THIN DEBATE GETS BIGGER

In one of the strongest measures proposed since the 2006 death of Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston from anorexia...

In one of the strongest measures proposed since the 2006 death of Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston from anorexia, conservative French legislators adopted a pioneering law on Tuesday aimed at any means of mass communication8212; including magazines and websites 8212; that promotes eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia with punishments of up to three years in prison and more than 70,000 in fines. Coming from the capital of high fashion and ultra-thin models, the bill is historic and, not surprisingly, has already been criticised by the French Federation of Couture. Didier Grumbach, the federation president, said it was impossible to legislate body weight and added: 8220;Never will we accept in our profession that a judge decides if a young girl is skinny or not skinny. That doesn8217;t exist in the world, and it will certainly not exist in France.8221;

With the proposed law, the French legislators are seeking to tame some 400 sites extolling 8220;ana8221; and 8220;mia8221;, nicknames for anorexia and bulimia, offering blunt tips on everything from crash dieting, bingeing and vomiting to hiding weight loss from concerned parents.

The debate over anorexia and the media images which propagate it, particularly the fashion world, is an old one, and it has come a long way since Kate Moss sashayed down down the ramp, all of 14, in 1998, leaving fashion critics the world over gushing over her waif-thin looks and lissome 33-25-35 frame. Since then, fashion czarina Donatella Versace8217;s 21-year-old daughter Allegra Beck has admitted she has been undergoing treatment for anorexia, Princess Diana has confessed to her problems with bulimia while former French president Jacque Chirac8217;s wife has revealed to the world their anorexic eldest daughter Laurence8217;s repeated attempts to kill herself. Suddenly, the world over, thin is no longer in:

INDIA: Back home, the scene is slightly better. Four of India8217;s top models 8212; Jesse Randhawa, Nina Manuel, Joey Mathew and Lakshmi Rana 8212; have a BMI of around 18 and say that in India, size or age, hardly matter. But of course, there are flip sides as well. Models like Bhawna Sharma and Tamara Moss fall in the size zero category. Actress Kareena Kapoor has reportedly been on a diet of boiled cabbage and cauliflower since she took up Tashan to bring her weight down from over 60 kg to a size zero 45 kg. While there are no stringent rules in place, organisers of both the India Fashion Week and Lakme Fashion Week claim that the emphasis is on healthy models only.

FRANCE: Ahead of the law passed on Tuesday, the French fashion industry signed a charter to promote healthy body images among ultra-skinny models in magazine ads and on the catwalks of Paris, the world8217;s fashion capital. After more than a year of talks, officials from fashion houses, advertising firms and media outlets joined Health Minister Roselyne Bachelot to ink the voluntary charter, joining a worldwide drive to combat anorexia

AUSTRALIA: A few days back, Monika Jagaciak, a 14-year-old Polish model was dropped from both the Australian fashion week and the cover of Vogue Australia because she was considered too young for the job. Rosemount Australian Fashion Week has now made it mandatory for all models to be at least 16 before they can participate

ITALY: Last month, Italian authorities launched a campaign to counter the growing epidemic of anorexia and other eating disorders in a country known for its fashion industry and the 8220;bella figura8221;. The project is targeted at schools and the media, providing guidelines for magazines, television, radio and Internet sites to discourage ultra-thin beauty ideals. An anti-anorexia charter was signed in February 2007 aimed at promoting healthy beauty and banning girls under 16 from catwalks. Models on Italian catwalks must present health certificates, showing they do not suffer from eating disorders. Last year Italian photographer Oliviero Toscani created a stir with his series of anti-anorexia ads featuring French model Isabelle Caro who weighs just 70 pounds at 58217;48221; for the Italian clothing company Nolita that was launched during Milan Fashion Week

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SPAIN: A top fashion event in Madrid in 2006 turned away models below the WHO-approved Body Mass Index of 18 minimum weight of 123 pounds for a height of 5 ft and 5-ft-7. This followed months after the death of 21-year-old Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston of an infection caused by anorexia. At 5-foot-8, she weighed less than 88 pounds. Just a few months earlier Uruguayan model Luisel Ramos, 22, had met with a similar fate. She died of heart failure after reportedly surviving for weeks on end on lettuce and diet drinks.

BRITAIN: The British Fashion Council has introduced measures to check underweight models in the London Fashion Week, as well as to stop substance abuse. Under new measures, models suffering from anorexia or bulimia will have to present a certificate showing that they are being treated for the disorder and that it is under control before taking part in British Fashion Week in London

SOUTH AFRICA: The frail figure of 16-year-old South African model Kirsty McKenzie drew cries of outrage from fashion magazine editors and organisers at the 2006 South Africa Fashion Week

WEBSITES: One of the targets of the French law are websites such as 8220;Miss Bimbo,8221; an online reality game where players create their own fashionistas and socialites. Earlier this month, this site stopped offering virtual diet pills to keep the characters thin.