Fashion/media push ultra-thin to girls

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NEW YORK, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Almost nine in 10 U.S. teenage girls say the fashion industry is at least partially responsible for girls' obsession with being skinny, a survey indicates.

The survey of more than 1,000 girls ages 13-17 released by the Girl Scouts of the USA found 89 percent say the fashion industry, and 88 percent say the media, put a lot of pressure on them to be thin. However, despite the criticism of industry, three out of four of those surveyed said fashion is "really important" to them.

Eighty-one percent of the teen girls said they would prefer to see natural photos of models rather than digitally altered and enhanced images. Seventy-five percent said they would be more likely to buy clothes they see on real-size models than on women who are super skinny.

Eighty-two percent said peers, 81 percent said friends and 65 percent said parents are strong influences in how teenage girls feel about their bodies.

Nearly one-third of the girls said they have starved themselves or refused to eat in an effort to lose weight, while 42 percent reported knowing someone their age who has induced vomiting after eating, and 37 percent said they know someone their age who has been diagnosed with an eating disorder.

The survey was conducted by Tru. No further details of the survey were provided.