British department store Debenham's is receiving praise from eating disorder groups in the wake of its announced intent to start using size 16 mannequins.

"Debenhams, which stocks women's clothing up to a British size 26 in its stores, says 42 percent of its sales are garments in sizes 14 and 16," UPI reported. "Susan Ringwood, who heads the charity Beat, which campaigns against eating disorders, applauds Debenham's announcement.”

Debenham's size-16 mannequins will be used in window displays promoting clothing by designers like Ben de Lisi, a favorite of actress Kate Winslet.

Many experts have criticized the fashion industry for promoting unachievable (and unhealthy) body images in advertising, claiming that such actions can lead to poor self-esteem, unhealthy body image, and the development of eating disorders among customers -- especially girls and young women.

Labels: body image, fashion, great britain, self-esteem

In his eye-opening documentary "America the Beautiful," director Darryl Roberts exposes the unhealthy influence of the fashion industry, and also reveals some unpleasant truths about the health & beauty industry and the use of sex to sell magazines.

Kathy Flanagan of the Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel wrote the following in her Nov. 20, 2008, review of the film:

[Roberts] weaves a convincing story in his behind-the-scenes look at the beauty and fashion industry and threads the movie with the story of Gerren Taylor, a striking 12-year-old African-American girl.

Roberts follows Gerren and her stage mother on her zenith ascent to New York runway model. One moment she's a middle-school student, the next she's touted by designer Marc Jacobs as a beautiful new face. Almost as quickly as she makes it to the top, Gerren is pushed back to the bottom and implodes.

This beautiful tall, thin girl with the beguiling smile says she's fat and ugly. ...

Too bad "American Beauty" is rated R. Impressionable young girls should see this.

Labels: beauty, fashion, unhealthy eating

Lizzi Miller is considered a plus size model, but she wears a size 12, which average for American women. And she is causing quite a stir with her appearance in the September issues of Glamour magazine.

“Glamour editor-in-chief Cindi Leive blogged on Glamour’s Web site that readers were filled with ‘joy at seeing a woman’s body with all the curves and quirks and rolls found in nature,’ and asked readers to send more feedback on what kinds of images they’d like to see in the magazine,” the New York Daily News reported.

Self magazine came under fire recently for digitally altering an image of singer Kelly Clarkson to make her appear thinner. Though many fashion magazines are clinging to their images of ultra-thin models, it seems the rest of America may be tiring of such unrealistic portrayals of beauty.

Unrealistic, digitally enhanced images of celebrities and models have been blamed for contributing to self-esteem issues among young girls, and for raising the likelihood that these girls will develop eating disorders and other mental health problems.

Labels: fashion, media_influences

Crystal Renn tried to be the kind of model everyone seemed to want: super-thin. But she quickly grew tired of obsessing about calories, feeling exhausted and suffering from the negative health effects of an overly restrictive diet.

She’s now a plus-size model whose memoir, Hungry, has just been released by Simon & Schuster. Associated Press fashion writer Samantha Critchell reported on Renn's transformation in an Aug. 27 article:

Her moment of epiphany came when "I couldn't walk another step without being exhausted, or having hair clumps falling out." She knew she needed to live in the body she was supposed to have — specifically a curvy size 12. ...

"I got to my lowest point, when I couldn't go lower, and it was either, `I'm going to die and not accomplish the dream,' or, `I can become a plus-size model and keep the dream,'" she said in an interview. "I am healthy now, the healthiest I've ever been in my life — both physically and mentally."

Renn doesn’t blame the fashion industry for her eating disorder she told the AP -- not entirely, at least. But she does acknowledge that the "carbon-copy" images promoted by the industry have helped create a standard for beauty that is unattainable for most people.

Labels: fashion, modeling

Health advocates and cultural critics have long assailed the fashion industry for encouraging poor self-image among girls and young women (and, in turn, contributing to the rise in eating disorders) by promoting unhealthy and unrealistic body shapes.

According to a June 13 article by Will Pavia of the Britain's TimesOnline, these advocates recently learned that they have a surprising ally: the editor of the British version of Vogue,one of the world's leading fashion magazines:

Alexandra Shulman, one of the most important figures in the multi-billion-pound fashion industry, has taken on all the largest fashion houses in a strongly worded letter sent to scores of designers in Europe and America.

In a letter not intended for publication but seen by The Times, Shulman accuses designers of making magazines hire models with "jutting bones and no breasts or hips" by supplying them with "minuscule" garments for their photoshoots. Vogue is now frequently "retouching" photographs to make models look larger, she said.

Her intervention was hailed last night as a turning point in the debate over model size that has raged after the deaths of three models from complications relating to malnutrition, and the decision of leading fashion shows to ban size-zero models.

The "size zero" phenomenon has been blamed for furthering unrealistic body images, which many critics say leads to eating disorders among girls, young women, and increasing numbers of boys and young men.

Labels: fashion, self-esteem, self-image_issues

Students at the University of Washington in Seattle put on a fashion show designed to display all kinds of body types, not just skinny models. The show, entitled "Everybody, Every Body," featured female models up to size 26, ranging in height from four foot ten to over six feet, and male models size 30 to 44, ranging in height from five foot six to six foot three.

The University of Washington fashion design students ran the show using clothes from outlets such as Torrid, Lucy, and The North Face. The show was conducted in conjunction with National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

"It's a crazy, crazy time," said co-director Rachel Hollcraft. "People who are pregnant are trying to lose weight. All this needs to end. We need to love ourselves as is."

Labels: colleges, fashion, models

If New York Fashion Week is any indicator, the fashion industry might finally be moving in the right direction: toward health and away from super-thin, unhealthy models. Runways saw fewer size zeros and more sizes two and four.

"That is a small relief to those who have brought attention to the cause of eating disorders in the fashion world, though many say there's a long way to go. 'I saw a few that looked better,' said Finola Hughes, host of "How do I Look?" on the Style Network."

The Council of Fashion Designers of America has held workshops on eating disorders and discouraged the use of models under the age of 16, both of which are small but important steps. Eating disorders in the fashion industry have gotten increased attention since 2006, when two models died from complications linked to anorexia. Source: The Associated Press

Labels: fashion, influences, modeling

Organizers for London Fashion Week no longer plan to bar size zero models and will not require international health certificates proving the models are in good physical condition. The decision was made after industry executives refused to cooperate.

"Hilary Riva of the British Fashion Council said her international counterparts complained that proposals to make catwalk models pass a medical exam were expensive and intrusive. 'From our conversations with our international counterparts... it has become clear that they do not recognize the need for an international health certificate,' Riva said in an open letter posted on the council's Web site on Wednesday."

The medical exams would have cost $500, and many believed that models would have simply sought work in fashion shows where the certificates weren't required. Source: Associated Press

Labels: fashion, health, modeling

As all eyes turn to Sydney, Australia, for its annual Fashion Festival, organizers are determined to promote health and wellness by using healthier-looking models.

"They really are trying to make steps towards respecting the care and governance of the models they represent. And also they're implementing guidelines around the age and they've stipulated that models must be at least 18 years or older and... models with extraordinarily thin physiques shouldn't be used."

Simon Lock of IMG Fashion believes the industry in Australia is taking very seriously the health of its models, especially in light of an incident last week in which a model was discovered to be only 14 years old. She was barred from Australia's Fashion Week. Source: The World Today (ABC Australia)

Labels: fashion, influences, modeling

Members of the French fashion industry have signed a government-backed charter aimed at fighting anorexia. The charter asked participants to work toward presenting diverse body images and not publicizing images that promote extreme thinness.

"The nonbinding charter was signed by groups including the French Couture Federation, the French Federation for Women's Pret-a-Porter and the Union of Modeling Agencies, as well as some representatives of advertising and media."

France has had some modeling guidelines since the 1980s, including mandatory medical visits for models under 16 years old. Source: Arizona Star

Labels: fashion, media_influences, prevention

Though they tried for months to contain the rumors, the Versace family released a statement this week stating that daughter Allegra is battling anorexia.

"No one who has ever had anything to do with an anorexia sufferer, witnessed the torment of their parents and family, could do anything other than wish the Versaces all the luck in the world to see Allegra through it, and all the solitude and privacy she may crave in which to get better."

Some are not surprised to hear about Allegra's multi-year struggle with anorexia, and believe that this announcement is further proof of the negative effects the fashion industry has on young, female psyches. Read more at Independent.co.uk.

Labels: anorexia, fashion, modeling

London's Fashion Week will again feature size zero models. But it won't be just the women who are super-skinny. The newest trend among male models is now "size zero" as well, and it has the medical community and eating disorder charities concerned.

"A spokeswoman from the charity Beat said: 'There does seem to be a growing trend towards men's clothes being designed for the slimmer male physique, and we're certainly aware of more men with eating disorders.'"

Though the trend started a few years ago, it's been gaining popularity, which is why so many in the medical community are concerned. Read more at NZHerald.com.

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Labels: fashion, men, modeling

A fashion show at the Liverpool Community Church in New York has re-defined "beauty" for both participants and spectators alike. Models of various shapes and sizes took the spotlight in this event, hosted by Ophelia's Place – an organization dedicated to helping people with eating disorders.

"'Whether you're full sized, whether you're medium sized, all of us have an incredible part of who we are that's very, very beautiful,' said Fashion Model Emme. Fashion Model Emme has always accepted her plus size figure... she's made a successful career out of it."

Mary Ellen Clausen, Founder and Director of Ophelia's Place, is concerned with the images and messages that dominate the media. She hopes to counteract some of those messages by giving girls the opportunity to be around a "plus size" model like Emme. Read more at 9WSYR.com.

Labels: fashion, modeling, perceptions

The British Fashion Council has been criticized for the slow pace with which it has implemented recommendations made by the Model Health Inquiry.

Only four out of 14 recommendations from the Kingsmill Inquiry have been put into practice and doubts are now being expressed about just how committed the fashion industry is to improving the health of models, amid concerns over those suffering from eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia."

Model Tarryn Meaker, who began modeling when she was 16, says that she hears a lot of talk in the industry, but doesn't see much real change happening. Read more at NZHerald.co.nz.

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Labels: fashion, influences, modeling

Italian model Isabelle Caro, who has battled anorexia for 15 years, is featured in a new ad campaign for a clothing line - but in the ads, she's not wearing a stitch of clothing. Shot by famous and controversial photographer Oliviero Toscani, Caro appears nude, exposing her 68-pound frame in the ads for clothing brand Nolita. The advertisements feature the slogan "No Anorexia".

"A statement from Flash & Partners [parent company of the Nolita clothing line] said Toscani's aim was 'to use that naked body to show everyone the reality of this illness, caused in most cases by the stereotypes imposed by the world of fashion.'... Caro, who also suffers from psoriasis, told Vanity Fair magazine she has longed to finally come out of hiding."

Some critics of the ad campaign say it places too much blame on the fashion industry, while others worry that it may actually promote disordered eating to those who are predisposed. Italy's Health Minister said the government supports the campaign and will do what it can to help "promote responsibility towards the problem of anorexia".

Labels: awareness, fashion, modeling

Nese Halil is living proof that the fashion industry is finally beginning to re-think its "size zero" mentality. Nese, who is a size 16, will be working the catwalk for London's fashion week, which kicks off tomorrow. She thinks it's important for girls to appreciate whatever body type they have.

"...29-year-old Nese, who is in Scotland next week for a fashion show, is living proof if you actually learn to love your curves you can still earn a fortune as a model and stay healthy. Nese says: ‘There's too much pressure on young girls to be a certain shape or size. They should be allowed to enjoy life, enjoy food and let go. It's about being in shape, looking good and feeling healthy."

Nese was this summer's Special K girl, and was at the center of the company's ad campaigns promoting healthy living. She eats healthy and works out, not to be skinny she says, but to "be toned and keep a good shape."

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Labels: body_type, fashion, healthy_eating

Spain has already taken some radical steps to combat the unhealthy image of the fashion industry and its models. Near the end of 2006, the country announced strict Body Mass Index requirements for its Madrid Fashion Week Models. Now, the country is taking more steps.

"...two big changes, announced in January, are in the works: Stores run by four big names will start replacing window display mannequins so that none goes below size 38 (10 in Britain, 6 in the U.S.). And the designers will standardize the dimensions of their women's apparel so that a given size will fit the same way no matter who sells it."

The government has also initiated a study that will take measurements of 8,500 women across the country to get a better idea of the "true" sizes of Spanish women. Read more at Argusleader.com.

Labels: fashion, media_influences, modeling

"Super-thin" has been in for a long time. But curvy is now becoming hip in the fashion and entertainment industries.

"Curvy figures have taken the fashion industry by storm. In fashion magazines, red carpet events and runway shows, being full-figured is now welcomed."

The Elena Miro line of clothing for full-figured women was featured in Milan's fashion week two weeks ago, and the curvy Jennifer Hudson's figure was described as "flattering" in InStyle magazine. Sociology professor William McIntosh has speculated that the growing trend could partially be attributed to the recent illnesses and deaths of fashion models which have been caused by eating disorders. Read more online.

Labels: fashion, media_influences, trends