By Associated Press
1 hour ago

SAO PAULO, Brazil - A 21-year-old anorexic model who weighed only 88 pounds has died of generalized infection, a hospital said. Ana Carolina Reston, who had worked in China, Turkey, Mexico and Japan for several modeling agencies, died Tuesday, according to Sao Paulo's Servidor Publico Hospital.

The hospital said the infection that killed the 5-foot-8-inch model was caused by anorexia nervosa, a disorder characterized by an abnormal fear of becoming obese, an aversion to food and severe weight loss.

"Take care for your children because their loss is irreparable," Reston's mother, Miriam, told the O Globo newspaper. "Nothing can make the pain go away. No money in the world is worth the life of your child."

Reston began her modeling career at the age of 13 after winning a local beauty contest in her hometown of Jundiai, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo.

"I noticed something was wrong when she returned from Japan," Miriam told the Estado de Sao Paulo newspaper. "She was too thin when she returned and when I told her to eat something, she would say: 'Mom please don't fight with me; there is nothing wrong with me, I'm fine.'"

The model's cousin, Dani Grimaldi, told the Estado de Sao Paulo newspaper that Reston also battled bulimia, an eating disorder marked by binge eating that is followed by vomiting or the use of laxatives.

The world of high fashion and modeling has long been targeted by critics who say it encourages women and girls to emulate rail-thin models.

In September, a Spanish fashion show responded to such criticism by banning models with a body mass index of less than 18. Body mass index is a calculation doctors normally apply to study obesity, and anyone with an index below 18.5 is considered underweight.

Reston would have had a body mass index of 13.4 at the time of her death, according to a calculator on the Web site of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



EAT DAMIT!!!

It's all America's fault.

FruitToAttractBears said:

No it's not!!!

luv4all7 said:

It is! Who do think created the thin ideal in the first place!?

FruitToAttractBears said:

The thin ideal doesn't give you mental health issues that cause you to commit slow suicide.

This a Luv & Fruit debate



Proceed

funkpill said:

I have to add, that yes, America feeds the thin is in hype, that may spark an eating disorder, but you cannot BLAME an 88 lb girl dying on America.

sad

luv4all7 said:

It does though!

(let me clarify I was being somewhat facetious , however...)

In cultures where there had been virtually no cases of anorexia, once they were exposed to western culture (mostly through television) anorexia became more and more prevalant in young girls.So no I'm of course not directly blaming America for her death, but our culture is indeed an indirect culprit.

Also, did you read, the girls cousin had an eating disorder also.

Eating Disorders are genetic. Researchers have found that already, they just can't find the gene.

My cousin died of a heart attack at 32, brought on by her abuse of laxatives. There are other women in my family who have battled with eating disorders as well, and it really had nothing to do with wanting to look like Paris Hilton.

FruitToAttractBears said:

What cultures would they be? I find that American women are heavier than women of a lot of other cultures.

luv4all7 said:

Well an interesting example is the Fijians. They traditionally value a voluptous body type, but then American TV came to the island in 1995, and in 3 years the proportion of girls with eating disorders doubled.

Anorexia affects a very small percent of us. Even though we're all bombarded with the thin ideal, most of us don't embrace it to the extent of developing an eating disorder. It has to do with how one internalizes cultural beliefs.

FruitToAttractBears said:

That is interesting. But in 1995 all cultures, including American culture, was just becoming more AWARE of eating disorders. The fact that Fiji found an incline of eating disorders probably had a lot to do with the new awareness of the disease rather than American television.

I'm sure SOME of the statistics had a bit to do with it, but I doubt ALL of it did.

FruitToAttractBears said:

I thought that the Pacific Islands have the highest levels of obesity in the world. So, I would say that "eating disorders" were a problem long before anorexia was brought to the forefront.

JustErin said:

Really? Shiiiiittt!!! If I was on an island, you best believe, I would make sure I looked HAWT!

JustErin said:

I meant anorexia...
[Edited 11/16/06 20:25pm]

FruitToAttractBears said:[quote]

JustErin said:

You also said that in 3 years eating disorders doubled in girls. I was just responding to that.

I'm not trying to say that anorexia is not a new problem there, I'm just saying that those countries have been battling with eating disorders for some time now.

And I agree with you, both sides of the eating disorder scale have been caused (is that the right word?) by western influence.
[Edited 11/16/06 20:29pm]

Oh, oops. You edited.

JustErin said:

Heh...I edited. But I was implying eating disorders that would have come about by western influence, which certainly wouldn't be putting obesity as the ideal out there.

FruitToAttractBears said:

Got it.

I guess in a country where, I think, it's something like 75% of the population are overweight/obese, seeing the western ideal would be very, very hard on someone, especially a teen.

Once again, it's a case of the two extremes.

Really sad.

JustErin said:

I read an article about a pacific nation (forget which now) where before western influence, the staple foods were things like breadfruit and yams, healthy stuff, and now they are eating foreign imported processed foods because they taste better - a recipe for heart disease and diabetes

luv4all7 said:

We talked about anorexia and bulemia (sp?) when I was in high school in the 80's, it's not THAT new. Karen Carpenter, anyone?

88 lbs at 5'8? Holy crap!

At 4'11, I weigh in at 107. God, I'm a whale compared to her.
[Edited 11/17/06 1:36am]

Nikster said:

EXACTLY. That was my point. It's no tthat new. And ya can't blame it on television, because chics on TV were thicker in the 80's. It's not NEW at all, but people are more aware.

anorexia/bulemia is sad to me. but when i watched that HBO special earlier this week "Thin" it seemed more like an addiction to NOT eating food/binging then purging food...much like when a person is addicted to cocaine or alcohol. It's something deep inside them thats causing them to stay addicted to whatever it is. I hope no one takes this personally, but i'd rather die a fat pig than barely a skeleton.

missfee said:

Rite, addicted, like a coke fiend. And so, maybe television contributes, or America or whatever, but that is not the CAUSE, and I there would be addict, with or without skinny Americans.

What a terrible shame.

FruitToAttractBears said:

Well, as far as thin in the fashion world is concerned, I would say that when Twiggy became huge in the 60s is when that ideal became popular. Although Twiggy was just naturally thin I believe. But that didn't stop everyone who came after her from trying to achieve that look.