Extreme Skinny Celebrities Again

Not sure if anyone else caught 'Extreme: Skinny Celebrities' on Living TV last night? They featured a few of the usual suspects: Terri Hatcher, Nicole Ritchie, Victoria Beckham etc, showing all those before and after pictures we've seen so many times in Heat magazine. A strange pale-looking guy, who's supposed to be an expert in ageing (I didn't realise there was such a thing), then estimated that given their body mass index (way below what it should be) blah blah blah, how old they would be when they died. Most of them, he estimated, would be in their early 60's.

They also interviewed a nutritionist and eating disorder expert, and that was interesting and quite informative. I'm actually surprised they didn't show it at 9pm or thereabouts, so that young girls who are in the high risk age-group (typically teenagers) could watch it. To those of us that have been battling the bulge for years and know every diet, and have become (by default) nutrition experts, none of it was really news. But they did point out why diets, things like Atkins etc, are dangerous - basically your body needs nutrients from pretty much all the food groups, and by denying it one or more of these, essential functions in the body are severely affected.

And apparently, a bit of body fat is kind of essential, because not only does it insulate you, but it's important for things like hormone function. Now that I did not know. Another big risk of the whole skinny Minnie phenomenon is osteoporosis, which a few of the old Hollywood girls now suffer from, thanks to those implausibly slim waistlines in their heydays.

What I don't think is new, is the skinny phenomenon. Having recently read Truman Capote's biography, he speaks of women he referred to as 'his swans'. Society ladies, back in the 50's, who were famous for being incredibly thin and stylish, like Babe Paley, Gloria Guiness, and Wallis Simpson. They were revered by women all over, who tried to copy not only their clothes, but waistlines too. I think it was even around this time, or perhaps in the 40's when the phrase was coined 'You can never be too rich or too thin,' attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt (I think).

The other end of the scale, which they didn't show, are people who carry too much fat/weight, and how that can also severly hamper things like heart function, send blood pressure sky high, and effect the joints. At my heaviest in my university days, I had a lot of problems with my ankles and lower back. One day, while complaining about sore ankles to my aerobics instructor, the gym owner who was also present, looked at me and said matter of factly, "You're too fat. Your frame is struggling to carry that excess weight, which is why your joints are taking a hammering." It was harsh, but he was right. I had no underlying problem with my ankles in terms of bone or muscle damage, it was just all this weight bearing down on them. I didn't like what he had said to me, but it kick started my decision to lose weight. Saying something like that to a teenage girl, may well however have had an adverse effect and possibly even triggered an eating disorder, so one has to be careful when doling out the 'tell it like it is' advice.

I think we live in a world of excess, at least in the Western developed countries. There's too much of everything, and that's why you have these extremes - on the one hand there is obesity, and on the other you have anorexia and bulimia. There doesn't seem to be a balance, and I've yet to meet a woman, even a slim one, who is truly happy with her body.

I think the key is eating healthy and in moderation, as opposed to dieting, and making sure you are active. Forget trying to be the size your sister or mother, or Nicole Ritchie is. I really believe that each of us have a natural healthy body weight which can be achieved by finding that balance between healthy diet and activity. And once you reach it, it should be fairly easy to maintain. If you have to eat next to nothing to keep your current dress size, chances are, it's not your natural body weight.

Source: quickpua.blogspot.com