Plus-size models like size 16 Ashley Graham are officially good for our mental health by boosting our self-esteem

Women felt better about their bodies after seeing plus-size models, study shows
When looking at thinner models, they made more comparisons with their looks
Study shows women are more likely to pay attention to larger models
Curvaceous Ashley Graham and Candice Huffine have taken catwalks by storm
Graham says ‘size doesn’t matter’ as long as you ‘take care of your body’

Claudia Tanner For Mailonline

Published:
14:20 BST, 8 June 2017

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Updated:
14:37 BST, 8 June 2017

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Curvy models such as Ashley Graham and Candice Huffine are helping to shake up the fashion industry and our ideas of beauty.

Now science has confirmed that their refusal to conform to ideal body standards is actually good for us.

Women experience a boost in their mental health after seeing plus size models compared to underweight ones, new research has found.

And furthermore, women are more likely to pay attention to and remember models who reflect realistic body shapes and sizes too.

It’s a point the fashion industry – criticised for pedalling unrealistic body images – should take on board, say researchers from Florida State University (FSU).

It also explains why body diversity activist Ashley Graham – who reignited the plus-size debate with her ‘health at every size’ message – has seen huge success after becoming 2016′s breakout supermodel.

‘We found overwhelmingly that there is a clear psychological advantage when the media shows more realistic body types than the traditional thin model,’ said Russell Clayton, lead author of the study.

Graham signed with IMG Curve

Huffine has followed in Graham's footsteps

The research provides an insight into why plus-size models like Ashley Graham (left) and Candice Huffine (right) are so successful and liked by women

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LOVE YOUR CURVES

Graham promotes body confidence

Graham’s career took off – and she made history – after she became the first plus-sized model to grace the covers of American and British Vogue and Sports Illustrated.

Now the 29-year-old from Lincoln, Nebraska, is on a mission to combat the self-loathing women feel about their bodies.

She recently told Elle UK that ‘size doesn’t matter’ as long as you ‘take care of your body’.

‘I really believe that women need to start looking up to other women, not for their exterior but for their interior and what they’re doing in the world. Be you, be your own individual,’ she said.

Key findings

Researchers recruited 49 women who all wanted to lose weight, and showed them a series of images of thin, average and plus-size fashion models on a TV screen

The women’s psychophysological responses, which is the interaction between the mind and the body, were measured.

After looking at each image, the women were asked to rate their own body satisfaction, and how much they had compared themselves to the model they saw.

The women made more comparisons with their bodies and the thin models, and had lower body satisfaction.

They also paid less attention and remembered less about the slimmer models.

The opposite was found when they viewed average and plus-size models – they felt much more satisfied with their own looks.

Challenging the cult of skinny

Jessica Ridgway, an assistant professor working on the study, said the fashion industry should take note.

She said: ‘Women made fewer social comparisons, felt increased body satisfaction, paid more attention to and remembered average and plus-size models.

‘Therefore, it might be a useful persuasive strategy for media producers to employ plus-size models if the goal of the campaign is to capture attention while also promoting body positivity.’

The study was published in the journal Communication Monographs.

THE RISE OF PLUS SIZE MODEL CANDICE HUFFINE

Huffine is the next big plus-size model

Curvy model Candice Huffine has followed in the footsteps of her fellow full-figured fashion star Ashley Graham.

Last year the 32-year-old New Yorker signed up with famed agency IMG Models’s plus-size division which also represents Graham and the likes of Chelsea Miller, Precious Lee and Tara Lynn.

The former teenage beauty queen made history by becoming the first fuller-figured supermodel to pose for the Pirelli calendar in 2015 and she has also appeared in Italian Vogue (cover), American Vogue, and Glamour.

At a size 12, Huffine is considered a plus size model. Last year she brought her sex appeal to the British high-street by fronting River Island’s debut curvy clothing line.

The brunette beauty recently took to Instagram to share why she’s so proud of her cover image on last month’s Elle magazine.

She wrote: ‘For as long as I can remember, I dreamt of being a model. There was no plan B for me.

‘So my body type wasn’t ideal measurements, minor detail. I refused to be told I couldn’t become what I had always imagined and committed myself to working tirelessly for the day when my size wouldn’t dictate my possibility.

‘I hope this cover can serve as a symbol for anyone who believes they can, that they are, that they will be.’

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