Fashion is big business, and fashion shows and beauty pageants are popular all over the world. However, in recent years, health experts have been raising concerns over the appearance of excessively thin models in most fashion shows (which, in turn, have been influencing several fashion & health conscious teenagers around the world).Even the Indian film industry has been seeing more thinner women in recent times, a big deviation from the buxom women that were so commonplace in Indian films (especially South Indian films).
However, with several ill benefits of going increasingly thin, several countries, including France (where fashion matters) are considering a ban on excessively thin models in fashion shows.
Troede seriøst at modebranchen havde fattet at anoreksi er et problem der skal tages alvorligt #covergate #føj pic.twitter.com/HLqSgI79WF
— Benny Engelbrecht (@BennyEngelbrech) February 19, 2015
A Danish fashion and lifestyle magazine was recently embroiled in a controversy and had to issue an apology for featuring a model that appeared dangerously thin, causing outrage on the social media.
France, along with Spain, Italy and Israel, will be keeping a watch on the women who walk the runway. Models will have to present proof of a BMI (Body Mass Index is calculated based on height and weight; here’s a BMI calculator if you want to see how you fare) that is at least 18 (121 pounds for a 5-foot-7 woman) before they could be hired to walk the ramp.
Companies that violate the law could be fined.
Over the years, countries have been entangled in the seemingly endless debate over too-thin models and their impact on women’s body image. Several fashion conscious women, around the world, suffer from anorexia, and several campaigns have been raising awareness about the illness.