That's Fit

I read a news story the other day that bothered me. A Texas teenager had a custom "dress" made for prom (I use quotes because I'm not sure it had enough fabric to qualify as a dress). When she arrived at her prom, she was denied entrance because her dress was deemed inappropriate. An argument ensued, and the young girl ended up being escorted out of her prom -- in handcuffs -- by police.

Whether you agree with the school or with the young girl, I think the issue at the root of this is that many young girls feel a pressure to be sexy. From rail-thin models to red carpet actresses wearing super-sexy gowns, young girls are bombarded with unrealistic images. If you've shopped for young girls' clothing lately, you've probably noticed how it's difficult to find cute, but appropriate, clothing. A good friend of mine has a 10-year-old daughter, and finding clothes that her daughter doesn't deem "nerdy" and yet still cover everything that should be covered is more difficult than you might think.

From a young age, girls need to be reminded that beauty isn't just what's on the surface. Kindness, intelligence, empathy, a sense of humor ... these are all traits that contribute to real beauty. And, while it's important to stay fit and take good care of yourself, there's no need to wear jeans that ride halfway down your hips with the strings of a thong hanging out. Girls can be beautiful without inappropriately exposing themselves. Girl Power is a great site with self-esteem advice for young girls.

Last Wednesday, French fashion houses, advertising firms, and media houses banded together to declare super-skinny models out of style. With the support of the Minister of Health, they signed an agreement to stop using models whose appearance could contribute to an unhealthy body image for girls. The agreement doesn't exactly restrict the use of too-thin models, but it's a show of good faith.

France's National Assembly is also reviewing a project that could make the promotion of unhealthy body images punishable by law.

Young girls in particular are susceptible to low self-esteem and a flawed body image. The number of pro-anorexia web sites on the Internet is proof that body image is an ever increasing concern. It's high time we all learn to love ourselves a little more -- bumps and flaws included. Fitness and nutrition is for health and wellness -- super-skinny may look good in pair of size 0 jeans but it's far from healthy.

Do you have a fitness role model? I have to say that I don't but I do look to fitness magazine cover models as a sort of source of information for how I'd like to look. But the truth is, not matter how hard I work, I doubt I'll ever had abs as sculpted a Gabby Reece. Still, it can't hurt to dream big, right?

Diet Blog recently looked into the idea of idolizing fitness models. Truth is, looking up to someone who looks that good can be both extremely motivating ... and quite depressing when it starts to seem unachievable.

But we have a realize a few things. First, fitness models get paid to look good. It's their job. You'd look good too if you spent your working hours at the gym. Secondly, fitness photos are professionally done -- meaning they have perfect make-up, perfect hair, perfect lighting, perfect tans and .... perfect air-brushing.

So what do you think? Is idolizing fitness models helpful or hurtful?

There may be more to obesity than over-eating, under-exercising, and a few contributing medical conditions. There may be a protein to blame, a protein that switches on various genes related to obesity.

Perixosome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARg) is its name and suppressing it may be the game. Researchers say by suppressing the protein they can potentially prevent the generation of adipocytes -- the precursors to fat cells. There's a problem with this, though. Turning off the protein would decrease it's beneficial properties. Plan B is to identify the gene targets of PPARg and to open up new targets for drug development against a number of diseases, including obesity, diabetes, and cancer.

It's all very technical, this DNA stuff. Simply put, the researchers' next step will be to apply their data to mouse models in order to compare what happens in high-fat and normal conditions. Then one day, maybe it will all somehow apply to us humans. Only time will tell.

Yay for Prada! In the world of freakishly-thin models (heck, there's even a Halloween costume for it!) Prada, one of the biggest and most influential fashion houses in the world, has made a bold move: Miuccia Prada chose a curvier mannequin to showcase a new sweater on the runway in Milan and a curvier model to actually walk the runway during a recent show.

It's pretty sad when one mannequin and one model are such a big deal, but although it may be small it's a definite step in the right direction.

London Fashion Week may prove quite a disaster this year unless event planners comply with new regulations requiring models to produce health certificates proving they don't have eating disorders and ensuring girls aged 16 to 18 are chaperoned. If these provisions are not made, financial backers may pull their funding.

London's fashion industry was put under fire recently by Beat, the UK's leading eating disorders association. Many say it's important to keep the pressure on the industry -- for the models whose health depends on it and for consumers who need to know the fashion industry is not exploiting anyone as they market products.

What do you say? A step in the right direction? Or a catwalk catastrophe in the making?

Respected actress and former model Dame Helen Mirren has let her feelings be known on the issue to too-skinny girls in the fashion industry. Who's to blame? Women. Fueled by the fact that her slender niece was told she would have to lose weight if she expected to be taken on by a modelling agency, she says:

"It is women who run the magazines and women who editorialise and women who make the decisions. I think it is completely iniquitous to have incredibly skinny girls on the runway. A lot of the girls are horrifically thin and of course they have a problem. Mostly the fashion industry chooses to turn a blind eye ... The whole thing is based on fantasy. The catwalk clothes may look fabulous on the thin girl but they look ridiculous on a normal slim girl."

What do you think? Are men completely blameless when it comes to the size of women in the spotlight today? Are we women our own worst enemies?

To find out more about what The Queen star has to say about the fashion industry, plastic surgery and more, click here.

I'm a fan of the 5 Resolutions blog, started by model and bulimia awareness spokesperson Magali Amadei and writer and eating disorder expert Claire Mysko. They feature a nice round-up of the summer's plastic surgery news, including the rise of the $6,000 eyelash transplant and a study showing that British women are more likely to get plastic surgery to make their partners happy than American women. But my favorite 'ugh" story? Let's look at the ease with which you can get your lines Botoxed versus your wait for a skin cancer screening. "A typical wait for a Botox treatment is just eight days. But if you need a doc to examine a mole, you'll have to wait 26." Nice.

Magali and Claire are waging a campaign to change the fashion and beauty industries, and I'm way on board that train. Here's some more on their 5 point plan. Read and get all inspired to do the good work.

Until recently, Apple computers had a new campaign for their iMac that said "You can't be too thin, or too powerful." but it caused so much controversy they ended up changing it. The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness called on Apple to rethink the message they were sending, stating "What kind of message is Apple sending our youth with an ad campaign of this nature?"

What do you think, was Apple's slogan in bad taste? I hate the stigma of today's media pressuring young people to be ultra-thin as much as the next person, but electronics are another story. Can't we separate the two?

I can see the point of how a message like that could easily be misconstrued, but if the modeling and fashion industries were promoting healthy images this wouldn't even be an issue -- the slogan would be about computers and that's it. Seems like people are getting all bent out of shape over side issues instead of the real problem.

Throughout much of history the standards of beauty have been determined strictly by economics; namely anything that signals wealth is equated with attractiveness. In the mid-to late-20th century, that ideal changed as more and more workers moved indoors. Having a tan meant that you had enough money to take time off and head outdoors for recreation.

Apparently a similar pattern can currently be illustrated by the types of models getting work with a modeling agency in Ghana. While naturally skinny girls are being sent to work on catwalks in Europe where being thin is a necessity for a successful career, they don't get work at home. The women strutting their stuff there boast some serious curves. In Africa, it's a sad fact that the vast majority of residents suffer from malnutrition and many are literally starving. Having some meat on your bones signifies that you've got enough money to eat well.

So maybe the next time you find yourself feeling envious of a beautiful but bony model (or actress) think about the reasons behind why ultra-thin it is in and decide whether or not it's worth buying into.