Ultra-thin models were banned from fashion week runways in Madrid, Spain, Milan and Italy, last year, and the new year of 2007, London joined in the battle to combat underweight Models.
So far, the September Fashion Event in Spain is quiet on the frontlines, when it comes to the weight of their Models, but it sure seems as though they are sticking to their guns. A recap of the events is listed at the end of this article.
January 2007. New York took a stand against under-weight Models, and began waging a campaign, as a state lawmaker proposed that weight standards must be established for the fashion and entertainment industries. Bronx Assemblyman Jose Rivera, wanted to start a state advisory board to recommend standards and guidelines for the employment of child performers and models under 18 to prevent eating disorders.
New York City is one of the world's leaders in fashion and entertainment, and we don't want to do anything to harm those industries," Rivera reportedly said. "At the same time we need responsible protections in place, especially for younger workers."
In America, the Council of Fashion Designers of America had released a set of guidelines to enhance the health issues, in a program to prevent anorexia, bulimia and smoking. The list also contained banning Models under the age of 16, teaching the Models the dangers of eating disorders, and banning smoking and alcohol during Fashion Events.
Sept 2007. This year Fashion Events in New York!
There is a lot of criticism going around that Models are still wafer thin, and the buzz going around about the "Too skinny Models" has faded. However, they are offering food backstage to the Models, and the ban on alcohol and cigarettes was carried through. There still is a need for the Countries to follow suit and make strict guidelines for Models to be within safety limits for their weight index! Hopefully before another one bites the dust!
A recap on the events in Spain.
March 2007. Spain Removes Skinny Mannequins From Store Fronts. After Madrid made a stand against under-weight models, the Health Minister took it a step further and banned mannequins under an American size 6, size 38 in Spanish, from being displayed in stores. They have also conducted research on a range of woman's current sizes, using laser technology to examine and talley the sizes in a booth. The woman of Spain can finally be themselves, free from the pressures on set by the eating disorders which has plagued their nation.
One year ago, Sept 2006. At the Annual Spanish show known as the Pasarela Cibeles, 5 Models were turned away for being too thin.
Reportedly Doctors Susana Monereo of Spain's National Endocrinology Society and Basilio Moreno, an obesity consultant at Gregorio Maranon Hospital, were present during the assessments on the Models. They had met with the Models, and their agent, along with a representative from the show to test that the girls were healthy. They had predetermined their intentions a month prior to the show, that the Models must be in the safety zone according to percentage of body fat, according to their height.
68 Models showed up for the assessments, and five were turned away. Those girls reportedly were over 5'7, and weighed less then 121 lbs.
"They had a body mass index below, well below, that which is considered normal not just by the Spanish endocrinology society, whom we represent, but also by the limits set by the World Health Organization," Monereo was quoted to say.
The show, which starts Monday and runs until Friday, wants to project an image of beauty, elegance and health. It has also banned makeup that makes models appear sickly, organizer Cuca Solana said.
"Clearly we don't want walking skeletons," Solana said.
The Medical Associations Made their Concerns known through Protest!
Last year during the event! The models were clearly underweight and far too thin.
This time the Madrid regional government decided to pressure organizers to hire fuller-figured women as role models for young girls who are becoming obsessed with being thin, Concha Guerra, deputy finance minister of the regional administration, said earlier this month.
In Britain, Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell announced on Saturday for London Fashion Week, it will open Monday, following Madrid's Run.
"The fashion industry's promotion of beauty as meaning stick thin is damaging to young girls' self image and to their health," the cabinet minister said in a statement. "Young girls aspire to look like the catwalk models. When those models are unhealthily underweight it pressurizes girls to starve themselves to look the same."
The body mass index, what some call percentage of healthy body fat, is a means that doctors use to determine obesity. The method used is a calculation of dividing weight in pounds by height in inches squared, and multiplying that total by 703.
If the resulting number is between 18.5 and 24.9, a person's weight is normal. Below 18.5 is considered underweight. The Medical Staff in Madrid suggested to the organizers of the event to reject women with an index below 18, and thus they abided.
Hopefully the Models out there appreciate that we are so excited about this revelation in the Fashion world only because it saves lives! Not only the lives of the Models, but of the impressionable youth eager enough to follow suit in the dangers of low body fat. The death of three models in the run of one year certainly has made an impact on the Fashion Industry, and thankfully they didn't completely die invain!
Peace and Love Darlen's,
Mwah, Mwah
Sacreeta
