[Valid Atom 1.0] Life With Cake: Eating Disorder Blog: May 6, 2012

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Vogue Advocating For EDs...An Airbrushed Reality?

I want to believe that it's true, but my cynical side has some serious doubts. Last week, Vogue announced that it will no longer knowingly use models who are under the age of 16 or who look like they have eating disorders.

If the fashion world is defining what an eating disorder "looks like," I question how different the models strutting down the runway will look. Unless the lens of the fashion world has lasic surgery, correcting their long-held distortions and dysmorphia, I question how corrective this measure can actually be. "Who" and "what" measure will solidify the distinction between what defines unhealthy for magazine standards? I highly doubt they will be pulling out the DSM to see the critieria of anorexia nervosa.

To their credit, I do applaud Vogue for putting Scarlett Johansson and Adele on recent covers. They also get points for at least being thoughtful enough to say that they will "structure mentor programs" to help endorse their new "Health is Beauty" concept.

If Vogue follows through and this is not just hype, then this could have huge implications for influencing what impressionable girls, adolescents, and young women strive for. Moreover, it has the potential to change the visual, social, and emotional landscape for what one defines as beautiful and successful.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this!!!