From thigh gaps to ‘leggings legs’ and ab cracks, toxic body trends were a worryingly regular feature of the noughties.
Now, a worrying new fad for showing off razor sharp collar bones has taken over the red carpet, with ‘worryingly’ thin A-listers wearing strapless gowns throughout awards season to showcase their prominent clavicles.
Last month’s Oscars saw Emma Stone showing off her very pronounced clavicles in a silver Louis Vuitton gown with a squared neckline, whereas Nicole Kidman also went for a shoulderless dress to flaunt her defined décolletage. Elsewhere, while attending the Annual Actor Awards in Los Angeles, Gwyneth Paltrow made sure the neck area was on show as she wore a black frock with a deep plunge.
And the trend has worried fans.
‘I lived through the 2000s, I don’t want to do it again!’ one worried observer wrote on social media.
There are also whole online communities dedicated to making your collarbone ‘pop’ and ‘look hot’ in photos – and TikTok is filled with workout tutorials to help ‘define’ the area and ‘slim down’ your clavicles so that the bone is visible.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, a cosmetics doctor said that it’s likely the trend is linked to the rise in weight loss jabs.
‘With the rise of GLP1 analogues, we are seeing more and more individuals undergoing rapid weight loss which can make the clavicles more pronounced,’ Dr Ed Robinson explained, adding that people are seeking ‘tweakments’ to make the neck area appear more slender.
‘Trap tox or Barbie tox is a treatment which surged in popularity after the Barbie movie which slips down the trapezius muscle in the neck to achieve a ‘slimmer neck’,’ he continued.
‘This can also be used for migraine treatment or relieving neck or upper back pain – it can draw more attention to the clavicles as well, particularly when combined with weight loss.’
He added, however, that in some cases the looks have raised concerns.
‘I’ve certainly seen a rise in what I would describe as disordered eating habits in those who are abusing GLP1s,’ Dr Robinson told the Daily Mail.
‘Although they obviously have the potential to help considerably in overweight patients. Many treatments are aimed at reversing the cosmetic effects of rapid weight loss as this can make you look considerably older.’
The backlash is not dissimilar to a trend which was widely popular in the noughties – the ‘thigh gap’.
The ‘thigh gap’ occurs when a woman’s legs are so slim that there is a space between them at the top when she stands with her knees together.
A trend for posting pictures showing off this gap took off online a few years ago and became something of a status symbol among body-conscious young women.
Doctors have had had to explain that the thigh gap is a genetic phenomenon, determined by bone structure – the width of your pelvis combined with the angle at which your thigh bones attach to it – and not simply levels of body fat.
If you’re worried about your own or someone else’s health, you can contact Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity, on 0808 801 0677 or beateatingdisorders.org.uk
