December 30th, 2010

Isabelle Caro was the muse of an Italian shock-ad against anorexia in the wake of the death of a Brazilian model due to complications from eating disorders.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure  out that eating disorders run rampant in the fashion industry.  Desires to look fantabulous often trump being healthy.

When the photos that made Isabelle Caro famous were shot, she weighed under 60 pounds. No, I did not forget to put a “1″ in the front. 60 pounds. My 8 month old son weighs 30 pounds. That made my heart stop to realize, and my heart went out to that beautiful girl, who was so full of talent and beauty – but who struggled with anorexia since the age of 13.

According to a blog post, Isabelle started suffering from anorexia because her mother wanted her to be her ‘little girl’ forever, and as such she wanted to keep the body of a child. In addition, her mom always argued with her about food.

Too bad everything ended so extreme.

At the time of her death in November, her father alerted only a few family friends – close ones who would keep the news private.  Today, the news of her death broke the press and many are mourning her death.

During her sunset years, she was a strong anti-anorexia advocate, although photos of her have ended up on pro-anorexia Web sites claiming she  “died young and stay pretty forever.”

Isabelle never got to be a mother, and the aforementioned blog posting indicates that during an interview, she noted she would love to be a mother but she wasn’t having periods. She also said that it’s hard to have a physical relationship with a regular sized man with such a tiny body.

Hopefully the photos of her and her story will give strength to those in the world struggling with anorexia.