Vampire Diaries star Nina Dobrev autographed jeans for DoSomething.org's Teens for Jeans campaign. Nina was one of several celebrities participating in the campaign to help get jeans to homeless teenagers. You can see photographs of some of the other celebrities who participated here. The DoSomething.org and Aeropostale campaign helped send over 600,000 jeans to homeless teens.
Usreports that Tyra Banks is seeking plus-sized teens for an upcoming modeling competition.
"I've always felt it was my mission to expand the narrow perceptions of beauty," she told Us. "Through America's Next Top Model, True Beauty and The Tyra Show, I challenge industry and universal standards by featuring and celebrating non-traditional beauty, and stressing that true beauty is both inside and out."
Banks said she was unhappy that the term "plus-sized" has such a "negative connotation" in today's society.
The requirements for Tyra's Fiercely Real Teen Model Search are that models have to be a size 12-20 and stand between 5 foot 9 and 6 foot 1 inches tall. You can read more about the requirements here.
Study Finds 82% of American Children Identify Themselves as Current Gamers
Gamasutra is reporting that a new study from the NPD Group indicate that more young people are identifying themselves as games while teens are gaming less. The study found that 82% of American children identify themselves as "current gamers."
"The decline in teen usage of video games is likely due to diversifying, maturing interests, which translates into stiffer competition for their mind and wallet share," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier.
NPD Group's study found that said kids use an average of 2.5 gaming systems or devices. Gaming systems can include dedicated gaming consoles, PCs, iPhones and other devices. The study found 9-11 and 12-14 year old children use the most platforms with an average of about three.
Avril Lavigne's Abbey Dawn Collection Hits the Runway
Avril Lavigne's Abbey Dawn collection was shown on the runway this week in New York. The punk princess style of the collection is similar to Avril's outfits in some of her music videos. Avril says she had trouble deciding whether to wear Converse sneakers or heels with her dress for the runway show. She chose heels but switched back to Converse immediately after the show. The Abbey Dawn collection is sold exclusively at Kohl's. Take a look:
Wall Street Journal reports that Borders is planning to target teens with its new Borders Ink shops inside Borders stores. Borders Ink section contain graphic novels and young-adult novels. They will also contain items of interest to teens such as Twilight pencil cases.
The Borders Ink shops, which will stock graphic novels, fantasy and young-adult titles together, are expected to be available in 80% to 90% of the 513 superstores Borders operates nationwide by the end of August. Some have already opened in Michigan.
The space for the departments has often been carved from areas that previously sold music and DVDs, whose popularity has faded with bookstore shoppers.
Borders also plans to stock merchandise it thinks teens will snap up, including a variety of goods associated with Ms. Meyer, the writer of the vampire "Twilight" series, such as bookmarks and pencil cases.
"We want this to be about more than just the book," said Kathryn Popoff, vice president of merchandising/trade books at Borders, based in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Hot Topic has found success with the Twilight related products so there is proof these kinds of items sell. It also makes sense for Borders to remove music from these new teen sections. There is ample evidence teens don't buy much music and if they do it is usually in a digital format.
Flair4all wall has launched a reusable wall decal product. Flair4all claims its decals come off surfaces just as easily as they go on. Packages of flair4all are sold exclusively on flair4all.com for $20.00 each.
"A teen's room is her sanctuary, a statement of her self-expression," says flair4all product development director Suzanne Stelzer. "With flair4all, teens can change their rooms as often as they change their style. It gives them an easy and affordable way to test the bounds of their style without testing their parents' limits, or having to live with the consequences of a room decorating disaster."
Marketwatch reports that ongoing recession has forced teens to think about their purchasing decisions. Many teens can't find jobs and some also have one or two parents that have lost jobs during these tough economic times.
This recession is the roughest teens have seen in their lifetimes. But having this effect on teens -- who have long spent freely no matter what's going on in the world -- underscores the depth and breadth of an economic slump that has left more than 6 million unemployed, a good percentage of whom are teenagers, and has shocked a spendthrift nation into becoming savers.
That doesn't mean teenagers have given up going to the malls and shopping centers or that every teen is pinching pennies. A Scarborough Research and Arbitron Inc. study recently found that 62% of teens tend to go to malls as often or even more often than they did six months ago.
And most of them are still spending liberally. Some 40% of teens said they ran through about the same amount of money at the malls on their last visit as they did on an average visit six months ago. Another 14% actually splurged more.
It's not a bad thing for teens to learn about savings and budgeting but it is sad that many have been left jobless because of the recession. Marketwatch says the unemployment rate for 16 year olds to 19 year olds is 23.6%. Retailers that target teens like Abercrombie & Fitch have taken the brunt of the reduction in spending by the nation's teens.
Most teens are still shopping in the recession but many are now looking for sales. Some teens in MarketWatch's "teenager on the street" interview video below say they are also cutting back on entertainment by eating out less and watching fewer movies. Take a look:
Trashionista: Teenager Makes Graduation Dress From Garbage Bags
A Burnaby, Canada teenager made a statement about the cost of graduation dresses by having her friend make her a dress using garbage bags. The dress cost around $5. The story doesn't say how long the dress took to make. Take a look:
Bloombergreports that a new study by NPD Group found teens bought 19% less music in 208. Teenagers bought 26% less CDs and spent 13% less on music downloads. NPD Group says teens are streaming music on sites like Pandora, iMeem and MySpace Music instead.
Consumers ages 13 to 17 spent 13 percent less on music downloads last year, while compact disc purchases tumbled 26 percent, according to a survey by the Port Washington, New York- based researcher. The decline coincided with a 24 percent drop in overall entertainment spending by teens, NPD said.
Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group Corp. and EMI Group Ltd. are counting on increases in digital download sales to make up for shrinking CD sales. Total U.S. album sales declined 14 percent last year, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
"The music industry still hasn't recovered from declining CD sales, and now they are being challenged anew by slowing digital sales among teens," NPD analyst Russ Crupnick said in a statement.
Teens can also watch music videos on plenty of websites including YouTube, CMT, Yahoo and MTV Music.
Sales could fall even more in 2009 if the recession results in teens getting smaller allowances or because less jobs are available for teens.
Enforcing a consistent bedtime for children is not always an easy thing to do. But new studies reveal
that giving children extra sleep is critical to brain development
"The literature really strongly suggests the average early to mid-adolescent needs 9 to 9.25 hours a night," said Dr. Judith Owens, an associate professor of pediatrics at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, who directs the Pediatric Sleep Disorders Clinic at Hasbro Children’s Hospital.
She quickly headed off my question about children -- or adults -- who don't need that much sleep. "It's a bell-shaped curve," she said, with just 2.5 percent of the population needing significantly less sleep than average.
"The problem," she went on, "is that 95 percent of us think we're in that 2.5 percent. You should assume until proven otherwise that your kid needs that much sleep."
What is the bedtime recommendation for an 8- or 9-year-old? The experts sensibly suggest that you work backward from wake-up time, trying for 10 hours of sleep, and testing your routine by checking whether the child wakes spontaneously, alert and cheerful and ready for the day (no, mine generally did not).
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As children move into middle school, Dr. Owens said, they still need plenty of sleep, but it gets harder for them to follow the schedule that the world demands.
"Sleep needs don't change all that dramatically from late elementary through middle school into high school," she said. "What changes is the circadian rhythm of sleep and wake, and typically as you go into and through puberty your sleep and wake time shifts by as much as two hours. They simply can't fall asleep as early as they did when they were 7 or 8 years old." That is why many experts say the high school day should start later.
This is why you can't get a teenager out of bed early without a major effort. Experts say that the biggest disruptor of sleep is electronics. Cell phones, text messages, computers, TVs and radios are all designed to wake up a human brain and give it something to think about. To get a good night sleep, a low tech evening can really help.... Oh, and good luck with that. Most teens would give up almost anything other than their digital devices.
Study Finds Tanning Salons as Common as Starbucks in Some Towns
MSNBC reports that a new study on tanning salons by San Diego State University has found that they are as common as Starbucks and McDonalds.
"Just to put the number into context, we counted the number of Starbucks and McDonalds, two frequently occurring businesses," says Dr. Joni Mayer, professor of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences at the Graduate School of Public Health in San Diego State University. "We knew that there were a lot of indoor tanning facilities but we didn’t really know that they would exceed the number of Starbucks and McDonalds in most cases."
The cities with the highest density of tanning beds are Charleston, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Akron, Portland and Columbia. Charleston has 18 tanning salons for its 53,000 residents.
The study also found that teens living nearby tanning salons are more likely to have used them. Discount pricing also makes teens use the tanning salons more frequently.
"We interviewed 6,000 teens across the country and those living within two miles of a tanning salon were significantly more likely to have used indoor tanning than those who didn't." says Mayer. "There's a significant association between living close to a tanning salon and using indoor tanning."
Another factor that comes into play is the cheap pricing.
"The majority if not all tanning salons offer discount price packaging on UV tanning," she says. "Which makes it very cheap per tanning session. It's like an all-you-can-eat buffet. To get your 'money's worth,' you tan more often."
Interest in tanning doesn't seem to have faded among teenagers even though there are known health risks:
Unfortunately, tanning more often means upping your risk of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer such as squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, studies have also shown that excessive exposure to UV radiation during indoor tanning leads to skin aging, immune suppression and eye damage, including cataracts and ocular melanoma. Even the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services has declared both tanning beds — and that big fiery ball in the sky — to be known carcinogens.
Despite the health risks and alternatives like bronzers and spray-on tans there are still one million people tanning in tanning salons on an average day according to the ADA - and 70% of them are females aged 16 to 29.
The New York Timesreports on the rise in plastic surgeries for teenagers.
The latest figures from the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery show that the number of cosmetic surgical procedures performed on youths 18 or younger more than tripled over a 10-year period, to 205,119 in 2007 from 59,890 in 1997. This includes even more controversial procedures: liposuctions rose to 9,295 from 2,504, and breast augmentations increased nearly sixfold, to 7,882 from 1,326.
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Critics say that with plastic surgery becoming more common, parents are more likely to find themselves having to learn how to say no to a son or daughter with a tarnished self-image who is begging for the same quick surgical fix that the parents themselves may have had.
"Our children are barraged with images of ideal women and men that aren't even real, but computer composites," said Jean Kilbourne, co-author of So Sexy, So Soon, a book on teenagers and pre-teenagers. "These girls and boys can't compete. The truth is, no one can. And it leaves teens feeling more inadequate than ever and a lot of parents unsure as to the right thing to do."
Dr. Frederick Lukash, a plastic surgeon in New York City and Long Island who specializes in treating adolescents, said: "Unlike adults who may elect cosmetic surgery for that 'wow' factor to stand out in a crowd, to be rejuvenated and get noticed, kids have a different mantra. They do it to fit in."
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A recent survey of more than 1,000 girls in the United States ages 8 to 17 sponsored by the Dove Self-Esteem Fund — which has a partnership with the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. and is linked to Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty, a program aimed at changing narrow cultural definitions of beauty — showed that 7 in 10 girls surveyed believed that when it came to issues including beauty and body image they did not "measure up." Only 10 percent found themselves to be "pretty enough."
Well, that's certainly disturbing. Young women have always been insecure: it's part of growing up. The difference today is twofold: the media images girls see are photoshopped in ways that weren't even technically possible thirty years ago and the procedures to fix many perceived flaws have advanced even further than computerized airbrushing.
As technology advances, the urge for self-improvement and beautification will exhibit itself in ways we can't even imagine now. How about nanites so you can change your hair color and length just by thinking about it to your neural implant? Or change your skin color or body art just by thinking about it? This is only the beginning.
As for the age at which one should be allowed to have these procedures, we think that should be on an individual basis with control being in the parents' hands. Because a sixteen year old wanting a nose job so she doesn't get teased unmercifully seems different to us than getting breast implants or lipo, which is ridiculous for a teen to have.
Ford's MyKey Lets Parents Set Car Speed and Volume Limits
Ford has a new product called the MyKey system that will become a standard in Ford cars starting with the 2010 Focus Coupe. Think of this as a parental control system for cars. This is probably something that parents are going to like and teens are going to dislike but it's not like teens won't want the car because of these limits. Here are some of the features parents can program in with MyKey.
Limited top speed of 80 mph
Traction control system, that limits tire spin, cannot be deactivated
Limited audio volume to 44 percent of total volume
A speed alert chime at 45, 55 or 65 mph
Other features include a persistent warning chime if seat belts are not fastened. Here's a little more from the official press release.
The MyKey system allows the parent to program any key through the vehicle message center, which updates the SecuriLock passive anti-theft system. When the MyKey is inserted into the ignition, the system reads the transponder chip in the key and immediately identifies the MyKey code, which enables certain default driving modes, including:
Persistent Ford Beltminder with audio mute. Ford's Beltminder system typically provides a six-second reminder chime every minute for five minutes. With MyKey, the Beltminder chime continues at the regular interval and the audio system is muted until the safety belt is buckled. A message center display "Buckle Up to Unmute Radio" also appears on the instrument cluster.
Earlier low-fuel warning. Rather than a warning at 50 miles to empty, MyKey provides a warning at 75 miles to empty.
If MyKey is in the ignition, features such as Park Aid and BLISTM (Blind Spot Information System) with Cross Traffic Alert cannot be deactivated.
Additional MyKey features that can be programmed through the vehicle's message center setup menu:
The creators of Gossip Girl are reveling in their show's bad reputation with parents and critics. In fact, they are embracing the criticism. New print ads feature racy scenes with negative quotes from major media outlets. The show is "every parent's worst nightmare!" screams one ad. One thing's for sure: this really is truth in advertising.
In her article for Salon, "Living Large", Lynn Harris explores the world of hip plus-sized fashions for teens.
That was before Torrid came to town. Torrid is the curvy kid-sister company to California-based Hot Topic, a popular punk clothing chain (insofar as a "chain" can be "punk") that netted $39.7 million last year. Now four years old, Torrid offers only plus-size clothing -- that is, only cool plus-size clothing -- to fashion-starved Junior XLs like Kathryn. "We believe that plus-size young women should have just as much opportunity to feel feminine, beautiful and sexy as their thinner counterparts," says Regina Woodhouse, director of marketing for Torrid. Translation: Anyone looking for stretch pants or muumuus will be disappointed.
Torrid is working lace camis, cute hoodies, saucy tees, flouncy minis....The combined effect is as if Gwen Stefani, Anna Nicole Smith, Queen Latifah, Pink and Carmen Miranda teamed up for a trunk show. Shiny, sparkly, often revealing -- with roomier-than-usual shoes, boots and even expanded necklaces and bracelets to match -- the clothes seem to say, "What fat?" rather than "I'll just be hiding over here in this caftan." (Torrid does, by the way, also stock more conservative clothes.)
After running the article, Salonwas deluged with letters from readers praising Torrid and its clothes, and blasting the one moronic "expert" (Dr. T. Joel Wade) quoted in the article who said that providing nice clothes for overweight teens will make them want to stay overweight (yes, we know, he's an idiot). Other stores which provide trendy clothes for plus sizes include The Gap, Banana Republic, Nordstroms, Saks 5th Avenue and Neiman Marcus. Designers who have gotten on board the plus sized bandwagon include Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger and Liz Claiborne, although these lines are not aimed at teens. Hip-hop star Nelly, (you remember his hit, "Shake Ya Tailfeather"?) has launched a clothing line called Apple Bottoms, and JLo by Jennifer Lopez and Baby Phat both offer extended sizes. Online retailers include Alight and Beauty Plus Power. Bloomingdales and Macy's also carry plus sizes.
So, what do the experts have to say to Dr. Wade -- the guy that wants to make fat teens as alienated and miserable as possible, so they can become suicidal as well as overweight?
Health and business experts follow Andrea's logic, agreeing that Torrid represents a welcome, even overdue, tap into a surprisingly underserved market. "It's about time," says Judith S. Stern, professor of nutrition and internal medicine at the University of California at Davis and vice president and co-founder of the American Obesity Association. "Overweight and obese kids are actively discriminated against. The fact that they couldn't have cool clothing just made things worse. We've made a lot of progress."
Bloomberg 
MSNBC 
Ford has a new product called the MyKey system that will become a standard in Ford cars starting with the 2010 Focus Coupe. Think of this as a parental control system for cars. This is probably something that parents are going to like and teens are going to dislike but it's not like teens won't want the car because of these limits. Here are some of the features parents can program in with MyKey.
