1) A lot of the contestants become friends. We know that drama sells, so to a point any "reality" show about Pageants has played up the drama. But contestants aren't usually at each other's throats; they're a bunch of young women of the same age striving towards the same goals, heavily invested in the same subculture. Of COURSE they're going to make friends. There's a few bad apples, sure, but overall, it's a lot of healthy competition and support.

2) Backstage at pageants doesn't smell as pretty as the contestants look. A bunch of sweaty girls running around, a lot of nerves, hairspray, and fifteen different kinds of perfume don't...smell great together. This is in no way to say that Beauty Contestants aren't meticulously clean, but...athletes don't smell great in the middle of a game, either.

3) While many are quick to speak against Beauty Pageants for women of any age, many contestants report an increase in self esteem, confidence, and overcoming shyness. Confidence is the best participation trophy.

4) Some people in Venezuela are so obsessed with Beauty Pageants that they send their daughters to special academies also known as "Miss Factories," to groom them to be Beauty Queens. Often women under 18 undergo cosmetic surgery, hormone therapies to stave off puberty in an attempt to grow taller, mesh sewn onto the tongue to make eating solid food impossible, among other things.

5) Over two and a half million adult women participate in Beauty Pageants each year in the US alone, and Beauty Pageants are a Worldwide phenomenon. That's a lot of hair spray and tooth whitener.

6) You can be the most beautiful woman in the Universe more than once. In 2009, Dayana Mendoza from Venezuela won Miss Universe for two consecutive years.

7) France actually banned Beauty Pageants for children under the age of 13, citing fears of "hypersexualizing" young girls. But it does beg the question - does a 4 year old need an eyeliner, fake nails, fake lashes.

Being a Pageant Queen isn't cheap or easy - it's like a full time job. For serious competitors, evening dresses can cost upwards of 50,000 for gowns off the rack. Professional Hair and Makeup can cost 40,000 and hour, on top of personal trainers, pageant coaches, professional head shots, transportation, pageant entry fees....

9) Globally, Beauty Pageants are insanely popular, with over 3,000 pageants listed on the International Register of Pageants.

10) Many adult "Miss" beauty pageants still hold to very traditional gender roles; contestants must never have been married (Miss America now allows Divorcees), or given birth to a child. (Requirements used to say "have been pregnant," but changes were made so that women who had an abortion or miscarriage could compete.) The oldest you can enter is 25.

Miss Nations ...unveiling Beauty!

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