Britney Campbell was removed from the care of her mother Kerry after the TV appearance boasting about the beauty treatment sparked outrage across the U.S.Hundreds of complaints were received when she was featured on the Good Morning America show injecting her daughter with the anti-wrinkle treatment.
'I want her to have the best start in life': Campbell, originally from Birmingham, but now living in San Francisco, said she was carrying out the beauty treatments to help her daughter be more competitive in child pageants
Campbell, originally from Birmingham, but now living in San Francisco, said she was carrying out the beauty treatments to help her daughter be more competitive in child pageants.
Her daughter complained that the injections hurt her face, but said she didn’t want any wrinkles on her face. But officials in San Francisco acted after receiving hundreds of calls to their child abuse hotline. The local child protection unit took the girl away over the weekend.
‘It’s pretty unusual for a mom to be injecting an eight-year-old with Botox and certainly is grounds for an investigation,’ said Trent Rohrer of the San Francisco social services department.
Campbell, a part-time beautician, claimed she got the idea for Botox from other mothers whose children compete in beauty pageants.
Bruised: Eight-year-old Britney recovers with an ice pack after the treatment
She said: ‘When Britney takes part in pageants, parents talk about how they have given their daughter an extra jab to plump her lips or lose a wrinkle.
‘Everyone is doing it and talking about it. We are not doing anything illegal, and I don’t want my daughter being the only one who doesn’t have a bit of extra help.’
Campbell, 34, said she buys the Botox over the internet and spends £150 for a 3ml vial.
As well as the anti-wrinkle treatment she has also been waxing her daughter’s legs to prevent hair growth.
She added: ‘What I am doing for Britney now will help her become a star. I know one day she will be a model, actress or singer, and having these treatments now will ensure she stays looking younger and baby-faced for longer. All I want is for Britney to have the best start in life, so it is easier for her to become a superstar.
Pageant: Britney all made up at one of the child beauty competitions
‘More mothers should do it for their daughters. I wish that I’d had the same advantages when I was younger.’
Britney’s father, who was much older than Campbell, died four years ago.
Organisers of child beauty pageants denied that the young competitors have had to use Botox. ‘I’ve never, ever heard of a child getting that. It’s ridiculous,’ said Barbara Thomas, a director with California Gold Coast Pageants.
‘What would a child have need of Botox for? They don’t have a wrinkle on their face. That woman must be off her rocker.’
Dermatologists and child psychology experts said that injecting Botox into a child is clearly unhealthy and ill advised.
‘Medically, who knows what this is going to do to a growing child, and then psychologically, oh my God. It’s disgusting,’ Dr Laura Davies, a child psychiatrist at California Pacific Medical Centre said.
‘The goal of parenthood is to love your kids like they’re the best thing since sliced bread. It’s not that complicated,’ Dr Davies said.
‘The message she’s sending is, “You’re not good enough”. She’s prioritizing physical beauty, which is exactly what you don’t want to do.
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