H & M model photographs

[Clafoutie]

I realise this isn’t a new thing. And I realise that H & M are not alone in this. But my eye was drawn by an H & M advert on this site and when I visited the H & M website I was appalled by the photos of models there. A lot of them are no doubt AI generated and modified, but they are presenting images of women who look unwell. I thought the fashion industry was moving on from representing women in this way. I was naive.

I was actually thinking the opposite: how commenting on obesity is slid in as a societal issue (think of the NHS!!), but underweight is either jealousy or personal insult.

Interesting to read these thoughts. I’m going to ask for the thread to be removed now though as it has got more heated than I intended.
Its a shame you can’t always have a discussion without people suggesting you’re just jealous ( I’m happy with my own middle aged body, but worry about the influence of some manipulated images on young people)
I take the point that there are some pictures on the website where there doesn’t seem to be an issue. I was looking particularly at the model in the swimwear and shorts section, but possibly it is more something going on with poor photoshop. I tried posting pictures but they are not showing.

Ofcourse not! A friend of mine does but she doesn't eat so is def ill. At 13 I did look like this. Maybe this should be tweens models rather than for women.

Don’t ask for it to be removed because you don’t like the responses.

You can’t remove a thread because it’s not going as you’d like it to! Bizarre behaviour

Sorry I should have circled the issues, the first one with the white shorts is the leg has been edited, I wasn't sure about the arm in the pic with the green top but I've definitely seen examples of wrists being slimmed and elbows cut off, and the burgundy top has been edited at the waist.

Sorry, but I think she is.

I had irregular periods and circulatory issues at the bottom end of "healthy" bmi. I am also a slight build frame-wise, so it isn't that. Above average height but not so you'd say I am extremely tall. Size 4-6. Had slight lollipop head.

A gp who looked beyond paperwork and bmi charts suggested I gain a couple of kilos. I think it's ok to talk about that lower end cut off as well as upper end. I'm glad she did.

I didn’t have any way I wanted it to go in the first place! I just wondered what others thought. As with any other thread, there’s been a variety of responses and that’s fine. People can start a new thread if they want, but I’m not comfortable having a thread I started being used, in a few cases, to bash people. I’m just not into that.

What are you talking about? “Poor photoshop”? They aren’t allowed to do this - unless they write a visible disclaimer on the actual advert. No disclaimer, no digitally altering of a model’s body shape. Ie, they are not allowed to make any part of the model look thinner or wider etc.

We've lost sight of what is a healthy weight now most of the nation is in the overweight/obese category.

I'm 5ft 6 and a size 12-14, so very average by current standards. I'm uncomfortably overweight, nearer obese on the bmi scale at my current weight. I'm sure there will be some outliers who have a lot of solid muscle mass at this size and weight (plus feel fit and healthy) but it is not the majority. Previous posters are correct we're not discussing the health of the average bodied models, who are most definitely overweight and likely more unhealthy than any of the h&m/zara models.

That’s a bit rich when you started a thread to slag off completely healthy looking young women as you’re jealous of them.you know full well they don’t look unwell.

I’m not commenting on their size but did just take a look and think they all look rather flipping miserable!…. I’m
obv weird but want to buy clothes that I’d feel happy in?? They all look terribly uncomfortable and unhappy…

No, they are normal young women. I used to look exactly like that until I was about 24. I am 5.10 tall. I always had thin legs and arms. I ate all I liked while my friends were on diets. My mum was very slim until she had kids too. Some people have lost sight of what a young, tall healthy girl/woman should look like. Prepubescent my arse.

How very rude
Me and my daughters are built like this. We are all healthy, we eat a range of foods.....your assumptions are disgusting. There is nothing wrong with this picture at all.

You knos what really knarks me?! How its cruel to tell people they are overweight and there has been this big movement about curvy girls (which in my opinion is harmful as well as said curvy girls are not size 12s, 14s, 16s, 18s but past the 20 figure and sorry but noone is healthy at that size) but its totally ok to thin shame people like you've just done.

I weighed 8stone 1 at 9 months pregnant. I have been 7st 4 my whole adult life. Im 5.2 and have a healthy bmi, I used to have big boob's for my figure too but I lost them after having my kids.
I dont restrict foods we all have the odd treat for example an ice cream and day on holiday, we eat decent meals with fruit and a pudding after tea.
We eat a wide variety of foods.
We clearly have fast metabolisms in my family. I have strong abs nearly a 6 pack and dont go near a gym or play competitive sports.
Do you know what's up with a lot of people? Their portions are too big I cringe at what size portions some people eat and they dont get out and about and just walk. My children do 3 hobbies/clubs each and we are very active on a weekend, even at age 3 my youngest would think nothing of doing 25k steps round a theme park or race track.

Your assumptions based on a picture are gross

She is definitely a healthy weight. She's a naturally slim built woman with a fine bone structure. He collar bones aren't poking out like razors, her chest is not a column of visible bones, her face is not drawn.

We have badly lost sight of what women of a healthy weight look like if people think that model is unwell.

To be fair, I was size 10 in my 20s before being a mum, very slim, no hips or waist, straight up and down but muscular athletic legs.

Now I'm just a muffin top size 12, aged 45 year old who wishes I wasn't 2 stone overweight 😖😅

Here's me in one of those makeover photo shoot things you could do, aged 20-something before 3 kids, about 18 years ago. My arms are as slim as those models, but I'm a healthy weight.

I agree with others that these days, people forget about how it is to actually look slim.

My biggest issue with H&M images is that I can barely see what it is I'm supposed to be looking at. You're wearing an almost non-matching outfit, standing against a wall chewing on a baggy sleeve with the other arm over you and a leg on the wall. How can I possibly look at the top you're wearing?!

Presumably the difference being you starved yourself and lost weight because you had a serious mental illness whereas @CaptainMyCaptain has a body type that is naturally very slim and eats a healthy balanced diet.

Those models ‘look’ healthy, as far as one can tell from a photo. It’s no wonder that we have such an obesity crisis if people genuinely think they look emaciated at that size.

This is what you want to believe, but no. I’m very tall and visibly lanky, similar to all these models. I’ve managed to attract a mate, conceive, and breastfeed with ease. Naturally thin women don’t not have periods.

This does however apply to some women with eating disorders but IIRC, EDs are mental health conditions, not body shapes.

Why assume envy? I'm from a mixed heritage background. I love my thighs and arse, long before they became fashionable. Or are the looks displayed the only beauty stsndard? Watch your racism doesn't slip out. Time will tell on their bones. Read the research, limiting your calories, not weight lifting etc doesn't mean healthy aging.

What do you mean racism, I can’t see anyone on here, it’s an anonymous forum.

and the term teeny tiny is unpleasant, we all know it’s used as a derogatory term for slim women and know about the Reddit sub forum where they slag off teeny tinies,

Which bit don't you believe?