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Britain drops plans to bar size zero models from catwalk
by Matt
Midland Reporter-Telegram
LONDON (AP) -- London Fashion Week organizers have dropped plans that likely would have barred many size zero models from the catwalk after industry executives around the world refused to cooperate.
Hilary Riva of the British Fashion Council said her international counterparts complained that proposals to make catwalk models pass a medical exam were expensive and intrusive.
"From our conversations with our international counterparts in New York, Milan and Paris it has become clear that they do not recognize the need for an international health certificate," Riva said in an open letter posted on the council's Web site on Wednesday.
The idea of having such certificates grew out of an industry commission set up last year to address public concerns that excessive dieting damages the health of models and creates unrealistic expectations for young women.
Pressure on the industry has intensified in recent years, particular after models in Brazil and Uruguay collapsed and died, apparently from medical complications arising from their ultra-thin stature. One of the models, Luisel Ramos, 22, collapsed soon after stepping off the runway in August 2006; months later, her 18-year-old sister also was found dead, each reportedly died of anorexia-linked heart attacks.
Some of the panel's recommendations, including banning models under 16 from London Fashion Week catwalks and giving models a quiet room with food backstage, have already been adopted. Riva said a medical exam and a certificate showing good physical and mental health would only work if it was adopted internationally.
The medical exams would have cost around $500 -- the same as the average fee a model receives for appearing in one show in London Fashion Week.
Council spokeswoman Caroline Rush said the extra cost might have deterred some models appearing in the London shows -- particularly if they could have gone elsewhere without paying the fee.
The Council of Fashion Designers of America has said it did not believe medical exams benefit models. In 2007, it adopted a voluntary health policy, recommending that models under 16 not be used in runway shows, educating the industry about the early signs of eating disorders and having models get professional help if needed.
"There is now a major awareness on health in the industry, and through CFDA's continued programs, there had been a real coming together with an emphasis on health as beauty," CFDA executive director Steven Kolb said in an e-mail Wednesday. "We are seeing change."
The Chambre Syndicale in Paris, which regulates the marketing for high fashion items in France, decided it could not be held responsible for the women who model the clothes. Italy's Camera Nazionale della Moda, which organizes Milan's fashion shows, approved its own initiative that does include certification of a model's good health. It said it prefers self-regulation to a broader international proposal.
The next round of women's wear runway shows, previewing styles for next spring, begins Sept. 5 in New York.
Hilary Riva of the British Fashion Council said her international counterparts complained that proposals to make catwalk models pass a medical exam were expensive and intrusive.
"From our conversations with our international counterparts in New York, Milan and Paris it has become clear that they do not recognize the need for an international health certificate," Riva said in an open letter posted on the council's Web site on Wednesday.
The idea of having such certificates grew out of an industry commission set up last year to address public concerns that excessive dieting damages the health of models and creates unrealistic expectations for young women.
Pressure on the industry has intensified in recent years, particular after models in Brazil and Uruguay collapsed and died, apparently from medical complications arising from their ultra-thin stature. One of the models, Luisel Ramos, 22, collapsed soon after stepping off the runway in August 2006; months later, her 18-year-old sister also was found dead, each reportedly died of anorexia-linked heart attacks.
Some of the panel's recommendations, including banning models under 16 from London Fashion Week catwalks and giving models a quiet room with food backstage, have already been adopted. Riva said a medical exam and a certificate showing good physical and mental health would only work if it was adopted internationally.
The medical exams would have cost around $500 -- the same as the average fee a model receives for appearing in one show in London Fashion Week.
Council spokeswoman Caroline Rush said the extra cost might have deterred some models appearing in the London shows -- particularly if they could have gone elsewhere without paying the fee.
The Council of Fashion Designers of America has said it did not believe medical exams benefit models. In 2007, it adopted a voluntary health policy, recommending that models under 16 not be used in runway shows, educating the industry about the early signs of eating disorders and having models get professional help if needed.
"There is now a major awareness on health in the industry, and through CFDA's continued programs, there had been a real coming together with an emphasis on health as beauty," CFDA executive director Steven Kolb said in an e-mail Wednesday. "We are seeing change."
The Chambre Syndicale in Paris, which regulates the marketing for high fashion items in France, decided it could not be held responsible for the women who model the clothes. Italy's Camera Nazionale della Moda, which organizes Milan's fashion shows, approved its own initiative that does include certification of a model's good health. It said it prefers self-regulation to a broader international proposal.
The next round of women's wear runway shows, previewing styles for next spring, begins Sept. 5 in New York.
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