Dolls That "Poo" Go Too Far

Dolls That "Poo" Go Too Far

Monday, December 22, 2008

filed under: family

A doll that goes number-two is said to be the number-one best seller with little girls ... but are uber-realistic playthings good for our kids?

"Sniff sniff," "I made a stinky!" No that's not your toddler alerting you to a potty training accident. It's her doll. Hasbro's new Baby Alive doll lets you know when she's made "poo" in her doll potty.

Dolls have been "wetting" themselves for years, but now toy makers are upping the bodily-function ante -- and dolls are now capable of going number two. Ew!

The instructions for this year's model of Baby Alive (retailing for $59.99) say "just like real life, sometimes she can hold it until she gets to the 'potty' and sometimes she can't!". A warning on the back of the box reads: "May stain some surfaces."

Yick. What happened to good old-fashioned make-believe?

Susan Linn, professor of child psychology at Harvard and director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, says, "This toy is shocking enough that it's going to be noticed. But at best, this toy is unnecessary. At worst, it's really gross."

She says this doll is part of a greater trend to create toys that do everything. "And in the process of marketing those toys to children and flooding the market with those toys, what we're doing is depriving children of opportunities for creative play," says Linn.

What do you think? Are dolls that go "poo" taking realism a bit too far? Comment in the momlogic community.

4 comments so far | Post a comment now >>

This is a good example of “lets make it because we can.” I agree with Linn “…at best its unnecessary. At worst, its gross.” More make believe please.

- Bev Barnett

Posted 12/22/08 06:59 PM

That’s gross. And on another note, I have enough poop to clean up without adding some more.

- valmg

Posted 12/22/08 07:25 PM

This isn’t the first time I seen a pooing doll. My MIL bought one somewhere about 8 years ago for my oldest. It wasn’t as advanced as this new doll but it pooed none the less. My daughter loved it for a little while. She liked the one that made tears and wetted better though. Is it going to far? I am sure people said that with the wetting dolls. Guess it depends on each individual parent. I don’t know where I stand yet on this one…guess in the middle. Think they are border line.

- Chrissy

Posted 12/22/08 07:49 PM

What in the world is wrong with teaching children that the natural things out bodies do is evil, taboo, or gross? Pooing is pooing. God forbid we let them ACCEPT it! That would be..*gasp* NATURAL!

- kiku

Posted 10/13/09 08:22 PM