Skinny Minnies
You know, all the recent uproar about models getting skinnier and skinnier has got me thinking… maybe it’s just that the rest of us are getting fatter. Think about it. Maybe they're perfectly healthy, but the rest of us Americans have become such fatties that they look thinner to us, the way a room looks smaller to you when you’re a little kid. Personally, I think these gaunt gals are hot, hot, hot. If I were a guy, I would want to date one of them, for sure. After dinner, you could use her fingers for toothpicks! And if you wanted your shirt to unwrinkle, you could dangle your hanger from her ribs. I mean, imagine having a girlfriend who never eats (no arguing over doing dishes!) AND who is so versatile?
Anyone who has a problem with the media glorifying beyond-waifish, fragile-looking wisps of women is obviously just over-sensitive. And fat.
Ok, as ridiculous that sounds, it’s not so far from how people are responding to this recent New York Times article. A coworker forwarded this to me, saying, “this might just be the new Shamu” (you remember, the article everyone was forwarding each other like crack fiends a few months back).
So, as we keep hearing about Americans getting more and more obese, how come celebrities and models becoming more and more skeletal? And is the skinnitude of professional skinny people worth so much debate?
onemorestitch posts, “I was watching the rerun of Project Runway last night and was shocked at how thin some of these models were... I know that the thin issue isn't limited to models. Dancers and actors also hit the spotlight with bones protruding. There is some question in the article as to who is responsible for this."
beckygirl82 chimes in: "With models it's a bit more cut and dry than with dancers and actors. Models are more often too thin by a lot. With dancers what's most troubling is when they have weight limits, unhealthy ones at that, written into their contracts. Both professions have a frightening number of women with eating disorders, because of the idiotic emphasis on weight."
Seriously. What is up with this? The discussion continues here.
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I've witnessed far too many teen girls grab ahold of these unrealistic and horribly unhealthy looking model and actress pictures and claim "thinspiration!" I think the industry needs to consider the permanent damage they're doing to these girls. While it may be a mental disease, there are many who are sparked by a simple image of a waif model and think "if I look like that, I can be rich and famous too!"
I think what matters more than your weight is how healthful your diet is and how many nutrients you're getting. Studies on calorie restriction for longevity show promising results -- that by reducing your calorie intake by 30% to 40%, you may be able to increase your lifespan by as much as twenty years (and decrease your body weight by 30%). And those people look nearly skeletal. It's doubtful that models are adhering to that kind of nutrient-rich diet, but it's a fascinating fact to consider while we judge the uberthin.
I do think that what is "normal" now is overweight and would have been considered overweight years ago. Just look at the teens, how many do you see walking around with muffin top over their low riding jeans...many of them are very overweight. Some of the models are yes too thin, actually many of them are. But saying that models should be a size 12 or 14 like the average american woman is not that great either. Lets face it, the average american woman has some junk in her trunk that abit of walking and reduction of mcdonalds would take care of pretty quick without having to starve it off. Portion sizes are up, junk food is common in our childrens lunchs and we are getting fatter and unheathier. What ever happened to the time that kids did not have to worry about weight? because they were running around outside till dark, whatever happened to the time mcdonalds was a birthday treat? Rather than their daily lunch? I think we need bigger models, but make them "average" no way... how about healthy?
Models are tall, and the muscle tone on those girls is a joke, that's not healthy.