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Donna Feldman
Denver Health ExaminerDonna Feldman grew up in New Jersey with a nutrition-obsessed mother who put wheat
germ in everything. She rebelled, but during a college all-nighter, she picked up a copy
of a popular nutrition paperback, eventually earning a Master of Science in Nutrition at Cornell University. She now has a private practice in nutrition counseling in
Boulder County. Contact her at health.examiner@mindspring.com.
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Showing entries for Category: chicken-soup
Surprise support for healthy body image
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by Donna Feldman, Denver Health Examiner
There’s a bizarre disconnect going on between the fashion industry and the actual customers, the people who buy the clothes. As the models get more emaciated and scary looking, customers around the globe are getting progressively heavier. Nevertheless we have designers who sniff that they must have skinny models, or the clothes and fabrics just won’t hang properly. If that’s true, then their designs can’t possibly work on heavier customers. So who exactly are they designing for? Sneering at millions of potential customers because they aren’t skeletal doesn’t sound like a viable business plan.
The last time the fashion industry indulged in anti-anorexia posturing was last year. One designer sent an extremely overweight model down the runway in France, dressed in a hideous collection of ugly black garments, wearing make-up and a hair style that would have embarrassed the average Goth teen. Apparently this was some lame attempt to establish anti-anorexia credibility. In fact it made the designer look hostile to full figured women.
I’m guessing that kind of insulting display wouldn’t play well in this country, considering that most of the population is overweight. In fact, we have a growing media trend to glamorize and admire full figured women. Call it the American Idol fashion effect. However you feel about the show, the judges or the contestants’ singing talent, body size is not part of the selection process. Plenty of full figured women and men have moved into the final competition over the years. And when they do, stylists are busy choosing designs that work with all body sizes, to make contestants look great regardless of their weight or shape. The stylists have been so successful, I have to wonder why more designers aren’t leaping on the bandwagon? Apparently clothes and fabrics hang just fine on full figured bodies.
A steady diet of media images of unrealistically thin models and celebrities can play havoc with a child’s self-image. Negative body image can set up vulnerable pre-teen kids to develop eating disorders. I think American Idol represents a welcome change for body size acceptance. It's a first step from an unexpected source. Don't count on any French fashion designers to help out with this effort anytime soon.
Topics: chicken soup , eating disorders , anorexia , body image
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