Who's your daddy: Lingerie for four-year-olds, cool or sick?

Any man who’s ever had the delight of undressing a woman knows instinctively that there is nothing practical or functional (in terms of underwear) about sexy lingerie.

Its primary purpose is to excite either the wearer or the viewer, right? If you’re looking for comfort and support, a g-string and lacy bra just ain’t gonna cut it.

So why the hell, for the love of all things holy, is a French fashion lable designing a lingerie line for kids aged between 4 and 12?

The issue made headlines across the world recently when the The Jours Après Lunes lingerie for kids and the Thylane Blondeau shoot for Vogue that ignited a global storm over the 10-year-old's languid poses for the January edition of French Vogue.

The question I’d like to ask is, why? Hoekom? Who thinks up this kinda crap? I would bet my last slice of bread that the designers of this shite are not responsible parents. Or am I just an old fart with prudish values?

What possible reason could there be for a need like this to be satisfied. How is there even a need for it?

“In one shot, a girl wears Jackie O-style sunglasses while lounging back on a pillow, her modesty protected by just panties and a cropped polka-dot tied top.

In another, three young girls play together, their hair set in Amy Winehouse-style beehives and their lips painted bright pinks and reds.” This extract from an article online about the photoshoot which launched the new line.

I have three daughters; aged 11, 6 and 4, and I have yet to see them demonstrate any kind of awareness of their sexuality. I mean Maddison (6) can do a mean impression of Shakira doing the waka waka song, but as for sexuality, it’s absolutely non-existent. Now I’ve heard talk of some kids exploring their sexuality at young ages. Boys, in particular, become fascinated with their penises, and it’s also been documented that girls are known to explore their genitals.

I can say without hesitation that bottoms and bodies aged between 4 and 12, have no business being in lingerie, it makes no sense from any angle, sexual or functional. Yet, here it is, causing a rumpus across the world.

What does this trend say about us as a collective species, are we evolving or regressing? Are our kids’ sexuality coming to the fore at an earlier age? Who or what is to blame? Advertising, social media, music, dvd’s, movies…

Whatever the reason, the buck stops with the parents of kids in this age group. The only way Jours Après Lunes can remain in business is if they sell their wares. I can tell you right now that no 4 year old is going to march voluntarily into a store and ask for lingerie. Initially I was as outraged as all those posting comments all over the net about it. But then I thought let’s explore what lies behind this intriguing and decidedly disturbing development in fashion.

Join me and my guests, Clinical Psychologist and co-author of Easy Answers for Awkward Questions (by kids) Ilze van der Merwe and a representative from the children’s fashion industry in South Africa as we discuss this trend. Tune in on Saturday 5 November at 21:00 on Mindset, Channel 319 on DSTV for the next episode of Who’s Your Daddy, the first ever parenting talk-show hosted by a man, and age restricted to 16 and over. Come find out why!

Written by Marlon Abrahams