Well, there goes another myth we all wanted to believe. It seems the road to slimness is not paved with French pastries, cheese and wine after all. According to a new study, French women do indeed get fat.

Research results from TNS Sofres Healthcare and Swiss pharmaceuticals company Roche confirmed that the French paradox of being able to eat high-calorie, high-fat diets while remaining thin is simply not true. In fact, an estimated 26 percent of France's women are overweight today and another 15.1 percent are clinically obese.

For years, we have romanticized the French way of life and believed they knew the secret to staying thin. "French women used to be role models for a healthy lifestyle," says registered dietitian and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, Sarah Krieger. "The French diet included a lot of whole foods, fruits and vegetables. They ate slowly and walked everywhere."

We all know by now that French women don't get fat. And it seems the French government is interested in keeping it that way, what with proposed taxes on junk food and laws against images depicting too-thin models. Now the French are taking their message of health to the media and running 'healthy living' ads on TV and radio stations across the nation, as well as in print. Kind of like this one on Fitsugar, which reads 'For your health, eat at least five fruits and veggies a day.'

I think if introduced in North America, these ads would be a refreshing break from all the pizza and fast foods commercials we are bombarded with on such a regular basis. But would they work? What do you think?

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Renee Zellweger did it for Bridget Jones' Diary. Charlize Theron did it for Monster. Gaining weight for a movie is commonplace in Hollywood. But in the case of Hilary Swank's new movie, it certainly is unexpected. As Elastic Waist reveals, Swank will be appearing in the book adaptation of French Women Don't Get Fat -- and ironically, she is gaining 30 lbs for the role. Doesn't that totally defeat the theme of the book?

Apparently, Swank will play the manager of a champagne company that deals with French women who remain slender despite eating all the things we're told to stay away from: Bread, cheese, dessert, and so on.

Me thinks a little bit of meat on the bones of this frail-looking actress can't hurt. Though, gaining weight and losing it quickly can. Your thoughts?

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Everyone knows it's more fun to gain weight than to lose it. And if you're getting paid big bucks to gain it, well, all the better. But there comes a time when the bagels and fried food have to be put away and the weight has to come back off.

That's what happened to Beyonce Knowles. She was asked to gain 20 pounds for her role as Etta James in Cadillac Dreams. But when shooting was finished, she was left not only with a paycheck, but with 20 pounds extra weight, which she had to lose for psychological thriller Obsessed. "I had to lose it," she said, "I was so angry with myself. I was like, 'D'oh! Why do you have to go through this?'"

Losing weight is such hard work. I've always wondered about celebrities who gain weight for roles. Matt Damon recently buried his fit figure under a layer of extra pounds for the movie The Informant, and Hillary Swank will put on 20 to 30 pounds (ironically) for the movie version of the book French Women Don't Get Fat. Not only is it hard mentally, I imagine, to get back into healthy habits after being out of them so long. But isn't all that yo-yoing hard on your body? Maybe not as hard as giving up a million-plus dollar role in a major motion picture, I guess. What do you think?

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