How large is large?

Whilst I am under no illusions that I have the body of a catwalk model, I would not consider myself to be hugely overweight. In the current nanny state we are living in, I recognise that we have become a country of extremes, with 60% of us being overweight, and 1 in 4 of us medically obese. 

However, there are other issues to be considered here. Body image has become an unhealthy obsession for many and cosmetic surgery is at an all time high. We are constantly bombarded with images of celebrities before and after a substantial weight loss and are frequently told how much better they look for it, even if they weren't big to begin with. 

Watch out though, because if you lose a few pounds too many, suddenly you're anorexic. It really is a lose lose situation. Take Rosie Huntington-Whitely for example, who up until recently was considered a body idol according to the popular weekly glossys (despite the fact that she was more than likely clinically underweight)

But she's not so popular anymore.. 

Once this photo appeared online and in magazines, Rosie was suddenly the object of substantial criticism, with captions like 'hope she's on her way for a burger'. If celebrities, who are constantly monitored and surrounded by professionals to ensure they are remaining healthy, can't manage to maintain a healthy weight, then how can we expect impressionable teenagers to manage?

I have a 14 year old sister, who recently told me she was on a diet. Upon hearing this news I was furious, and asked her why, at such a young age, she thought that she needed to diet. She informed me how upon shopping in Abercrombie and Fitch, at a size 12, she'd had to purchase a 'Large' and had felt embarrassed by this. Why, when the average size of a UK woman is a 14, are we suggesting to younger audiences that a size 12 is large, especially when this is a perfectly healthy size? I decided to take action with regards to this issue, and emailed Abercrombie, asking them whether they felt that labelling a size 12 as large was acceptable. This was the reply I got:

Antonia, 
Thanks for your feedback. 

Your feedback about sizing is one we see fairly often. It may be disappointing, but we’ve found the best direction for our company is to limit the range of sizes we offer. By focusing on a few select options, we know we can’t appeal to everyone. That’s why we’ve chosen to expand our non-clothing merchandise like our classic scents, leather flip-flops, and cotton messenger totes. 

While this is the direction we’ve chosen for our business, we also want you to know that we haven’t stopped listening. So, we’ve captured your feedback and passed along to our business teams. 

Thanks for letting us know what's on your mind. 

I was not impressed. 

I do think that whilst obesity is an issue that needs to be tackled, there needs to be some focus on the other end of the scale. Why have so many shops stopped stocking sizes above a 14? What message is this sending to the youth of today? Even if they are at a healthy size 14, just how comfortable are they going to be in buying the largest size in the shop?

This won't be the last email I send regarding the issue of sizing, as it is something I am hugely passionate about. 

I'll keep you posted..