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But many girls have such a figure during childhood... and then they grow up. They thought they knew the rules of the game, and then their bodies went and changed on them. And with those changes came increased self-consciousness about their appearance

I'm not saying this very well... but I'm not saying that every woman secretly wants to look like she's 11. Not every girl is skinny at 11, and not every 11 year old wants to be skinny - not if skinny is equated to figure-less. And of course, not every 11 year old is free of self-consciousness. This is a vague theory if only because people all have different body shapes at different points during their life, and how they feel about it all can be different for different people.

However, I wonder if there is some sort of subconscious appeal of slim figures because it, on some level, it reminds many - not all - women of a time when they were less self-critical, less self-conscious. A time before the rules changed.

One theory I have come across is that many high-end fashion designers are gay and hence have no appreciation for the fuller female figure. And over the years, they've convinced us to agree with their tastes. Perhaps this comes into play, but the creator of a product is only successful if people want the product.

Why has the media been able to sell "slim figures = the ideal" to us? Why, when women stand up and say, "No, people have different bodies and different ideal body shapes, and this doesn't mean anyone is unhealthy or unattractive!" does the ideal still persist so?

And if we're complicit in it, why are we? What is it about that ideal that resonates with us?

Hence my theory. I don't think it explains everything, but I wonder if it feeds into everything else...