At 12-years-old, the extent to which your body conforms to society's standards of beauty should be the last thing on your mind.
So a French company has been rightly called out for selling a children's bra designed to smooth out and "erase imperfections".
Florence Braud took to Twitter last week to share her annoyance upon spotting the bra, made by lingerie brand Dim, for sale in Bretagne, France.
"Gomme les imperfections" et "offre une forme lisse"... Pour un soutif en 70A au rayon enfant... #LeCulLesRonces pic.twitter.com/Iz6heNM6P1
— Florence Braud (@Babeth_AS) September 2, 2016
Translated into English, her tweet read: “‘Erase imperfections’ and ‘smooth out the shape’, says a bra in 70A [the smallest bra size in France] in a kids section… #We’reReallyNotDoneWithThisShit.”
The bra's label says it is “Ideal as a first bra with removable filling!” and that it “hides small imperfections”.
Speaking to Buzzfeed News, Braud said she had gone shopping with her daughter after a girl in her daughter's class made fun of her for not wearing one, and that she took issue with the word "imperfections".
“It saddened me to see that, so soon, she was already suffering the threats [of] femininity,” she said, before deeming it an “injunction of femininity”.
Responding to Braud's tweet, many others shared their dismay at the message the lingerie brand is sending to young girls.
Bonjour @DIMparis. alors comme ca les gamines de 12 ans ont des "imperfections" à "lisser" ? https://t.co/el8sYvLKQ1
— CrêpeGeorgette (@valerieCG) September 2, 2016
“Hello @DIMparis. So according to you, 12-year-old girls have “imperfections” that should be smoothed out?,” read one woman's tweet, translated into English.
Mais va te faire gommer les imperfections ailleurs, @DIMparis.
— Elliot SacchaReid (@ElliotReid_MD) September 2, 2016
Tu dis tout de toi et ton bodyshaming, rien de nous. https://t.co/EIyTXLg7wr
Another accused Dim of "body shaming" young girls. “Go erase your own imperfections elsewhere, @DIMparis. This tells everything about yourself and your body shaming, but nothing about us.”
@Babeth_AS @Ticamomille ca me ravage. T'as pas ENCORE de seins mais t'as DEJA des trucs qui ne vont pas / à cacher...
— Leya_MK (@Leya_MK) September 2, 2016
Another woman shared her disappointment by saying: "I’m so upset by this. You don’t even have breasts YET but you ALREADY have problems/things to hide…”
Responding to the criticism, Dim told Buzzfeed that it wasn't referring to bodily "imperfections", but "clothing and non-physiological imperfections".
A spokesperson for the lingerie brand said: “When we said imperfections, we meant clothing and non-physiological imperfections. This is to erase imperfections materials — folds, overlays, etc. — to make the product smooth and harmonious under clothing.”
Another of the company's bras, marketed to children, contains foam pads, which it describes as "a basic essential "for all young girls looking for comfort and style". How wearing a bra could make any child feel more comfortable, we don't know.
Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
Where To Find the Cheapest Michelin-Starred Food In The UK & Around The World
What's Happened To The Rohingya Women One Year Since Fleeing For Their Lives
33k-A-Year Girls' School Seeks Legal Action Over "Highly Inappropriate" Music Video