Italy Bans 'Too-Thin' Models

Government And Fashion Industry Join Forces In Campaign To Favor 'Full-Bodied' Women

(AP)  Italy's government and fashion industry officials joined forces Saturday in a campaign against anorexic models, which includes attention to "full-bodied" Mediterranean beauties and a commitment to add larger sizes to collections so young women can see that bigger can also be beautiful.

The premier's office said that the self-regulating code for Italy's highly competitive fashion industry would be signed in Rome next week.

The death from anorexia last month of a 21-year-old model in Brazil helped spur the campaign against unhealthily rail-thin models on fashion show runways.

"The government and fashion associations have made a strategic alliance to go down a common road in the fight against anorexia," Youth Policy and Sports Minister Giovanna Melandri said in a statement issued by the premier's office.

Weeks ago, Melandri, who stands out in the Cabinet as a fashionable dresser with a trim figure, urged the fashion industry to emphasize larger sizes for women instead of tinier sizes on the runways.

The code "wasn't stipulated with the intention of imposing something on someone," said Stefano Dominella, president of a lobby for Rome haute couture. Instead, the aim is "regulating the world of fashion, so that it doesn't get pointed out as being responsible for the dramatic facts in the news," Dominella said in the statement.

Those signing on to the campaign pledge said that the fashion world will start giving importance to "a model of healthy, sunny, full-bodied Mediterranean beauty that Italy has historically contributed" to the international scene.

Earlier this month, a major Brazilian fashion event moved to bar models under the age of 16, part of a national effort to increase awareness about eating disorders.

In September, Madrid's Fashion Week banned models with a body mass index of less than 18. Body mass index is a calculation doctors normally apply to study obesity, and anyone with an index below 18.5 is considered underweight.

The Italian campaign invites stylists, modeling agencies, photographers and makeup artists to join the battle against super-thin models.

[stephjr1972]

I think a lot of people who responded to this have missed the point. Society is under the impression that a size 10-12 is vastly overweight and this is NOT the case. A lot of women size 10-12 have perfectly healthy BMIs or are only slightly overweight (depending on age and height). The point is that we need to start projecting an image of HEALTH to girls and women (which might help to curb both the obesity AND anorexia problems we have in our culture). This starts with changes in the fashion industry and the media in general. Besides - eating disorders can work both ways. Some starve themselves to be thin because they're under the misconception that they're overweight while others overeat because they have a low self-esteem because they don't have any hope for looking like the underweight models. Health is one thing - beauty is another. I, personally, don't find unhealthy to be beautiful (visually). To be overly thin (as in a bag of bones) or to be overweight (as in obese) are both equally dangerous to one's health. Those of us women with at least a few curves - we're not fat - just healthy. And if you think differently - then you've been adversely effected by the false standards of beauty we've been programmed to believe. As a woman - I know I'd definitely prefer to see HEALTHY women modeling clothing (even women sized 10-14!). Not bags of bones.

[sharncedar]

"It is a fact that the super skinny people live longer than normal or fat people"


Ooops, wrong again. Latest research, not surprisingly really, was that overweight people live longer than underweight.

Skinny is not about health, and never was. It's about being unnatural to please your satanic worship, folks. It's about torturing your bodies to show loyalty to your religion, anti-nature. To look like a body-hating freak is the highest achievement of a culture gone mad.

[tallylassie]

I agree that ultra-skinny models look like skeletons with clothes, but as I observe the general public walking in the mall, it seems far too many people are obese! We SO need a healthy example that encourages the tiniest to eat, and doesn't make the "perfect" body seem unattainable for those overweight.

[five6-123lbs]

I'm just curious folks. Do the pro-skinny people here feel that being 5 foot 8 inches tall and weighing 88 pounds is attractive? This is what the sadly deceased 21 year old Brazilian model weighed.
If that's true then my 26 year old 5 foot 6 inch and 123 lb. frame must read as fat to you. I guess you'll just have to live with it.

The problem in this country is not that the girls are getting too skinny, the problem is that all our people are getting too fat. It is a fact that the super skinny people live longer than normal or fat people.

[twilbury]

There's attractiveness in a slim figure, to be sure, but these models border on malnourishment, and that's downright ugly. They look miserable, never smiling, showing no animation. More countries need to bring a halt to these walking toothpicks, for the collective good of our youth.

[nostripes]

lets give them trans fat ..... that seems to work.... we can beef them up to an XL or XXL in no time ... just picture the victoria's secret runway with XXL babes....

[Syndicate]

I think the super thin models are very ugly. They remind me of the walking dead.

[olgreyghost]

Hookay, let's get the fat ladies at the operas before we go after the walking toothpicks on the catwalk. Better yet, let's feed the fat ladies to the walking toothpicks. Some stories just beg for jokes to be made about them...

[shanev137]

the global collective fat has spoken out and has declared war against anyone who wants to reduce it. seems that fat people are always the only ones who have a problem with thin people.

[gaye5]

Oh thankgoodness someone has at last got the brains to get rid of these pathetic looking sticks, and while they are at it perhaps they can make them smile, it turns one off every buying what they wear.. unhappy sticks wearing strips of clothing is not at all appealing...