Although more common in women's apparel, vanity sizing occurs in men's clothing as well.

Some argue that vanity sizing is designed to satisfy wearers' wishes to appear thin and feel better about themselves.

Vanity sizing may be partly responsible for this deviation (which began in earnest in the 1980s).

Vanity sizing has long been a headache for female shoppers, particularly with variations in the shape of dresses as well as size.

"For researchers interested in using clothing size prospectively as a proxy for change in waist circumference," Dr. Hughes added, "it is important to realize that phenomena such as 'vanity sizing' in the modern clothing industry may bias results if not adequately addressed."

Women will never squeeze back into their old clothes unless they reject size inflation.

Size inflation flatters customers, but the danger is that it encourages overweight people to dismiss health risks and reduces the incentive to diet.

Size inflation, that's what.

Vanity sizing, or size inflation, is the phenomenon of ready-to-wear clothing of the same nominal size becoming bigger in physical size over time.

But when three out of four American adults and three out of five Britons are overweight, the danger is that size inflation reduces women’s incentive to eat less.

However, despite size inflation aiming to flatter customers, there are concerns that it may do more harm than good, as it may remove at least one incentive for weight loss.

Size 0 and 00 were invented due to the changing of clothing sizes over time (referred to as vanity sizing or size inflation), which has caused the adoption of lower numbers.

Larger mannequins are being introduced into clothes shops, "size inflation" means that clothes with the same size label have become larger in recent decades, and news stories about weight often feature pictures of severely obese people, which are unrepresentative of the majority of overweight people.