Abercrombie & Fitch's preppy style has made it a favourite with teens and tweens.

But the fashion chain was the subject of outrage today after it released a range of bikinis for eight to 14-year-olds with padded cups.

The Abercrombie Kids 'Ashley push-up triangle' top, which retails for $24.50, features thick padding in the cup to give the illusion of a larger chest size.

But psychologists today called the design 'appalling' and 'dangerous'.

Speaking to FOX411, parenting expert Dr. Janet Rose said: 'This is appalling. If a parent buys a padded bikini for an eight year old, children's services should be called.

'The sexualisation of teens is bad enough and now this trend is trickling down to our babies.'

She continued: 'If we continue to try to make our children value "sexy", I shudder to think what damage we are doing to their future self-concepts and adult values.

'In the long run, I fear we are creating girls who will suffer from low self-esteem and all the issues that go along with that.'

Psychologist, Dr. Nancy Irwin, believes that the garments could encourage premature sexual promiscuity.

'Wearing a padded bra at that age... is encouraging sexual precociousness, a dangerous muscle to flex for the girl as well as for peers and predators,' she said.

Parenting blog Babble added: 'The push up bra is, effectively, a sex tool, designed to push the breasts up and out, putting them front and center where they’re more accessible to the eye... How is this okay for a second-grader?'

'Playing at sexy is an inevitable and important part of growing up. But there’s a difference between exploring these ideas on your own and having them sold to you in a children’s catalog.'

The nylon and spandex garment, which is a part of the Abercrombie Kids summer collection, features a striped design. It is sold separately from the matching bottoms, which retail for $19.50.

A range of thongs bearing the words 'wink wink' and 'eye candy' sold by the retailer for the same age group in 2002 sparked a similar debate, but Abrecrombie Kids refused to recall the line.

The company said at the time: 'The underwear for young girls was created with the intent to be lighthearted and cute. Any misrepresentation of that is purely in the eye of the beholder.'

Source: Mail Online