Size zero

Size zero or size 0 is a women's clothing size in the US catalog sizes system. Size 0 and 00 were invented due to the changing of clothing sizes over time (referred to as vanity sizing or size inflation), which has caused the adoption of lower numbers. For example, a 2011 size 0 is equivalent to a 2001 size 2, and is larger than a 1970 size 6 or 1958 size 8. Modern size 0 clothing, depending on brand and style, fits measurements of chest-stomach-hips from 30-22-32 inches (76-56-81 cm) to 33-25-35 inches (84-64-89 cm). Size 00 can be anywhere from 0.5 to 2 inches (1 to 5 cm) smaller than size 0. Size zero often refers to extremely thin individuals (especially women and adolescent girls), or trends associated with them.

The use of size 0 in advertisements and products of the clothing industry has been met with some media attention. For example, Dawn Porter, a reporter from the UK, who had been challenged to go on an extreme celebrity size zero diet for a BBC programme, Super Slim Me, logged her experiences about her journey to a size zero.

In July 2009, Katie Green won a competition to represent Wonderbra. They referred her to the Premier Model Management agency for representation. Green reported that "one of the guys from the PR agency from Wonderbra" insisted that she lose weight, that it wasn't normal for models to be a (UK) size 8. "Unless I could drop down to that weight, they wouldn't be willing to get me more work." Green, who is 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) tall and in May 2011 weighed 145 lb (64 kg), at first complied, but then quit the agency.

She then, with Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Öpik, launched a campaign titled "Say No to Size Zero". They began a petition drive with the goal to put an end to size zero and underweight models on the catwalk or working in the fashion industry. They set a goal to obtain 20,000 signatures and plan to present it to the UK Prime Minister and Parliament. They are campaigning for legislation that would require regular health checkups for all models before undertaking any assignments.

After the death of Luisel Ramos from anorexia in August, 2006, Madrid Fashion Week banned size zero models the following month, and the Milan fashion show took the same action shortly afterward, banning models with a body mass index (BMI) of 18 or below. As a result, five models were banned from taking part.

...
Wikipedia