Social media trend in China promotes skeleton-thin looks

A popular new social media trend in China is promoting unhealthy ultra-thinness, and it's starting to get some push-back there and in other countries around the world.

The #A4waist challenge showed up on Weibo -- a popular microblogging site in China -- and has also caught on with some users on Twitter, Instagram and other popular social media sites worldwide. The trend has women posting photos of themselves holding a piece of A4 printer paper in front of their waists to show off their paper-thin midriffs.

A4 paper is 8.3 by 11.7 inches -- the shorter side length is the waist width they aim to achieve.

Even some Chinese stars are featuring the trend on their social media accounts, if not necessarily embracing it themselves.

The entertainment site Toggle features singer and actress Annie Yi, who posted an image of herself with a sheet of A4 paper not entirely hiding her pregnant belly. She "looked like a trendy teenager, instead of a 6-month pregnant mother," Toggle said.

Yi's photo carried the caption: "Pregnant mums, never give up! [Challenging the] A4 waist, my first picture together with Little Qin, fighting."

Some women in China and around the world are putting the kibosh on the A4 waist challenge and criticizing it for promoting unhealthy body images.

One New York University graduate has posted a couple of responses on her Instagram account, including one photo where she holds her large college graduation diploma in front of her belly, and another where she peeks out from behind a bigger-than-body size sheet of poster paper.

On another Instagram account, a woman tucked a piece of paper into the top of her jeans showing that her waist goes well beyond its dimensions, and gives the finger while taking a selfie.

Her post read, "There will probably be some point in time when the stupidity of the Internet can't be outdone anymore. I wonder how many dumb challenges we have to deal with till then. Now women from Asia are holding A4 papers in front of their waists to show how skinny they are. What the hell is wrong with this world? Health and size zero can be so far away from one another."

One #A4Waist trend mocker even posted her perfectly-sized cat lounging with a piece of A4 paper on its furry belly with, of course, the ubiquitous hashtag #catsofinstagram.

In:
• China