Barbie going bald to support young girls with hair loss

Barbie dolls will be going bald soon.

An online campaign called "Beautiful and Bald Barbie! Let's see if we can get it made" succeeded in convincing toymaker Mattel to create a 'friend of Barbie' doll, which will be bald in support of young girls who are experiencing hair loss from alopecia or chemotherapy.

Jane Bingham, a photographer and the co-founder of the campaign, said to CBS: "We thought it would be popular with plenty of people, but we did not expect it to balloon the way it did across the world and throughout the media. It's been great, we couldn't have done it. They wouldn't have heard us if it was just a couple of people writing to them."

According to CBS, "the doll will not be sold in stores, but will instead be donated to children's hospitals and the National Alopecia Areata Foundation."

Mattel said that it decided to distribute the dolls directly to hospitals in order to serve those who need them most.

According to MSNBC, Deanna Pledge, a psychologist working with children in Columbia, Mo., said that a bald Barbie might be helpful for sick children suffering from hair loss.

"I think having an image of a bald child or bald adult — whether it's Barbie or not — does promote a positive message in the mainstream," she said. "And Barbie is clearly in the mainstream."