If 2015 was all about that bass (butts), then why are we still seeing waif after waif stroll down the catwalk? The fashion industry has notoriously extreme expectations — for sweater trends and body types alike — but if French lawmakers have their way, a healthy aesthetic will be here to stay.
On Thursday, the French National Assembly passed a bill requiring models to provide a clean bill of health from their doctors. “Health” in this case is determined by a physician-approved combination of age, gender, BMI and overall body composition. Plus, any images that employ the use of Photoshop wizardry to make a model’s silhouette narrower or wider will have to be labelled “touched up.”
And to show how serious the government is about rehabbing the industry’s skin-and-bone image, breaches of the law will be punishable by up to six months in prison and a fine of 75,000 euros (about $82,000). Who says you can’t put a price on health?
Related:
Every woman has a real body, even Victoria’s Secret models
Does sex sell? Not for Abercrombie and American Apparel
Why Angelina Jolie-Pitt is our new body acceptance icon
