Israel BMI laws attempting to prevent models with BMI’s lower than 18.5
On January 1, Israel’s new skinny model law went into effect. The law was passed last year and is said to be the world’s first criminal statute, making it a requirement that all models have a body mass index (BMI) of more than 18.5.
As the Jerusalem Post found, the law “does make violations a criminal offense bearing a fine. But violators can be sued in court by interested citizens, including families whose relatives have suffered or died due to eating disorders encouraged by images of overly thin models.”
The law also requires women who are 5 feet 8 inches tall to weigh no less than 119-pounds or 54-kilograms. Additionally, there is a ban for advertisements from showing models who do not meet the minimum requirement.
As the Wall Street Journal noted, the new law “also requires publications to disclose when they use altered images of models to make the women and men appear even thinner than they really are.”
What do you think? Is this is step in the right direction or a case of government intervention gone too far?
Follow Us