Models: Are we promoting health?
Emily Rafferty
The year of 2015 saw the banning of “excessively thin” models in France – those who work in the industry now have their BMIs measured by a medical expert to assure they are fit to work. Additionally, the newly passed bill expects French magazines to ensure the reader can identify where Photoshop has been used on any model. This of course, is a huge contrast to the rest of the modelling industry who rely mainly on size zero women to work in order to promote an ideal for consumers. This had a positive objective: to decrease the amount of eating disorders which are currently on the rise - 2% of British women aged 15-30 suffer with anorexia.
The media can be a huge trigger to those suffering with eating disorders. On average, people consume four hours of media a day and will therefore come across hundreds of people who are mainly actors and models. Furthermore, teenage girls are one of the demographics who consume a mass of media and 60% are interested in losing weight despite the majority being healthy. Therefore, with “excessively thin” models banned, those vulnerable to this illness will have fewer triggers within the modelling industry and the illness as a whole should hopefully decrease.
Furthermore, there is a huge contrast within the average size of a woman and the average size of a model. For example the average dress size of a woman in the UK is 14, whereas it is a size 4 for a model (dress size 0 for US). This shows the lack of a realistic body shape in the media, as well as of a portrayal of the variety of different sizes. By promoting a more realistic body shape within the modelling industry, more people should feel they are being represented and do not go to damaging efforts to recreate the ‘ideal’ body on themselves.
However, some within the industry and the general public are not happy with the newly passed bill and the recent hype with “plus sized” models. They think it could lead to an increase in obesity and therefore switch from one end of the heath spectrum to another. US model Lyndsey Scott believes: “Having a bunch of tall, thin, pretty, potentially healthy teenagers cram cupcakes for two weeks and fill themselves with fat injections until they're runway-ready…may not be natural for them to solve a health problem”. Therefore, the drastic and dangerous measures models are taking to fit the requirements of their work will continue to be unhealthy. Model Sierra Anderson disagrees and believes the bill will have a positive impact on the industry: “I feel like it's good to let people know that [extreme thinness] is not healthy and it's not a look people want to see.”
Overall, the use of BMI measurement to check models will provide a more sustainable way in which the industry can maintain the image of a healthy rather than simply a skinny model. This should have a good chance of reducing the increasing number of eating disorders that are continually on the rise. Ideally, this is something that would be replicated in this country and all around the world to give our society a more realistic and healthy fashion industry.
The media can be a huge trigger to those suffering with eating disorders. On average, people consume four hours of media a day and will therefore come across hundreds of people who are mainly actors and models. Furthermore, teenage girls are one of the demographics who consume a mass of media and 60% are interested in losing weight despite the majority being healthy. Therefore, with “excessively thin” models banned, those vulnerable to this illness will have fewer triggers within the modelling industry and the illness as a whole should hopefully decrease.
Furthermore, there is a huge contrast within the average size of a woman and the average size of a model. For example the average dress size of a woman in the UK is 14, whereas it is a size 4 for a model (dress size 0 for US). This shows the lack of a realistic body shape in the media, as well as of a portrayal of the variety of different sizes. By promoting a more realistic body shape within the modelling industry, more people should feel they are being represented and do not go to damaging efforts to recreate the ‘ideal’ body on themselves.
However, some within the industry and the general public are not happy with the newly passed bill and the recent hype with “plus sized” models. They think it could lead to an increase in obesity and therefore switch from one end of the heath spectrum to another. US model Lyndsey Scott believes: “Having a bunch of tall, thin, pretty, potentially healthy teenagers cram cupcakes for two weeks and fill themselves with fat injections until they're runway-ready…may not be natural for them to solve a health problem”. Therefore, the drastic and dangerous measures models are taking to fit the requirements of their work will continue to be unhealthy. Model Sierra Anderson disagrees and believes the bill will have a positive impact on the industry: “I feel like it's good to let people know that [extreme thinness] is not healthy and it's not a look people want to see.”
Overall, the use of BMI measurement to check models will provide a more sustainable way in which the industry can maintain the image of a healthy rather than simply a skinny model. This should have a good chance of reducing the increasing number of eating disorders that are continually on the rise. Ideally, this is something that would be replicated in this country and all around the world to give our society a more realistic and healthy fashion industry.