Ralph Lauren hires first plus-size model

By Daniella Lopez

Ralph Lauren has come a long way from using Photoshop on advertisements to make models look thinner than their already size 0 figures.

The brand recently hired a plus-size model for an advertising campaign.

Australian beauty Robyn Lawley is the first plus-size model to appear in an ad for the high-end fashion designer.  The 6-foot-2, size-12 model has already graced the cover of magazines such as Vogue Italia and French Elle.

On Good Morning America, Lawley said she once struggled to keep up with the skinny demands of the modeling industry and, at age 16, needed to take a break.

Critics have long argued that the constant appearance of rail-thin, flawless models has affected the body image of young American women, in particular.

And statistics certainly suggest that young women and girls are obsessed with being thin.  According to the South Carolina Department of Mental Health:

• Anorexia is the third most common chronic illness among adolescents
• 95% of those who have eating disorders are between the ages of 12 and 25
• 50% of girls between the ages of 11 and 13 see themselves as overweight
• 80% of 13-year-olds have attempted to lose weight

Now, at the age of 23, Lawley’s confidence in her own body image is clearly visible.

Can this plus-size beauty help change Americans’ perceptions of beauty? Maybe the days of Marilyn Monroe’s coveted size 12 figure can be recaptured.  We can all hope.