New law in Israel bans underweight models
By Teaira Haynes | gargoyle@flagler.edu
For years now, the fashion industry has been blamed for the growing number of eating disorders worldwide by promoting an “unrealistic and unhealthy” idea of beauty with thin models. On March 19, the Israeli government passed a law that banned the employment of underweight models.
In an effort to stop the spread of eating disorders like anorexia, which affects 2 percent of all females in Israel, a model must have a body mass index (BMI) of 18.5–as well as have previous medical records that date as far back as three months–to prove she is healthy. This means a model of 5 feet 8 inches, the average for most models, must weigh at least 125 pounds.