Size Zero
Encyclopedia
Size 0 is a women's clothing size in the US catalog sizes system. Size 0 and 00 were invented due to the changing of clothing sizes over time (referred to as vanity sizing
Vanity sizing
Vanity sizing, also known as size inflation is used to refer to the phenomenon of ready-to-wear clothing of the same nominal size becoming larger over time...

 or size inflation), which has caused the adoption of lower numbers. Modern size 0 clothing, depending on brand and style, will fit measurements of chest-stomach-hips from 30-22-32 inches (76-56-81 cm) to 33-25-35 inches (84-64-89 cm). "Size zero" often refers to extremely thin individuals (especially women), or trends associated with them.

Body size

A woman's healthy body mass index
Body mass index
The body mass index , or Quetelet index, is a heuristic proxy for human body fat based on an individual's weight and height. BMI does not actually measure the percentage of body fat. It was invented between 1830 and 1850 by the Belgian polymath Adolphe Quetelet during the course of developing...

  (BMI) is between 18.5 and 25. Any index less than 18.5 is considered underweight, while an index of 15 or less is starvation.

Size zero bust size is 31.5 inches (80 cm), waist 23 inches (60 cm) and hips 34 inches (86 cm).

Criticism

The use of size 0 in advertisments and products of the clothing industry has been met with some media attention. For example, Louise Redknapp
Louise Redknapp
Louise Elizabeth Redknapp is an English singer and media personality. She was a member of the girl group Eternal from 1992 to 1995, before becoming a solo singer . She has presented several television shows and served as a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance...

 dieted to fit into a size zero dress to explore the effects for a documentary television program.
The World Health Organisation, doctors and women's groups are concerned that the use of underweight models sends out dangerously wrong signals to girls who look at models as role models.

In July 2009, Katie Green
Katie Green
Katie Green is an English model from Chichester, West Sussex. Green was originally signed to represent Wonderbra in July 2008, but the Premier Model Management agency immediately pressured her to lose and two dress sizes. She ended her contract in October 28 when she refused to lose weight...

 won a competition to represent Wonderbra
Wonderbra
The Wonderbra is a type of push-up underwire brassiere that gained worldwide prominence in the 1990s. Although the Wonderbra name was first trademarked in the U.S. in 1935, the brand was developed in Canada. Moses Nadler, founder and majority owner of the Canadian Lady Corset Company, licensed the...

. They referred her to the Premier Model Management agency for representation. Green reported that "one of the guys from the PR agency from Wonderbra" insisted that she lose weight, that it wasn't normal for models to be a size 8.... Unless I could drop down to that weight, they wouldn't be willing to get me more work." Green, who is 5 inch tall and in May 2011 weighed 145 lb (64 kg), at first complied, but then rebelled, and quit the agency. She then, with Liberal Democrat MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 Lembit Öpik
Lembit Öpik
Lembit Öpik is a British Liberal Democrat politician. He was the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Montgomeryshire in Wales from 1997 until he lost his seat in the 2010 General Election...

, launched a campaign titled "Say No to Size Zero".

They began a petition drive with the goal to put an end to size zero and underweight models on the catwalk or working in the fashion industry. They set a goal to obtain 20,000 signatures and plan to present it to the UK Prime Minister and Parliament. They are campaigning for legislation that would require regular health checkups for all models before undertaking any assignments.

Banned by runway shows

In September 2010, Victoria Beckham
Victoria Beckham
Victoria Caroline Beckham is an English singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, fashion designer and businesswoman. In the late 1990s, Beckham rose to fame with the all-female pop group Spice Girls and was dubbed Posh Spice by the July 1996 issue of the British pop music magazine Top of the Pops...

 banned size zero models from her New York Fashion Week runway show. Herself a size two (UK size 6) at 36 years old, she reportedly barred 12 models from appearing in her show after deeming them ‘too skinny’. Her fashions will be modelled by "healthy girls who look ‘realistic’ to encourage a positive image to impressionable teens."

Size zero models were barred from Madrid Fashion Week in 2006, and the Milan fashion show took the same action shortly afterward, banning models with a body mass index (BMI)
Body mass index
The body mass index , or Quetelet index, is a heuristic proxy for human body fat based on an individual's weight and height. BMI does not actually measure the percentage of body fat. It was invented between 1830 and 1850 by the Belgian polymath Adolphe Quetelet during the course of developing...

 of 18 or below. As a result, five models were banned from taking part.

Fashion labels Prada
Prada
Prada S.p.A. is an Italian fashion label specializing in luxury goods for men and women , founded by Mario Prada.-Foundations:...

, Versace
Versace
Gianni Versace S.p.A. , usually referred to as Versace, is an Italian fashion label founded by Gianni Versace in 1978.The first Versace boutique was opened in Milan's Via della Spiga in 1978, and its popularity was immediate. Today, Versace is one of the world's leading international fashion houses...

 and Armani have agreed to ban size zero models from their catwalks. As of 2007, the British Fashion Council promoted the creation of a task force to invent guidelines for the fashion industry. They also urged fashion designers to use healthy models. An inquiry reported in September 2007 that up to 40 per cent of models could have an eating disorder and made a number of suggestions to promote health, yet ruled out a ban on size-zero models. Larger sizes 14 and 16 - would also be introduced into shows and all models under 16 would also be banned.

Fashion designer Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani is an Italian fashion designer, particularly noted for his menswear. He is known today for his clean, tailored lines. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, and by 2001 was acclaimed as the most successful designer to come out of Italy, with an annual turnover of $1.6 billion and a...

 has given support to the effort to eliminate ultra-thin models. "The time has now come for clarity. We all need to work together against anorexia."

See also

  • EN 13402
    EN 13402
    EN 13402 is a European standard for labelling clothes sizes. It is based on body dimensions, measured in centimetres. It replaces many older national dress-size systems in popular use before the year 2007. Acceptance of this form of standardization varies from country to country...

  • Female body shape
    Female body shape
    Female body shape or figure is the cumulative product of a woman's skeletal structure and the quantity and distribution of muscle and fat on the body. There are, and have been, wide differences on what should be considered an ideal or preferred body shape, both for attractiveness and for health...

  • Body image
    Body image
    Body image refers to a person's perception of the aesthetics and sexual attractiveness of their own body. The phrase body image was first coined by the Austrian neurologist and psychoanalyst Paul Schilder in his masterpiece The Image and Appearance of the Human Body...

  • Clothing sizes
  • Vanity sizing
    Vanity sizing
    Vanity sizing, also known as size inflation is used to refer to the phenomenon of ready-to-wear clothing of the same nominal size becoming larger over time...

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