IF someone had told me a week ago that the hysteria over the new American size 0 (English size 4) would reach the fashion backwater of Accrington, I'd have laughed in their face.

The catwalks of Paris and Milan? Yes. The streets of LA? Most definitely. The trendy districts of London? Possibly. But Accrington? No Way José!

So imagine my surprise when during the weekly shop at Accrington Asda (and taking the obligatory 15-minute tour round the George clothing section) I happened upon rail after rail of size 4 clothes.

At first I didn't believe it - and checked that it wasn't a load of dodgy size 14 coat hangers with the number one scribbled off.

But it was true. Good old safe Asda, the store that can always be relied upon for a nightie under a fiver or a multi-pack of knickers whatever your size is now going all "catwalk" on us.

OK, the size 4s were in the G21 range - aimed at fashion-conscious young woman up to the age of 24 - but isn't that the biggest danger group?

Should young women really be encouraged to aim for a size that only a tiny percentage of the population could ever achieve without developing a serious eating disorder?

I wasn't alone in my shock - I purposely hung around for a bit just to watch the confusion, then dismay on women's faces as they picked up the tiny garments.

It's impossible to say how much of a problem anorexia is in East Lancashire compared to the rest of the UK, but making clothes in this size is giving out the message that this is a normal size to be, and that can only be a bad thing.