 41, said: "I think Christy was just overwhelmed by all the pink there.

"I suspect Barbie is another 'princess' to her, just like Disney characters Belle and Ariel."

On the topic of body issues, she said: "I think it is more crucial that my kids have real-life role models. Christy, for example, gravitates towards other women in my life, such as my mum and my sister.

"When she's playing with toys, she's supervised and has limited time with them. So I'm not concerned that any one toy can affect her too much.

But Ser said that Barbie is always well-groomed and that can only be a good thing.

She has never owned one and admitted that when she was a child, she busied herself with catching spiders at the park near her grandmother's house.

Said Ser: "Through eating well, exercising and taking care of Christy's skin, (I have helped her maintain a healthy self-image).

"James and I work out regularly and I do pilates at home where she can see me. I think this will set the tone for her in future."

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