Please Eat! yet Another Fashion Model's Death as the Result of Anorexia

In a nation of mixed messages, it is often hard for children and young people to know how to be healthy.

Half of the advertisements that flood the mass media scream with the messages of 'eat, indulge, enjoy and get it for a great price.' While the other half of the advertisements proclaim, 'diet, lose weight, less carbs, less sugar, and consume less.'

It is no surprise that so many young people are confused.

Another super model from Brazil is now dead. At the age of 21, Ana's short lived career ended abruptly due to complications of the devastating disease anorexia.

The Brazilian model is certainly not the first and likely will not be the last. In August, a model from Uruguay died of a similar complication during a fashion show.

While the fashion industry may profit from having super thin models, it is obvious that the models themselves are not only killing themselves, they are also producing damaging effects in millions of lives. While it may not be fair to blame the fashion models, they are setting examples for young people everywhere.

The fashion industry itself is of course to blame for most of the damage.

In this particular case, the Brazilian daughter was trying to help the family with the additional income she made from modeling. While her mother reportedly told the press she had pleaded with her daughter to eat more, her daughter brushed it off.

The necessity of being thin to the career of a model is what makes so many of them desperately and disgustingly thin.
In September, the fashion world was spun into the frontlines of the media due to Spain's implementation of a minimum weight for their models. Any model with a BMI below 18 was banned from the industry.

This news was a breath of fresh air for many parents and adults who have dealt with teens and young people suffering from anorexia or a similar eating disorder.

The Brazilian model's BMI was 13.5 which is dangerously. A healthy Body Mass Index is typically around 25 for women. The World Health Organization considers anyone with a BMI below 18.5 underweight. Indeed, a Body Mass Index below 15 typically indicates starvation.

London briefly considered following Spain's example.

Starvation itself is not only physically damaging. What many who have eating disorders don't realize is the damage they are doing to their mental and spiritual health. As if the physical effects weren't bad enough, there are other effects that are often not taken into consideration.

Carrie Otis, a recovering model for Sports Illustrated confesses that her "diet" which was really starvation only lead to destruction of her physical health. After 17 years of an unhealthy diet, Otis ended up in the hospital. She noted in a recent USA
Today Interview that many women with anorexia have heart attacks and other serious heart conditions.

Otis is now passionate about helping other victims of anorexia nervosa. The former super model is helping to launch campaigns in honor of National Eating Disorders Awareness week which takes place the end of February. Also, Otis strongly encourages and promotes the Television program: Perfect Illusions: Eating Disorders and the Family. It will appear nationally on February 24 as part of the National Eating Disorders Awareness Week on PBS.

According to the National Eating Disorders Awareness council, it is estimated that approximately 5-10 million American women and girls and approximately 1 million boys face eating disorders. Also, the amount of those struggling with food in general is much higher.

In fact, at least 40-50% of America's population has struggled one way or another with food. Whether it is with overeating or under eating or just a lack of proper nutrition, healthy eating is rare.

However, healthy eating is on the rise. It has been shown that people are showing more concern for what they put into their bodies. The evidence includes nutritional labels on most foods, as well as healthier options in most restaurants.

Some important characteristics to consider when it comes to the risk of eating disorders include; the onset of puberty, female gender, psychiatric vulnerabilities, perfectionism, history of trauma and obsession characteristics.

Anorexia is not a hopeless disease by any means. It does require time and energy to heal from. Also, the healing process is not just about physical healing. People who have underwent bouts of anorexia often require counseling and time for their minds to heal from the lies they have been feeding off of instead of food.