This morning I found myself reading an article on a well known news, fashion and gossip website about how shockingly thin the models were at the recent Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and how "The world of high fashion operates in a deadly bubble. They clearly can’t regulate themselves. They obviously don’t think they’re doing anything wrong. They make an obscene amount of money and people are getting sick and dying because they don’t care."
I can understand where the writer is coming from but I also think that the way some people talk about models and the "bad" image that are showing to young girls is a load of exaggerated crap. The article talks about an Australian model Ruby- Jean Wilson (who I adore btw) and how her waist measurement is the same as that of a 7 year old girl and because of that things are spiralling out of control. But seriously maybe Wilson naturally has a tiny waist and a small body just like some women naturally have broad shoulders and thicker waists. I think that the media make a too-bigger deal of the size of models these days.
The way the media talks about small sizes may also be damaging to teenage girls. For example I am 15, I weigh about 48 kg and I'm 162cm so i am definitely petite. I am normally an Australian size 6 but the other day i went to Country Road looking for some black cropped pants, I tried on a size 4 (which is an American size 0) and they were way too big around my thighs and hips. I don't think of myself as very skinny, just slim i guess but when the media goes on about how unhealthy a size 0 is it may be damaging to teenage girls like me who actually have a healthy weight for their body shape and not starving themselves to be a size 0.
I understand there are some models that are starving themselves and allegedly "eating tissues" to lose weight. But what about the many models that are naturally have that kind of body shape, that exercise and eat healthy to maintain it. The models that have had the dream of walking down the runway since they were in primary school. Those girls have worked hard to get where they are and shouldn't be criticised by the media for being too skinny, when maybe they are naturally like that. I don't see the media criticising triathletes for being too skinny, why? because it's the body for their job just as having a small skinny body and being tall is the body that being a model requires.
I also think it is unreasonable when the article mentions "that 90% of Australian girls aged 12-17 have been on some kind of diet" and saying that the models are bad role models for young girls and that it is bad that that amount of young girls have been on diets but then in other articles on the website they will mention how the rate of childhood obesity in Australia is increasing dramatically. The media is constantly changing their opinion on topics such eating disorders and obesity and using the same statistics but altering their opinion and using the states in opposite ways.
I think the media should just calm down about models and body weight because sometimes what they are saying is completely in-valid. I respect people who may disagree with me but that is my opinion and i felt i needed to put it out there...why not have a read of the article your self?
http://www.mamamia.com.au/news/the-modelling-industry-is-like-drug-dealing/
