A newspaper advertisement targeting schoolgirls and promoting beauty procedures including breast enlargements has been found to have breached social responsibility principles.
The ad, which ran in the Southland Times on March 28, had the promotional line "Be the belle of the ball" and included an image of ayoung woman dressed in a ball dress.
Her body was tagged with various labels, including "firming and lifting cheek", "firm and lift thighs and buttocks" and "breast enlargement and lifting".
A high school teacher was among those who took exception to the ad and said it implied young girls needed to undergo the procedures mentioned if they wanted to be the "belle of the ball".
"These girls are in the prime of their lives and should not be exposed to such negative influences," the teacher said in a letter to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The advertiser, Youth Beauty Appearance Clinic, said it was surprising to get such a response to the ad but accepted it may have been "misinterpreted".
The clinic said the services it offered were "non-surgical, non-invasive, effective and affordable".
The Southland Times said the ad was withdrawn following complaints and apologised if offence was caused.
The ASA's complaints board took the view the ad was published at the start of the ball season and was likely to contribute to the already existing peer pressure and body image teenage girls were subjected to.
"Of particular concern was the reference to having 'breast enlargement and lifting' which was a surgical procedure," the board said.
A minority of the board said the ad did not breach standards of social responsibility for those advertising therapeutic services.
