Supermodel Gisele Bundchen has slammed reports the fashion industry is to blame for promoting thin models and insists weak families are the real cause behind anorexia. Leonardo DiCaprio's former girlfriend was visiting her native Brazil this week for Fashion Rio, which has banned models who are under the age of 16 and has required proof of their good health after the death of a Brazilian model from complications due to starvation last year.

She tells newspaper O Globo, "I never suffered from this problem (anorexia) because I had a very strong family base. Parents are responsible, not the fashion industry."

In September, Spain barred models below a certain weight from Madrid fashion shows, while the Italian government and its fashion designers signed a pact to keep sickly thin girls off the catwalk. Bundchen, who was ranked 16th on Forbes list of the 20 richest women in entertainment this week, said being a model is based on genetics.

She explains, "Everybody knows that the norm in fashion is thin. But excuse me, there are people born with the right genes for this profession."

The Victoria's Secret model says she was teased as a child because she was so skinny, adding, "In fashion I felt accepted. I never felt lonely because I always relied on my family."

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)