Kendra Loves Her Pregnant Body. Now Begins the Countdown to her 'Postbaby Body' Reveal.

Former "Girl Next Door" Kendra Wilkinson is on the cover of the new issue of InTouch Weekly dishing about how much she loves her pregnant body. Now we love a celebration of the curves, but forgive our cynicism when we predict that along with that little bundle of joy, there is another cover in the making that will appear in a few months--one with bullets outlining how Kendra shed the baby weight.

Let's also pause for a retouching reality check. Forget stretch marks and cellulite, there's not even the tiniest blemish to be found on this photo! In other words, the body that Kendra feels beautiful in has surely been altered for the cover.

At the end of the day, celebrity pregnancy and new mom media coverage is filled with the same mixed messages you'll find in women's magazines that feature weight loss stories alongside tips on how to love your body. "Embrace your pregnant shape!" by looking at this digitally perfected image of a former Playmate in a bikini. "Feel sexy!" now, but it won't be long before we'll be feeding you this celebrity's "exact" diet and workout plan to help you slim down that fat ass. Stephanie, 40, expressed her frustration with this contradictory approach when we interviewed her for Does This Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat?:

"It's a strange phenomenon because some celebrities are hailed for accepting their new shapely bodies and others are bashed for not bouncing back sooner. It doesn't make sense because the tabloids constantly flip-flop between celebrating a woman's curves and condemning postpregnancy weight."

While these stories might be packaged to make us feel like we can identify with this or that A-lister or reality TV star, the real reality is that they usually end up playing into our insecurities and vulnerabilities. As if pregnancy and new motherhood aren't stressful enough.

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The Baby Weight Q & A

We are over on demodirt talking about the growing trend of pregnant women who fear their pregnant bellies. Read the interview.

Bridget Moynahan On Why Women Should Be Wary of Celebrity Baby Fever

Did you know that the number of People magazine headlines mentioning celebrity pregnancies, babies, and baby weight loss makeovers more than doubled between 2003 and 2005 and has been holding steady since?

How are all those stories affecting women? For starters, an endless parade of "perfect" postbaby bodies is not the biggest confidence booster for new moms, most of whom are already feeling vulnerable and prone to self-doubt. But there's something else. Now that baby fever has become big business, it's the Mommy Brand that's being sold to us--the must-have maternity wear and baby gear, the designer diets and fitness plans. None of that has anything to do with Mommy Reality.

We talked to actress Bridget Moynahan, a celebrity mom who is all too familiar with the paparazzi. Here's a sneak peek of what she told us in her interview for Does This Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat?:

"I think it's horrible for young girls and women to see all these pictures of celebrities and the way they bounce back and they're strolling around and they have all these nice things. It's all about how cute the baby looks. It's not that easy and it's not that glamorous. It's not like having the new bag or shoe."

Motherhood is not about diets, workouts, and products. It's about new responsibilities and hopes and dreams for your child. As Moynahan points out, the danger with this "baby (or 'baby bump') as accessory" treatment is that it steers us away form the big picture: what it's really like to be a mother.

Halle Berry Reacts to "Bump Watch" on Jay Leno

For weeks, the tabloids have been speculating that Halle Berry is pregnant. Her crime? Apparently the wearing of loose-fitting sundresses in L.A. (where the average temperature these days is about 85 degrees) is a big no-no. An A-lister who is not constantly showing off her perfectly slim and trim body MUST be pregnant, right? Wrong. Halle went on Jay Leno's show last week to put a stop to the chatter the Hollywood way: she wore a teeny tiny dress with no room for any lumps, let alone bumps. "All these pregnancy rumors can be put to bed," she declared. "I was getting a complex. I was like, I gotta stop with the burgers or something!"

If tabloids can make Halle Berry feel like there's something wrong with her body, let's reflect for a moment on how those messages make the rest of us feel. Here's what one new mom told us when we interviewed her for Does This Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat?:

"If the bump isn't big enough the celebrities are starving themselves, but if it's too big they're pigging out. And of course, they're failures if they're not in a bikini six days after giving birth. If women aren't allowed to have even a millimeter of fat on their bodies in pregnancy and postpregnancy, then it's like we're not allowed to be human." --Mara, 35

What do you think about Hollywood's fixation with "bump watch"? How does it affect you?

Tori Spelling Says New Moms Outside of Hollywood Don't Think About Losing Weight. We Say: Yeah, Right.

There are a lot of "she's anorexic!" accusations being thrown in Tori Spelling's direction these days. We're not going to speculate about what we don't know. We'll stick to commenting on what Tori says.

"I knew as soon as I left the house a week, even two weeks after giving birth, [to daughter Stella] people are going to take pictures and scrutinize," Spelling told People magazine. "Whereas mothers everywhere don't even think about losing the weight for a year. It was hard to find that balance of what's acceptable."

Unfortunately, her assumption about new mothers everywhere is false--at least according to the 400 women we talked to for our upcoming book, Does This Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat? (HCI Books, Fall 2009). While they might not be under the same intense spotlight as celebrities, women outside of Hollywood are feeling the pressure to lose their baby weight and get back to their "pre-baby bodies" (a tabloid-invented term that has probably created even more stress and disappointment than the "anti-aging" fantasy).

Spelling admits she compared her body to Jessica Alba's: "When I had Stella, I remember looking at Jessica Alba [after she gave birth] and thinking, 'Wait a minute, it flew right off her.' Then I read that she works out six days a week and I'm like, 'Oh God, no, I can't do that.' " The truth is, Jessica Alba didn't want to do that either.

Celebrities compare themselves to each other and feel insecure. And in the real world, new mothers compare themselves to celebrities and feel insecure. It's a lose-lose for women. But the celebrity media machine--and the diet, fitness, and beauty industries in its orbit--are making out like bandits.

"Tori Spelling Reveals Struggles With Body Issues in Hollywood" [People]

Related: "Jessica Alba: Losing the Baby Weight Was 'Horrible'"

Moms-to-Be and New Moms: Guess Who Thinks You're a Bunch of Fatsos?

Via Glossed Over comes this gem. According to Glamour, JLo's "new" body is smokin' hot. The old one? Well, clearly carrying twins packs on the pounds.

Wow--giving birth makes you skinnier! It's the biggest diet scoop of the century! But before you get too excited, we must warn you that childbirth alone will not do the trick. Nor will a chef, a personal trainer or the nanny who watches your newborn while you work out for two hours a day. You'll need some retouching, too.

Despite her best efforts, Jessica Alba's real-life post-baby body was just not trim enough for this new Campari campaign. Digital makeover, activate! Form of Sexy Mom!
Let's review:
1. Pregnancy now counts as a weight loss "before"
2. Even Hollywood's slimmest moms can't achieve an "after" that meets advertising standards.

There is just no way to win this game, is there? We call foul. What's your take on all the pregnancy fat talk and the post-baby body fakery?

[Glossed Over] and [Jezebel]

The Hot Mama Curse and Love Your Body (Every) Day

Our upcoming book just got a nice mention on Redbook editor-in-chief Stacy Morrison's blog. She writes:

"It’s true that pregnancy creates a lot of strange conversations in your head about your relationship to your body...I’m excited to say that two women are going to be taking on this issue in an upcoming book, to capture the many different ways we women go through this stage of life called pregnancy and what it makes us think and feel about our bodies."

You can read Stacy's full post here.

On another note, we somehow spaced and forgot to post about Love Your Body Day yesterday. So we're celebrating today. And every day. What do you love about your body?

Image: Love Your Body Day 2008 poster winner Shanti Rittgers, high school category.

Women Who Diet Before Pregnancy Gain More Weight During Pregnancy

Women who count calories, cut carbs, and measure fat grams before pregnancy are more likely to overeat during pregnancy. UNC researchers asked 1,223 women who had just become pregnant about their previous dietary habits. Regardless of how they did it, all normal-weight, overweight, or obese women who had tried to restrict their diets gained more weight during pregnancy than did women who did not diet before pregnancy.

This is one of those studies that confirms what we've heard from many of the women we're interviewing for our book--and it's common sense if you think about it. At every point in our lives, we're told to watch our weight. But during pregnancy, women are suddenly handed a free pass to "eat for two." Of course there are still plenty of celebrity magazines that bash stars who dare to show up in public with anything other than a cute little baby bump. But generally friends, family, and colleagues are more likely to encourage us to relax rigid eating habits for the sake of the baby. For women who have been restricting to the extent that they have little sense of their natural appetites, that permission to finally eat without guilt can be equivalent to opening the floodgates. In fact, another study shows that pregnancy can lead to binge eating disorder in some women who have never been binge eaters before.

Culturally sanctioned pregnancy feasting is time-limited, make no mistake. The pressure is on the minute after delivery. That's when the "indulge your cravings" allowances come to a screeching halt and the "get your pre-baby back" alarms are sounded. Ah, mixed messages.

Millions of women suffer from eating disorders, disordered eating, and poor body image before getting pregnant. Why would we expect that these issues would magically disappear during and post-pregnancy (two of the most stressful and body-transforming times of a woman's life)? Unfortunately, obstetricians are woefully untrained to deal with these issues.

"It would be important to have a nutritionist meet with these patients, because most obstetricians -- including me -- don't have the training to know what specifically to recommend," says obstetrician J. Christopher Glantz, MD, MPH, director of the perinatal outreach program at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

What are your experiences with these issues? We invite you to fill out one of our surveys.

Pregorexia: What Happens When Moms-to-Be Aren't Eating Enough?

We have written before about the insane amount of pressure pregnant women and new moms face in our "get your pre-baby body back" culture. We've also talked about the fact that we now need a new dictionary to define all the terms that are popping up to describe disordered eating behavior, a surefire sign that our collective attitudes about food and weight have gone off the deep end. Now we've officially arrived at the intersection of these two observations: Pregorexia.

"Pregorexia" is another media-coined term used to refer to mothers who are so terrified of gaining weight during their pregnancies that they diet and put their own health and the babies health at risk. Those health risks include anemia, low birth weight, heart palpitations, and rickets. Of course, women are warned not to gain too much weight either, because that comes with a whole other set of health risks. No pressure or anything. Just get it perfect, okay?

We're hearing a lot of accusations of women putting vanity before the health of their babies. We'd like to slow down the judgment train for a second. It's a pretty widely accepted fact that many women have serious body image issues, weight concerns (and yes, eating disorders) before they get pregnant, right? So why are we all so quick to assume that those issues will magically melt away as soon as women decide to become moms? What resources are available to help us cope with the body changes and body pressures that come with pregnancy and motherhood? The fact is that we're surrounded by "Celebrity Moms' Diet Tricks!" magazine covers (sometimes in the OB/GYN's office, thanks very much), but the voices of reason are few and far between.

Our recommendations? Women need doctors who are sensitive to and knowledgeable about body image issues, and we need to talk honestly with each other about how we're coping with these pressures instead of quizzing each other on how much weight we've gained or lost during and after pregnancy. What do you think? [Daily Mail] via [Shine]

Congratulations! It's a... Flat Tummy! And That New Baby is Kinda Cute, Too.

The obsession with celebrity mommies' "post-baby bodies" has reached new heights. Ladies and gentlemen, we submit this headline as Exhibit A: "Halle Berry's Post Pregnancy Body and Baby Nahla Debut."

That's right. The baby is no longer the star of the show. Now mommy's body is the main event. Forget those adorable munchkin cheeks and teeny tiny outfits. We want to see how teeny tiny mom is. Every freakin' new baby story includes the obligatory mention (and often it's a detailed list) of what diet and exercise regimen mommy is adhering to. Is there some kind of underground bootcamp where A-list mothers hide out from the paparazzi while they diligently prepare for their first public appearance? We know there's that whole bonding with baby thing you're supposed to do in those first few months, but whatevs. Clearly that boring story doesn't sell magazines. So get back on the treadmill, Halle. The public is itching for your big debut. [7 Confessions]

Lisa Marie Presley "Forced" to Reveal Her Pregnancy

It's official. Lisa Marie is in a family way. That was information she had planned to keep in the family for a while, but when the Hollywood Bump Watch/Stalkarazzi published photos of her looking larger than usual, the mean gossip spread fast. Of course London's Daily Mail was among the top offenders, running the photos with this sensitive headline: “Like father like daughter? Bloated Lisa Marie is now the double of dad Elvis.” Classy.

Understandably, Lisa Marie felt cornered into defending her weight gain. "You KNOW if you were pregnant and you felt you were expanding uncontrollably by the moment as a result, and the worldwide media started badgering and harassing you for it, plastering you everywhere in an unflattering light, you would be mortified as well," she said. And wouldn't you know it? Following her announcement, The Daily Mail has changed its tune, saying that Lisa Marie looks "radiant and every inch the happy mother-to-be." Today's headline reads "Pregnant and Proud: Lisa Marie Presley Shows Off Her Baby Bump." Yeah, pregnant and pissed off is more like it. [MSNBC] [Daily Mail]

"Stressorexia" Affects Working Moms

"Stressorexia" is the latest media-invented term to describe disordered eating behavior (remember drunkorexia and diabulimia?). Experts say that stressorexics are mostly working moms who might skip lunch one day to meet a deadline, but self-starvation quickly becomes a way of coping with the stress of juggling work and home life. And of course once the pounds drop off, the MILF talk starts--whether it's compliments about losing baby weight or praise for juggling so much and managing to look so good.

"They are trying to be sexy, fashionable and slim, have a career and be perfect mothers and wives, says Dr. Adrian Lord, a psychiatrist. "Some neglect to eat because they are too busy and others are just totally stressed-out, which suppresses the appetite. Fifty years ago, women just had to be a good mother. Now they have to do everything and they can't abdicate."

Unfortunately, Dr. Lord goes on to blame this pressure on the "blurred roles of men and women," which seems to suggest that if we all went back to being June Cleavers and let the men bring home the bacon, there would be no mommies with eating disorders. Um, ever heard of The Feminine Mystique? That scenario didn't really result in optimum mental health for a lot of women. There's nothing wrong with staying home with your kids if you can afford it, but being a SAHM certainly doesn't protect you from being over-stressed and developing an eating disorder. The truth is that all moms would benefit from a definition of success and beauty that is more in balance with reality, not Us Weekly. [Daily Mail]

Body Hatred Baby Clothes

U.K. retail giant Tesco is selling these "Does my bum look big in this?" shirts for baby girls in size 3-6 months. Better hold off on that breast milk and formula, lil munchkin! Looks like you've got some...what do you call that? Oh, yeah. Baby fat.

I'm betting the mommies who are drawn to these shirts are probably so used to talking smack about their own bums that they're totally clueless about why it might be, I don't know, WRONG to hand down their body issues to their daughters in the form of a message tee. And one more thing: How would anyone's bum look big in a t-shirt, anyway? Just asking. Or is that the joke? I'm gonna say not funny. [Any-Body]

Write to Tesco and tell them this shirt is beyond ridic.

Did We Call This or What? Trista Debuts Her Post-Baby Bikini Bod

Remember when body-hating new mom Trista Sutter re-appeared from reality TV obscurity to talk about how desperate she was to lose her baby weight? She told Us magazine that her goal was to be thin by the new year! And remember when we predicted that Sutter would be out of those shlumpy sweatpants for her follow-up mommy makeover cover in January? Well, here you go...

So how did she do it? In October she said that her awesome hubby was "supporting" her weight loss by wagging his finger at her every time she went to eat something she shouldn't. If that isn't a winning diet strategy, we don't know what it is!

But seriously, folks. This baby weight loss obsession has gotten completely out of hand. And we really hate that we were right about this one. Magazines have found a bankable strategy: "inspiring" insecure new moms with stories of celebrities who get back to their pre-baby weight at light speed (with the help of expensive trainers, nutritionists and nannies, of course). So when other moms can't manage to keep up with the stars' diets, they end up feeling more insecure--and wallets-out-hungry for the next miracle mommy makeover story. Because maybe that one will work for them.

Now can we just talk about this picture for a sec? It's all about Trista'a hot bod, isn't it? She's holding her baby like he's a free weight, for cripes sake. Little dude doesn't care how much his mom weighs. He probably just wants to get his hands into some sand.

P.S. We also mentioned Milla in our earlier post. She's now a proud mommy. And according to the ever-sensitive Daily Mail, "Enormous Milla is no more." Well, thank God for that.

Pregnant Christina Aguilera Gets Naked

The blogs are a-buzzin' about the January cover of Marie Claire, featuring a very pregnant (and very orange, we might add) Christina Aguilera baring her belly and some boobage.

Kelly Mills at Strollerderby writes, "Lord knows I have no problems with nudity (in fact I'm on the pro side of it) and sure, pregnant women can be sex symbols. Be my guest. But I'm starting to get irritated with the phenomenon because of course the burgeoning stars are given the same treatment as everyone in magazines, meaning they are airbrushed and shrunk down and reshaped into this bizarre aesthetic."

The Jezebel gals think Christina looks "vaguely demented in the face." They also point to Maxim's latest "9 Hottest Pregnant Women, Ever" slideshow. Can you guess which models and actresses are on that list? Hmmm, Angelina? Check. Halle Berry? Check. Brooke Burke? Hell to the yeah. You get the idea.

Back in Skinny Jeans is on the fence: "I'm a Christina fan. I love her talent, flair, and panache but honestly, I don't know what to think about this cover and layout... I'm all for the idea of promoting the image that during pregnancy women can still be sexy and fashionable. But, do you have to pose half naked in leather on a magazine cover to communicate that message? I don't think so."

And Meredith at the Baby Bump Project puts it simply, "I will say that the public (and sexy) pregnancy has been well and truly cemented in popular culture and I definitely think the exposure of pregnant bodies is here to stay."

In the world of women's magazines, what you see is not what you get. Real-life blemishes and wrinkles are nowhere to be found, so you can certainly forget about spotting stretch marks. Mainstream media now seem particularly obsessed with serving up these fantasies of flawless, glowing pregnancies and miraculous baby weight loss success stories. Meanwhile, pregnant women and new moms are feeling more and more pressure to look perfect, and younger women are already wondering how they'll be able to endure the body pressures that go hand-in-hand with becoming a mom. Coincidence? We think not. What do you think?

Trista Diets, Milla Binges: Yo-Yo-ing Moms are So Hot Right Now

Remember Trista Sutter? Yeah, we thought her 15 minutes were over, too. But it seems that even D-list reality celebs can come out of the woodwork to appear on the cover of Us Weekly--if they have a juicy baby weight loss story to tell. Trista says she feels "totally disgusted" with her "blubbery" belly. “When I fit into my size 26 Hudson jeans, then I’ll be happy.” And her Prince Charming husband Ryan is sooo supportive and awesome. "If I eat something that I shouldn’t, Ryan shakes his finger at me and says, ‘Uh, uh, uh!’" says Trista. Ugh, ugh, ugh. We're betting on a follow-up mommy makeover story in January. Trista will be out of those dowdy sweatpants and showing off her new "sexy" body. Can't wait. [Us Weekly]

Then there's Milla. According to the British glossy Grazia, the pregnant model recently got a hankering for some bone marrow, so she scoured all of Paris for a leg of cow, sliced it in half, scooped out the good stuff, and slathered it on a slice of bread. Carnivorous! Fabulous!

"As an actress and model, I lived on cigarettes and coffee, and jet-lag tended to kill off any appetite I had." She says pregnancy has opened up a world of yummy feasting opportunities.

"My diet for most of this year has been - for breakfast, four eggs with bacon, toast and butter, if I was at home. Then if I was at a diner, I'd have a Mexican omelette, a stack of pancakes and strawberry milkshake. I'd stuff myself with cookies all morning - whatever was in the cupboard really - then I'd have a box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for dessert. And I once ate two whole packs of coffee cake in one sitting!" [Guardian]

We're inclined to say that Mistress Katinka has the right attitude. Hearty meals beat coffee and cigarettes, we'll give her that. We also love that she's not blathering on about baby weight. However, this new research showing connections between pregnancy and binge eating disorder got us a little worried about those doughnut and cookie rampages. For some women who have lived most of their lives as undereaters, pregnancy can feel like a free pass. Add to that the general stress of growing a baby and you've got a recipe for compulsive overeating. Hopefully Milla enjoys lots of normal, healthy chowing down as a new mommy. We definitely don't want her going back on the model diet.

As for Trista, if she's looking for happiness in size 26 jeans, she's got a rude awakening coming to her in about, oh, eight weeks.

Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Have Eating Disorders

Pro-ana websites aren't just for teen girls admiring photos of Nicole Richie. Now eating disordered mothers are trading tricks, tips and advice, too. One of these online communities called "ana_moms" has 302 members and another 318 watchers with user names like starvinmommy and wannadisappear. "How do you meal-plan when you plan not to eat? How do you stay thin without giving your kids an eating disorder?" asks the moderator in her introduction to the website.

Here's the thing: If you're spending your time online comparing yourself to Kate Hudson when she was pregnant ("the kind of mom we see when we look in the mirror") and post-pregnancy ("the kind of mom we want to look like"), there is just no way you will be able to help your daughters and sons develop healthy attitudes about food. It doesn't matter what positive messages you give your kids about weight if you're constantly contradicting yourself with your own behavior. Stop worrying about how you will hide your eating disorder from your children and start doing the work to get your disordered eating in check.

The fact that many mothers struggle with serious weight and body image problems shouldn't be such a news flash; the existence of ana_moms is just one extreme manifestation of a much larger issue. After all, it is estimated that ten million women suffer from eating disorders, so it would stand to reason that a good number of them are or will become moms. It's ridiculous to assume that pregnancy and motherhood magically trump all the body image concerns (and sometimes serious eating disorders) we had before. Those problems don't just disappear in some blissed out mommy haze. And sometimes they can actually get worse. Yet instead of real support and solutions, women get Hollywood Bump Watch and Mommy Makeovers. What's going on? We deserve better. [MamaVision]

New Moms and Moms-to-be are Depressed and Unhappy With Their Bodies

More and more evidence is pointing to the fact that pregnancy can be a heavy time--and not just in terms of pounds. Many pregnant women and new moms face depression, serious body image issues, and even disordered eating:

A study published in the October issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry reveals that 1 in 7 new mothers are identified as having depression during at least one phase of pregnancy--8.7%, 6.9%, and 10.4% of the women had a record of depression before, during, or after pregnancy. Since those numbers only reflect the reported cases, it's safe to assume the true numbers are much higher. [Medscape, sub required]

Women who regularly read tabloids are more likely to describe themselves as "fat" than those who do not follow celebrity culture, and feel heightened pressure to lose their baby weight quickly after delivery.

In a study published in Psychological Medicine, researchers at the University of North Carolina found that "eating for two" can be compulsive. Some women, who never had eating disorders before, develop binge eating disorders when they become pregnant. [Science Daily]

In the U.K., a study of 1,104 women showed that 2 percent developed an eating disorder while pregnant. [Telegraph]

And what's on the menu of solutions, support, and resources for women dealing with these issues? Well, it's slim pickins (by slim, we mean, "get that pre-baby body back quick, you fat ass!"). Here are a couple of options:

Post-pregnancy plastic surgery (which we wrote about here) is the hot new trend. Last year, doctors nationwide performed more than 325,000 “mommy makeover procedures” on women ages 20 to 39, up 11 percent from 2005. [New York Times]

Oh, and the authors of Skinny Bitch are hard at work on a new eating guide for pregnant women (Hmmm, will it be titled Hungry, Cranky Mommy Desperate to Gnaw on a Big Hunk of Cheese?). [MSNBC]

So for all you new moms, just stay focused on losing that baby weight. Let's hope you don't lose your minds in the process.

*All joking aside, please call the National Eating Disorders Association at 1-800-931-2237 if you need information or referrals.

Photo credit: Misty Woodward

Related:
Extreme Mommy Makeovers
Baby Bumps and Skinny Jeans

Extreme Mommy Makeovers

So much for cocoa butter and stomach crunches. Now mommies who are dissatisfied with their post-baby bodies can pay a visit to their plastic surgeon, who, in Extra correspondent Dayna Devon's case, also happens to be her husband. Hey, he's loving his wife for who she is on the inside (literally) while making a few adjustments to what she looks like on the outside. Not many guys can claim that feat.

It seems that plastic surgery is fast becoming the hot new postpartum trend. “When I first started [my] program three years ago, I’d see two to three patients a month and now I see five to six patients a week,” says Dr. Mark Schusterman, founder of the aptly named Makeovers for Moms program at Houston's Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Center. He offers package deals on tummy tucks, breast lifts and laser surgeries for new moms.

On top of the astronomical costs (hopefully women aren't choosing new boobs over college funds) and health risks of these procedures, there's also the question of how much time these patients are giving their bodies to "bounce back" after giving birth before they sign up for surgery. Is our celebrity mom watch culture stirring up an unnecessary and accelerated panic? When women compare their new mom bodies to the airbrushed, overexercised, and yes, nipped and tucked images on every newsstand and gossip blog, is it any wonder more and more moms are rushing to go under the knife? [MSNBC]

Mom Jeans: Heidi Klum-Style

Women were doing some head scratching this week after the new Jordache Jeans ad campaign was announced to the media. The one big question on everyone's minds (aside from Jordache? They still make those?) is how Heidi Klum manages to look like this after giving birth to three children:


Take it from another model/mom: Heidi has an army of stylists, makeup artists and various other assistants who are paid to create smokin' hot images of her rocking those skinny jeans. Oh, and there's that little retouching trick that advertisers rely on. So ladies, please give yourselves a break. Heidi is not letting it all hang out at the Chateau Marmont in real life. She's hanging out at the park. With her kids. [Fame Crawler]

Related:
Baby Bumps and Skinny Jeans