Skinny women get no love in Mauritania
By Rukmini Callimachi
"To make a girl big and plump, the tradition of 'gavage' - a French word borrowed from the practice of fattening of geese for foie gras - starts as early as four, as it did for Mint, who was forced to drink 55 litres of camel's milk a day. When she vomited, she was beaten. If she refused to drink, her fingers were bent back until they touched her hand. Her stomach hurt so much she prayed all the animals in the world would die so that there would be no more milk to be had. Now, she has trouble walking and suffers from a combination of weight-related illnesses, including diabetes and heart disease."My mother thinks she made me beautiful. But she made me sick," says Mint, who asked that her full last name not be disclosed because she feels embarrassed by her past.
To end the brutal practice, the government launched a TV and radio campaign highlighting the risks of obesity. Because most Mauritanian love songs describe the ideal woman as fat, the health ministry commissioned catchy odes to thin women."
Click here to read the rest of the article: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=14&click_id=117&art_id=nw20070417081340825C734948
Related link "Mauritania's 'wife-fattening' farm": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/africa/3429903.stm
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