Who is Sexier – size 6 or 16?

Australian Marie Claire magazine did a survey of men and women, polling which Australian clothing size from 6 to 16 was sexiest. (For those in North America/Canada, an Australian 12 is a US size 8, and for those in the UK and Australian 12 is a UK size 14). Interestingly, the results said that an Aussie size 12 was most appealing.

• 87.5cm is the average waist size of Australian women aged over 25 – an increase of 2cm in five years* • 67.7kg is the average weight of Australian women† • In our study, men were more evenly divided between all the sizes than women – suggesting they’re less focused on one body shape than we might think • Less than 10% of the people canvassed voted for a size 6 or 8 • 13% of men voted for size 14 – nearly twice the number who voted for size 6 • One in four people thought a size 14 or 16 were the sexiest body shapes • 16 is the average Australian dress size‡ • 18 is the average US dress size#(statistics from Marie Claire) So why are so many women convinced they should be skinny? What makes skinny so appealing? Is it that it’s harder to buy modern, flattering clothes the larger you get? Is it purely about health? Is it the media’s fault? I am that Australian size 12 to 14, yet I too compare myself to the digitally manipulated images in magazines and feel that maybe I should diet and exercise myself down to a size 10, but would it make me any happier I doubt it, as I’d be depriving myself of that bit of yummy dark chocolate and glass of wine I so enjoy. A couple of years ago I was about 8kg heavier than I am today, and more of a size 14 to 16. I decided to lose a few kilos for health reasons. At the age of 40 my brother became a type 1 diabetic, and watching him have to constantly watch what he ate and when, monitor his blood sugars and inject himself 3 times a day with insulin really made me aware of what a terrible disease diabetes is. I am also aware of the risks of weight and the impact diabetes has on your lifestyle and health. My brother is not overweight, and the doctors are not sure why he became a type 1 diabetic at such a late stage in life (usually onset is in childhood), but now I and my children are more at risk of the disease, and folks, it’s not a pleasant one. I have control over whether or not I succumb to type 2 diabetes, by keeping my weight in the healthy range, I won’t go down that path. So that is my reason for keeping to this size and weight. Which size do you find most attractive and why?