A local radio station has launched a contest that has Calgarians competing to win a $10,000 breast augmentation or reduction surgery.
The contest is called "The Breast Summer Ever" and is being hosted by Amp 90.3 and Desperados night club.
Women hoping to enter the contest must upload a photo and explain why they deserve to have their breasts enlarged or reduced.
Some Calgarians are calling the contest offensive and degrading, but the radio station is standing by it.
Buzz Bishop, a morning show host at the station, says they've had people enter, hoping for breast reduction to prevent back problems.
Others say the prize should go to someone recovering from breast cancer.
"And to that I say yes, we would love to have one of those people as our finalists and for the people of Calgary to read that story and find it inspiring," he says.
On the surface, many people think its just about wanting to have a perfect hourglass figure, but the contestants who have entered are proving it's about more than that for them.
Sandy Collett is one of about 100 people who have already entered the contest.
She has worked hard over the past years to lose 36 kg (80 lbs), but says she simply does not fit into her skin the way she used to.
"It's not something that's creating or changing my personality," she says. "It's just giving me that extra for the work I've already done."
Shelly Russell-Mayhew, Associate Professor at the University of Calgary, says that even for those who do not choose to enter, contests like this have a negative effect on self esteem.
Russell-Mayhew is a mother and understands a woman's body does change after children, but says its society that makes moms think that the changes are not okay.
The contest is open until July 3, 2011.
The top ten will be announced on July 7, and listeners will be able to go to the Amp Radio website to vote for the winner.
