PARIS, March 15 (CNA) – The French parliament has passed a bill that will ban ultra-thin models from appearing in magazines and on catwalks, in a move to promote a healthy body image and tackle eating disorders.
The new legislation, which was approved by the National Assembly on Tuesday (Mar 15), will require models to provide a medical certificate to prove that their body mass index (BMI) is above a certain threshold.
Models with a BMI below the threshold will not be allowed to work in the fashion industry in France.
The bill, which was proposed by the ruling Socialist Party, has been welcomed by health campaigners, who say it is a crucial step towards tackling the problem of eating disorders in the fashion industry.
According to the National Eating Disorders Association, 10 per cent of women in France suffer from an eating disorder.
The new law is expected to come into effect later this year.
In addition to the BMI requirement, the bill also includes a number of other measures aimed at promoting a healthy body image in the fashion industry.
These measures include:
A requirement for fashion magazines to publish a warning label if they feature images of models who have been digitally altered to make them appear thinner.
A ban on the use of the term .
