The thinner the better ideas may be changing
I saw an article published last week about a young teen model who learned at the age of 18, just a few years into her career, that she may be killing herself. In recent years a few models have died from starvation and being too thin.
Alexandra Michael reveals ‘serious consequences’ of struggle to stay thin
When she started modeling, she was 5′ 9″ and 130 lbs. That is by no means overweight, that is actually thin. As her career took off and she found herself traveling for fashion shows, designers kept asking her to lose a few pounds. A few pounds for this show, a few more for that one and on and on. Finally, she realized she was 102 lbs. and losing her hair at 18.
“My kind of wake-up call was I was on a plane from Paris to Texas, which is where I’m from,” Michael told TODAY’s Ann Curry Wednesday in New York. “I ran my fingers through my hair and when I took my hand away, there was a dry, brittle clump of hair in my hand.”
I know many shows and some designers have taken a stand against anorexia but many others still are under the impression that the only way their clothing will look good is if it displayed on a walking hanger so that there is no possibility that a small curve in the body may cause an unflattering crease in the clothing.
The problem arises when regular teen girls buy those clothes and realize it does not look the same on them as it does on the fashion model and begin a string of diets so they too can have that just hung-on, crease less look.
Alexandra decided that death is too high a price to pay for her career in high fashion. She stopped dieting and gained a few pounds. Now weighing 109 lbs (which, BTW is a size 0 for 5′4″, much less 5′9″), she went back to work in Paris and found that again, she was called too fat and had a difficult time getting any work unless she lost weight.
Luckily, every decade seems to have its own look, the glamorous 20’s, the curvy voluptuous 50’s, skinny twiggy times followed and later the fitness craze of the 80’s hit the runway. Today’s look can be called “Heroin Chic”, as the MSNBC article does, or maybe even “meth makeover”. OK, maybe “meth makeover” doesn’t work because they still have the teeth even though the hair may be going. Either way, it’s definately the wrong message to send to the wide eyed teen girls who see that look as the standard of beauty.
Alexandra also said “From my personal experience, it has to change,” she said. “We’re sending a message, and the fashion industry affects everybody — anybody who opens a magazine, anybody who watches TV.”
The average American woman is 5-foot-4 and weighs 163 pounds.
The average supermodel is between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-11 and weighs no more than 125 pounds.
United States spends $33 billion a year on diets and health professionals warn that the general population is getting fatter and fatter, the models get skinnier and skinnier. Isn’t there a middle ground anywhere?
“I don’t think that people realize that there are lifelong consequences,” Michael said. “Anorexia and bulimia can cause heart failure and osteoporosis and infertility. It’s a serious problem, and I think that it really needs to change.”
the MSNBC article
I wonder if these High fashion models look better in the bikini than say the fit sports illustrated swimsuit models.
super skinny bikini
Now Here are the Sports Illustrated Models, Serena Williams and Beyonce. I bet we can all agree that curvier may work a bit better when more skin is shown.
Beyonce on the Sports Illustrated cover 2007
“Heroin Chic”
Posted: May 22nd, 2008 under Alexandra Michaels, Model News, models.
Comments: 14
Comments
Pingback from Alexandra Michael is pretty close to perfect « Modelmode :: my journey through fashion modeling
Time: May 23, 2008, 10:05 pm
[…] Here is part of the thin model article from the modeling blog […]
Comment from Maxi Jewels
Time: June 16, 2008, 1:10 pm
Quite scary, the thin model and what she wear is not desirable anymore …… Guess it’s time for the fashion industry to reconsider about the model standard.
Comment from Savonne Asamoah
Time: September 26, 2008, 7:34 am
Please may I use some of your content for a school project
Comment from Savonne Asamoah
Time: September 26, 2008, 7:42 am
Please may for use this image for a school project
Comment from dj
Time: September 30, 2008, 6:59 pm
sometimes it is taken to far, but in most cases its not….this is a huge deal to some people….what about the thousands more people that are obese? I think its very offensive to those women that your pin-pointing in the pictures. you wouldnt do that to an obese person! What does it matter to you? why do you have such a huge problem with this. i think your just sour because plus size people arent sought after…..well get off the computer and do something about yourself, instead of criticizing! get on a treadmill!
Comment from admin
Time: October 1, 2008, 6:51 pm
Why do you assume I am obese? Seems like you have issues with your own confidence and self esteem. say what? How can anyone agree with anorexia, fit and starving to death are 2 very different things or have you not bothered to read about the whole hair falling out, fainting and dying thing? Having NO muscle tone is just gross and that is what happens when you starve.
treadmill? have never been on one, why would I? I am NOT trying to burn off my lunch in 10 mins, my energy needs to last me. I am one of the lucky ones, genetically thin, not a plus size unless size 5 is now a plus size. I have nothing against thin or fat, just against being sickly for fashions sake. Actually, I say genetics because my family is all thin, but thinking about it, we all eat very healthy and not having weight issues may be due to a lifetime of eating right and being active, therefore, never needing to see a treadmill.
If you believe that anorexia and self starvation is normal or looks good then you may need to see a shrink.
BTW, being obese is not the same as being anorexic. Many people that are obese are so for genetic or medical reasons, they are naturally prone to it… no one is naturally prone to anorexia for fashion reasons. So do some research before you compare the two. Anorexia is a disease, a deadly one.
Comment from shutterfly
Time: October 4, 2008, 10:22 am
Look, i’m not saying that anorexia is a good thing…i think that it’s horrible for girls to do that to themselves. Obeseity is a lifestyle and a deadly one too!! It’s really hard for your skeleton to have to hold up that much weight! Plus you get high blood pressure, and most of the time come diabetic. Even people that are obese aren’t happy about it. I agree they should see a treadmill more often. Most of them are to lazy to do just that! People are not genetically obese its their enviroment most of the time…like you said your family is in shape and thin well that is the enviroment you were brought up in! Same for obese people i just get tired of everyone saying “oh i was born like this” or “i don’t know how to change” it’s called get off your lazy but and do somthing about it! Don’t critisize people that do!
Comment from admin
Time: October 17, 2008, 8:44 pm
Savonne Asamoah
Yes you can as long as you put in a link to the original copy or article 
Comment from Mark
Time: January 8, 2009, 6:24 pm
Most girls and women I see are too fat. I love skinny girls and supermodels have very attractive bodies. The first girl in the red bikini has a perfect body. She looks better then the sports illustrated models. Most girls and women should start exercising and eating right and stop living in denial by convincing themselves that the average woman’s body is attractive. There is nothing sexy about an average sized woman.
And the last picture isn’t even real. It is totally photoshopped. If supermodels are too thin then why do people use fake photoshopped pictures to prove that point.
Comment from Lyndon Nicholson
Time: January 9, 2009, 9:21 pm
hi
5f3p0fsaxu1p3k1w
good luck
Comment from Trent
Time: March 14, 2009, 1:38 am
The girl in the red Bikini is so much prettier than the sports illustrated models. There’s no such thing as too thin…
Comment from nimah.s
Time: April 25, 2009, 10:19 am
any one who thinks there is no such thing as too thin why don’t you go take a lok at the statistics and at how many young girls under 18 die of anorexia bulimia or any other eating disorder.
if you think average size is bad you have serious mental problems, you sick freak
Comment from Jennisue
Time: May 24, 2009, 2:48 am
Obesity in this country is a much bigger problem than anorexia. It leads to diabetes, heart disease, and difficulty getting around, which can make it worse. The number one killer of women in the U.S. is Heart Disease. There is no such thing as a healthy obese person no matter the reason of the obesity, they need to get it taken care of and quit using excuses because only in rare occasions is obesity genetic. These girls with Anorexia are suffering from a MENTAL ILLNESS. Just because you were blessed enough not to have a mental illness doesn’t mean you should call these girls sick freaks you JERK (since we’re namecalling here). Don’t be so closed minded, they need help not criticism. Keeping a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is the most important thing about weight, and for some people that means a size 0, for others it means a size 10, depends on your height. The girl on the top in the Red looks healthy to me, she has great muscle tone. It is hard to understand what these girls are going through unless you have been through it or have been close to it. So if you don’t understand then just keep your mouth shut, stop judging people. Try helping, it makes you feel better.
-Jennisue, Dietetics Student
P.S. that last one is edited and is not even relevant to your case, of course she looks disgusting, but any girl who looks like her literally does not see it, that’s why it is an illness geniuses!
Comment from Jennisue
Time: May 24, 2009, 2:54 am
Oh and pertaining to the article (my apologies for not saying this earlier), I agree that models should look more real, it is showing a false image of what we should look like and it is a great idea in my opinion to encourage models to be at a healthy weight! Maybe the designers should focus on making clothes that fit real girls rather than the models.
- Jennisue
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