It was the first time in six years the rate has declined, said the anti-hunger group Food Research and Action Center (FRAC). But the group said hunger should have declined further given the growing economy.

"It is simply unacceptable that after years of economic growth, 35.1 million people in this country face a constant struggle against hunger," said FRAC president Jim Weill. The group urged an expansion of the food stamp and school meal programs as well as a higher minimum wage.

"The other two thirds of food-insecure households obtained enough food to avoid substantial disruptions" -- by eating less varied diets, enrolling in public nutrition programs or going to community food pantries, the report said.

"Rates of food insecurity were substantially higher for households with incomes near or below the federal poverty line, households headed by single women with children, and for black and Hispanic households," the government said. "Geographically, food insecurity was more common in large cities and rural areas than in suburbs and in the South than in other areas of the nation."

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Brazil mourns as another model dies of anorexia

Last Updated: 2006-11-16 12:00:11 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Andrei Khalip

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Reuters Life!) - The mother of a Brazilian fashion model who died from complications of anorexia has made an emotional appeal for parents to take better care of aspiring young models.

The death of Ana Carolina Reston, 21, follows growing criticism of the use of underweight models in the fashion world, an issue given new significance after the death in August of Uruguayan model Luisel Ramos of heart failure during a fashion show in Montevideo.

Reston died on Tuesday in a Sao Paulo from a generalized infection caused by anorexia, an eating disorder in which sufferers obsessively deprive themselves of food in pursuit of an ultra-slim look.

Reston weighed only 88 pounds (40 kg) and was about 5 feet 8 inches tall (1.72 meters) tall. Doctors consider this weight normal for a 12-year-old girl no more than about 5 feet (1.5 meters) tall.

"Take care of your children ... no money is worth the life of your child, not even the most famous (fashion) brand is worth this," her mother, Miriam Reston, told O Globo newspaper.

She said her daughter had been trying to help her family with the money she made as a model.

Miriam spoke on national television and to local newspapers to highlight the tragedy. She said she had pleaded with her daughter to eat more and to see a doctor.

"She would reply, 'Mummy, don't mess me around,'" Miriam told O Estado de S.Paulo.

"Dictatorship of skinny look kills a model," said the front-page headline of O Dia tabloid, which carried a picture of the dark-haired, big-eyed girl in lingerie.

Many top models come from Brazil and thousands of young girls from all walks of life dream of modeling careers, inspired by the international success of Gisele Bundchen or Adriana Lima.

Reston was not famous but she had worked abroad, including in Japan, and did some jobs for Giorgio Armani and the Brazilian model agency L'Equipe, which declined immediate comment.

In September, Spain caused a storm in the fashion world when Madrid barred models below a certain weight from its top fashion show. Models with a body-mass index (BMI), which takes into account height and weight, of less than 18 are now banned.

Other famous fashion venues, like London, are considering following suit.

Reston's BMI was just 13.5 while the World Health Organization considers anyone with a BMI below 18.5 underweight. A BMI below 17.5 being one of the criteria for the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa and a BMI nearing 15 is usually used as an indicator for starvation.

Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.