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Within the fashion industry, models are displayed as the world's most desirable women, with long slim legs and glamorous lives. Although many models today follow healthy lifestyles, the stigma that models suffer from eating disorders has not been completely dispelled. With the industry continuously placing slim and tall women on pedestals, young girls who look up to these models might feel the pressure to be skinny as well, which is why it is important to remind people that health should come before physical appearance. Despite this, a doctor from the Stockholm Center for Eating Disorders in Sweden stated that model scouts have been attempting to discover new talent right outside the doors of these clinics.   

"We think this is repugnant," Dr. Anna-Maria af Sandeberg, the head of the clinic, stated. "People [model scouts] have stood outside our clinic and tried to pick up our girls because they know they are very thin." According to Sandeberg, these scouts know no limit. She reports that in one case, a scout approached a very thin patient who was in a wheelchair due to the severity of her condition and inquired her about modeling. The clinic states that the scouts have been around for almost a year and that their presence is hindering the progress of their patients.

"It sends the wrong signals when the girls are being treated for eating disorders," Sandeberg added. The clinic was forced to change the exit route for patients who want to take leisurely walks and not get bombarded by the scouts. The Care coordinator of the establishment, Christina Lillman-Ring Borg stated that the scouts also targeted her daughter, who is a patient at the center.

"It is awful. Part of the disease is that you have a distorted body image, and you get a sudden flattery and a job offer. It does not facilitate the treatment of the disease," she stated.

Eating disorders affect both men and women, but according to statistics, young women are the most vulnerable in developing these life-threatening conditions.