Winslet and Piper declare war on the skinny squad

Hollywood star Kate Winslet said she refuses to have any magazines showing the skinny stars in her house, because of the damaging effect it could have on her six-year-old daughter.

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Doctor Who actress Billie Piper, who suffered from anorexia, went as far as to say Victoria Beckham should not be a role model for her younger sister.

Speaking on BBC's Sunday AM, Miss Winslet, 31, said: "It is unbelievably disturbing what's going on at the moment.

"It's so disturbing because young girls are impressionable from 11 up to 19 or 20 even, women are very impressionable at those ages.

"They're trying to figure out who they are and they want to be loved, and what I resent is that there is an image of perfection that is getting thinner and thinner and it's truly upsetting to me."

Winslet went on to say she had a rule not to let any magazines in her home, because "it's so damaging" and she was worried about her daughter, Mia.

"It's only a matter of time before she becomes aware of it and it frightens the life out of me."

She added: "I hope that in some small way I'm able to say 'I'm a normal person, I'm doing all right, I've got a lovely husband and children and I didn't lose weight to find those things, and those things are what should be important'."

Meanwhile Miss Piper, 24, told Glamour magazine: "I think the whole size zero debate is disgusting. Some models you see are tiny because that's the way they were born, but then they'll get the attention and that will start feeding a fire. My sister, who is 13, looks amazing but she's already worried about her figure.

"She loves Posh (Victoria Beckham) and I say 'Come on Ellie, she's tiny. What's wrong with Shakira? She's sexy, curvy.' But she has no interest."

Victoria Beckham recently slimmed down to a waist size of just 23 inches - the same measurement as her seven-year-old son Brooklyn.

Miss Piper, whose eating disorder was sparked by being called fat at the Brit Awards several years ago, also admitted that she worried it would return.

The last time she suffered from it was after her split with radio mogul Chris Evans.

She says of the prospect of getting it back: "It's a constant worry, but it's not a continual struggle any more. If it's getting out of hand I get help. For a while I wouldn't see people because I was thinking 'I don't need people to tell me what to do', so I started reading loads of books instead and I've been all right for a couple of years now.

"For me, the danger is when my life gets out of control. It's the first thing I think about. When I broke up with Chris I had it for a moment but I was able to nip it in the bud."