Healthy Chic on the Catwalk

The Council of Fashion Designers of America released guidelines recently that encourage healthier lifestyles for models. In the wake of an epidemic of eating disorders, Madrid's Fashion Week 2006 was the first fashion institution to bring this topic to light; the show's director mandated a minimum BMI (body-mass index) of 18 for models participating in the show. Milan followed suit, and now the question is: are we doing enough?

No Room for Gazelles on the Catwalk

Last year, Madrid's Fashion Week featured only models with healthy proportions. The minimum BMI of 18 disqualified at least 30% of the previous year's participants, including the likes of Kate Moss and top Spanish model Esther Cañadas. Modeling agencies and some designers have raised protest; one claimed discrimination against models with "naturally gazelle-like proportions."

Fighting for a Healthy Ideal

The restrictions are a sign that health education is finally gaining some ground in its fight against the unhealthy standards reinforced by the fashion industry and print, video, and online media generally. Still, the statistics are disturbing:

• 1 in 5 women struggle with an eating disorder.
• The average model weighs 23% less than the average woman.
• 69% of girls in 5th-12th grade reported that magazine pictures influenced their idea of a perfect body shape.
• 47% of girls in 5th-12th grade reported wanting to lose weight because of magazine pictures.

Online Training in Fashion Design

If you're considering a career in fashion design, these issues are important to understand. The Academy for Eating Disorders argues that the fashion industry isn't doing enough to combat the unrealistic expectations that fashion models project on the general population, so you can expect to address this in your own design career, whether you're sketching out ideas, working behind the runway or working the front line in a fashion merchandising career.
An online degree program in fashion design should address these contemporary questions, and with a formal education under your belt, you'll be equipped to make your own contribution to the healthy self-esteem of girls and women everywhere.
Source
Salon.com, "Broadsheet"
Eating Disorders 101 Guide

Sonja Albrecht works as a writer and editor for an online media company. She has also taught college writing and completed a Ph.D. in English.