Vogue is joining the uprising phenomenal bandwagon in the act of encouraging health in contrast to promoting extremely thin body figures. Word has it that Vogue will no longer be working with models that are either too young or too slim. The magazine has decided to promote a healthy lifestyle with women of average body weight instead of the message they had previously. By doing this, Vogue was unknowingly communicating through their models the image of unhealthy skinny which led to life-threatening eating disorders.
From now on, Vogue has decided to not work with any models who are under the age of sixteen and/or who seem to have an eating disorder. Due to the fact that Vogue has always used minors for their models, this commitment of theirs has come as a shock to many. Vogue editors who have lately placed this new rule have done so in the hope that they will inspire other magazines to do the same in the effort of promoting health.
As Jonathan Newhouse, Conde Nast International Chairman explained, “Vogue believes that good health is beautiful. Vogue Editors around the world want the magazines to reflect their commitment to the health of the models who appear on the pages and the well-being of their readers.” It is believed that this lead has been taken by Vogue not only to join others who have been encouraging health, but also after the death of two models resulting from eating disorders in the years 2006 and 2007. Their hope is that if society, specifically young children and teenagers, saw healthier images in media, then as a result society would aspire to have a normal weight instead of an unhealthy weight below the average. The fashion magazine has giant wishes to affect children in a much more positive way. A runway model, Coco Rocha also commended the changes, “I’ve long been a vocal supporter of setting reasonable standards in the modeling industry. Not every model appears in Vogue, but every model and every magazine looks up to them as the standard (bearer). I can only imagine this will be a solid step in a direction that will benefit models for generations to come.”
Consequently, there are great hopes that this major step taken by one of the world’s greatest fashion magazines will result in a brighter future for society with less eating disorders and more realistic expectations of beauty in terms of weight. In the coming editions of Vogue, the healthier models will hopefully result in improved health conditions among society.