TORONTO - While razor-thin fashion models have the unenviable reputation of starving themselves, a new study suggests that eating disorders are just as prevalent among women in university classrooms as those who stroll on catwalks.
The report, being touted as the first Canadian study to ask models about their body image, also suggests that many of them are naturally thin.
It also found that 80 per cent of both models and students in their early to mid-20s reported healthy eating habits.
"The finding that the models and the non-models didn't differ on eating didn't surprise me,'' said report author Jenny McWhirter, a part-time model who recently completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Waterloo.
"My belief going into it, which was confirmed by the findings, is that most models are genetically predisposed to be (thin),'' she said.
The information was gathered from an online survey which asked 339 respondents, including 81 Canadian models, open-ended questions about topics like eating habits and self-esteem.
However, because the study was based on self-reported data, some of the conclusions are tenuous at best, said Janet Polivy, a psychology professor at the University of Toronto who specializes in eating disorders.
While self-reported studies can accurately identify disorders like bulimia, anorexia in particular is almost impossible to detect through the same method because those afflicted seldom admit they have a problem, Polivy said.
"It would be very difficult to draw any conclusions about the actual incidence or prevalence of eating disorders from this kind of self-reporting survey,'' she said.
Still, Polivy said the study was "a step in the right direction'' because it analyzes the models themselves.
McWhirter said the study aimed to explore the effectiveness of bans on skinny models in Spain and Italy, which were instituted after the anorexia-related deaths of models Ana Carolina Reston and Eliana Ramos last year.
"I really wanted to get at the heart of the issue and come up with some research findings to figure out whether the bans were a good idea or not,'' McWhirter said.
She said while the average body mass index for the models in her survey was 17.4, their exercising and eating habits were the same as the non-model group, which had an average BMI of 22.7. The World Health Organization says a BMI of between 18.5 and 25 is considered normal.
Spanish officials have banned models with a BMI of less than 18, which is the equivalent of a five-foot-11 woman weighing 125 pounds.
"My point with the bans is that maybe it's not the best way to measure whether a model is healthy or not,'' McWhirter said.
The study found that 74 per cent of models said they didn't have to lose any weight when they began their modelling careers, which suggests that most of them are just naturally thin.
However, McWhirter added: "I'm not trying to argue that a thin ideal should be the beauty ideal.''
