On Jan. 28, Mattel released a line of new Barbie dolls. The new dolls come in four sizes: petite, tall, curvy and original. Changes to her hair and styling are also available.

She’s one of the most recognizable figures in the world. With her perfectly blond hair, over-sized bust and hips and undersized waist, Barbie started as society’s ideal woman in 1959.

However, her disproportionate body has received strong criticism since the early 1960s. Women’s liberation groups claimed Barbie’s body promoted unattainable body goals.

More recently, studies have begun to back up this claim. One study from 2006 showed that girls who were exposed to Barbie in their youth expressed more concern to be thin than girls who were exposed to other dolls.

Barbie has been an icon since she set foot on the retail scene. Her new body varieties could have a long-lasting impact.

While I respect Mattel’s ideas to expand the definition of perfection, I can’t help but express my dissatisfaction with the changes.

Barbie has always been an unattainable body image. Why has Mattel chosen now to change her?

Tanking sales are probably partially to blame. Between 2012 and 2014, Barbie’s global sales dropped 25 percent. Losing that much in sales, Mattel knew it had to make changes.

Changing Barbie’s hairstyle and texture last year helped her brand appeal. Barbie’s feet were also made flat to wear sneakers and flats. These changes made Barbie more tuned in to the modern scene. Some outside artists even sold stickers to give Barbie acne, stretch marks and cellulite.

However, the sales drop didn’t have as much to with Barbie’s look as it did with the interactivity of the dolls. Changing how she looks won’t make her more appealing to girls who want singing dolls.

The point of Barbie hasn’t been to give a perfect body role model. Growing up, Barbie was just another doll at my house. Her bodily proportions were never important to me until middle school when someone pointed it out.

In general, not many girls under the age of 12 will know that much about Barbie’s body. They don’t know that the size of her waist would never be able to support her bust line. To most girls, Barbie is a doll that they can make do whatever they want.

In reality, is Barbie’s body really the issue? Or could we solve the issues with body image by being more tolerant and accepting?