The death of 21-year-old Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston due to anorexia served as a grim reminder for designer Raffaella Curiel, who fired 15 models from her show for being "too skinny".
"I absolutely don't want models who are too skinny," she told the media, adding, "They are a bad example for young generations."
Curiel said one of the skinny models fainted during the trials and had to be given a "ham sandwich". She added that her fashion house wanted to respect rules laid down to combat anorexia among fashion models.
Following Ana's death, a fashion manifesto was initiated by the government and signed in December by representatives of the Italian fashion chamber. The manifesto fixed rules on age and weight for models participating in the myriad of fashion events held in the country.
Under the new guidelines, girls under 16 cannot walk the ramp. Also, models must produce a certificate to prove they have no eating disorders. The code also carries a promise from designers to add larger sizes to their collections.
Meanwhile, under new rules proposed today, models under 16 were banned from participating in the London Fashion Week.
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