Although we all enjoyed the film The Devil Wears Prada chez Freberg, I cringed when Meryl Streep’s character referred to the very slender Anne Hathaway as “the fat girl,” and “Nigel” stated that “2 is the new 4; 4 is the new 6; and 6 is the new 14.” I had images of girls recovering or on the verge of eating disorders being sent over the edge by such comments, even in the context of make-believe.
This is “fat?”
The fashion industry, which of course forms the context for Prada, is beginning to assume some responsibility for eating disorders that might arise from the influence of ultra-thin models. As we mentioned in a previous post, Spain banned models with BMIs below 18 from their fashion shows.
Now, Italy has joined the movement to ban both underage and underweight models. In order to participate in an Italian fashion show, a model must be 16 years old or over and have a BMI of at least 18.5. To put these BMI numbers in context, this means that models who are 5’8″ need only weigh 122 lbs. To calculate your own BMI, you can use this calculator from the National Institutes of Health.
It’s also interesting to note that Tovee and colleagues have found a consistent preference on the part of males for a female shape that corresponds to a BMI of 20 [1]. This means our 5’8″ model should weigh an additional ten pounds before men think she’s attractive.
Spain and Italy appear to be responding to the recent deaths of two models, Ana Carolina Reston of Brazil and Luisel Ramos of Uruguay, due to complications of anorexia nervosa.
Ana Carolina Reston
Can we expect a similar action on the part of the American Fashion Industry? Don’t count on it any time soon. The Council of Fashion Designers of America has issued a number of health recommendations, but none mentions BMI or weight. I consider myself pretty good at searching for information, but on the very glitzy CFDA site, I was unable to find any news of the guidelines at all.
Thank goodness for Giorgio Armani, who has spoken out against using ultra-thin models.
In the meantime, although we are making progress with Jenny Craig, I don’t think we are in danger of dropping our BMIs to dangerous levels. The BMI works fine for me, but Roger and Karen have way too much lean body mass as athletes for this measure to be meaningful.
1. Tovee MJ, Reinhardt S, Emery JL, Cornelissen PL. Optimal BMI and maximum sexual attractiveness. Lancet 1998; 352:548.
7 Comments
lnseeley · February 9, 2007 at 2:42 pm
I think it’s really sad how focused society is on they way people look. It has become a sort of sick competition is seems like… who can be skinnier and look more “perfect” according to social standards of beauty. I remember seeing that part in The Devil Wears Prada about the girls’ sizes and thinking to myself, “Wow that is going to have a negative influence on a lot of young girls.” I feel fortunate that it didn’t affect my self image negatively, but I’m sure it created a lot of turmoil for a lot of impressionable young girls. I think some of the foreign fashion industries are moving in the right direction with models and the need to maintain a certain BMI, however, I think the industry as a whole has a long way to go in setting a positive example and creating positive role models for young people.
BSOUTH · February 15, 2007 at 1:31 am
I never saw the movie, but I do know how extremely hypersensitive the weight issue has become with society. Girls are honestly starving themselves to the point of serious health concerns in the pursuit of vanity. The worst part is, this extreme underweight image is far from attractive. It is disgusting, and very sad. As far as the BMI, I think it may be a good tool for the majority of the population to create target weights, but I think it may not be applicable for all individuals and body types. I know that many athletes would be considered “overweight” by the BMI table, when in actuality, they are in incredible shape and quite healthy. I am assuming that the BMI was designed to suit the “average” guy or girl?
Laura Freberg · February 15, 2007 at 11:01 pm
You’re correct BSouth. BMI works for people with average bone structure and average muscle. My family is very much into weightlifting and track and field, and the BMI doesn’t work for any of them (unfortunately, it works all too well for me). Body fat analysis, particularly using submersion, is probably the more accurate method for athletes.
kristinottonello · March 16, 2007 at 8:21 pm
I think it is great that the fashion industries in other countries are beginning to see the negative effects their models are having on the general population. I am not at all surprised that we are not particicpating in this movement toward healthier role models. Unfortunately, I think we need to extend this movement to the actors, actresses and all other celebrities we see on tv, in magazines and in the movies. I may be wrong, but I think there are more young girls watching movies like “The Devil Wears Prada” and reading popular gossip magazines, than are watching fashion shows and being involved in the fashion industry. Those models are not in the spotlight as much, and I think women (and men) who are effected by the media are more looking up to Jessica Simpson, Angelina Jolie and Lindsay Lohan. I think women like Kate Winslett and Salma Hayek are extremely positive and brave for standing up to the pressures of being thin and getting the message out there that curvy is still beautiful.
toniobrown · March 19, 2007 at 12:27 pm
I think it is very sad how much the media has an affect on the youth of today. What is even more sad is the fact that the media displays false perceptions of what is beautiful. The media’s emphasis on thinness is over exagerated and is causing more and more women to have eating disorders and at a younger age. I hope the media starts showing a more realistic portrayal of women because i think only then will societies thoughts turn to a more realistic perception.
mlatino · March 19, 2007 at 6:34 pm
With actresses and models being skin and bones and being deemed beautiful it is sending a message to female youth and to females everywhere that if they are not skinny, they are not beautiful. My cousin is 10 years old and in fifth grade, and a few of the girls in her class talk about dieting and staying thin. I think that that is horrible. It is one thing to be focused on health, and staying fit, but that is not the case. Nicole Richie is so skinny a size 0 falls off of her, Victoria Beckham wears the same size jeans as an 8 year old at GAP. I do not know what it is going to take for America to wake up and see that this obsession with being skinny is obscene. I applaud other countries for taking steps in making models more healthy before allowing them to work.
Laura’s Psychology Blog » Why are lower-income kids obese? · January 22, 2008 at 12:44 pm
[…] Socioeconomic status has long been believed to play a role in standards of weight. After all, it was the Duchess of Windsor who famously proclaimed, “A woman can’t be too rich or too thin.” Eating disorders, anorexia nervosa in particular, are more common among white, middle to upper-class women [1]. Obesity, in contrast, has been more common in lower socioeconomic groups. […]
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