I would like to make it clear however, that I have absolutely no problem with thin women or men and the same goes for large women and men and I certainly do not “slate” you or anyone else for being thin. Nor at any point do I suggest in the article that thin people are anorexic or that to be a size zero means that one must have an eating disorder. Also at no point do I suggest that naturally (or unnaturally) thin women “aren’t real women”. In fact this article is nothing to do naturally thin or large, women or men. It’s about the fashion industry’s obsession in trying to promote the ludicrous idea that in order to be beautiful you have to be “unnaturally” skinny.

The problem with the term “size zero” is it that refers to measurements for adult women with a bust of 30inch, a waist of 23inch and hips of 32.5inch (approximate) which in the UK is a size 4 and roughly equivalent to a 9-10 year old girl under 5 foot tall. However the term “size zero” is also used to describe measurements less than those mentioned above and never includes height in the equation; meaning that a woman with the above measurements is classed as size zero whether she’s 4’6” or 6’4”. This is why I suggest in the article that a better way would be to use the body mass index.

I am fully aware that the photo you refer to is photoshopped and yes I do have the original (see new pic), that’s the point I’m making and you’ll notice in the last paragraph the statement “even then the pictures may still be photoshopped to make them look even thinner – how ridiculous?”.

My argument is nothing to do with naturally thin and healthy people (however thin they are) but with the fashion industry who perpetuate an ideal about being “unnaturally” skinny that’s simply unobtainable for most women and men; many of whom end up in therapy due to depression, low self esteem, anorexia, bulimia, body dysmorphic disorder and suicidal thoughts. Some die due to diet (starvation) related illnesses and others take their own lives and I for one believe the fashion industry is directly responsible and should be held accountable.

Mark

Firstly, none of the images used in this article are representative of a real size zero. There are plenty of size zero women (myself included) who are not anorexic and look absolutely nothing like the women in the photos you’ve used. I also know that the 3rd image (baggy blue top) is photoshopped. If you cared to properly research your article, you probably would have found the original image in which there are no ribs and there’s some breast tissue. And the woman generally is larger. So props to you for using doctored images to represent size zero – great idea.

Articles like this are the reason women like me get slated in the media and in society. I’m a size zero, so I MUST have an eating disorder. Well pardon me for my poor genetics, but I’ve been unhappy with my small body since I was 11 (so the last 9 years) and I find it damn near impossible to gain weight. It has taken me 3 years to gain 3kgs – and I think that’s just because I’m still growing. Some of my friends can gain 3kgs in a week, and they eat less than I do.

So how about you add this fact into your ridiculously biased article:

2010: Some women are naturally slim and by saying that they “aren’t real women” or that they are anorexic, people are merely demonstrating their gross ignorance on body-image issues and are no better than the unintelligent bigots who said that it was not okay to be larger.

Hypocritical much?