Hila Elmalich picture (Gil Sadan/Tamar Golan Film via ABC)
Hila Elmalich, a skinny Israeli model, died of heart failure resulting from years of fighting anorexia on Nov 14, which made her never able to cut her 34th birthday cake. Standing at 1.72 meters (5' 6"), Hila Elmalich weighed only 22 kilograms (49 pounds) at her death.
Adi Barkan, an Israeli fashion photographer and Elmalich's friend, has been campaigning years against the fashion industry's use of super thin models.
"When she fell down, I felt the bones going into my legs, like a knife. When she fell down, I felt like I took hold of something from the grave," Adi Barkan told of Elmalich's collapse into his arms when she couldn't stand-by herself at the death.
Hila Elmalich, a former model for the Israeli branch of the Elite modeling agency, began modeling at age 13 in her hometown of Tiberias and her anorexia began at the same age. Her full name is Ilanit Hila Elmalich. Sources: ABC & ImH Tags: