The pressure to be sexy
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
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?
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. 
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.
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,
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 
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. 







