Ilanit Hila Elmalich (; 14 November 1973 – 14 November 2007) was an Israeli fashion model"Did Model Die From Pressure to Be Thin?" (1/2)
19 November 2007, ''

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'' who died of anorexia in 2007."A healthy guide to modeling"
28 November 2007, ''

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'' Represented by the Israeli branch of the Elite Model Management modeling agency, she was once a famous fashion model in the country.

Death

On November 14, 2007, on her 34th birthday,"Report: Model Hila Elmalich Dies"
, 17 November 2007, ''

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'' Elmalich died weighing less than after years of suffering from

anorexia nervosa Anorexia nervosa, often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by low weight, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. ''Anorexia'' is a term of Gr ...

. She had been hospitalized several times due to the condition. She finally succumbed to it, collapsing and dying in her home due to

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

Campaign for a minimum BMI for models

Immediately after her death, Israeli fashion photographer Adi Barkan called her a "sacrifice to fashion". He initiated a worldwide campaign to "change the definition of beauty by encouraging models not to be skinny". Barkan's concern over Elmalich's death led to new body weight and body mass index requirements in Israel in 2012. These requirements do not allow modeling agencies to hire any models who have a BMI (

body mass index Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of a person. The BMI is defined as the body mass divided by the square of the body height, and is expressed in units of kg/m2, resulting from mass in kilograms and he ...

) less than 18.5, below which is considered underweight. This law means a 5'9" woman would have to weigh at least 125 pounds in order to be hired. This is supposed to encourage models to not be so thin and release the pressure for women to continually lose weight.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elmaliach, Hila Israeli female models 2007 deaths Deaths from anorexia nervosa Neurological disease deaths in Israel 1973 births

Death

Campaign for a minimum BMI for models

See also

References