This is the last edition of the South African Journal of Sports Medicine for 2007. Four editions of the jour- nal have been published in 2007, with 21 articles (original research, opinions and letters). Over 50% of these articles are unique to the South African context. It is becoming more difficult to publish good-quality re- search with a local interest in international journals so therefore it is logical that the ‘local’ journals assume the responsibility of publishing this work. The goal of the South African Journal of Sports Medicine is to encourage and increase this proportion of published arti- cles while still maintaining a high standard. Sometimes re- searchers feel that high-quality research of a local interest is ‘wasted’ in a local journal because they do not get the credit for the paper that they would get from an international jour- nal. We are cognizant of this and are in the process of get- ting the South African Journal of Sports Medicine ISI rated. This international rating is a difficult and lengthy process and involves a peer review of the journal over several years. We are confident we have met all the requirements and wait with keen anticipation for the outcome of the review which is cur- rently underway. We should have feedback by the middle of 2008. Once the journal is ISI rated all published papers will be incorporated into the Pubmed database and will therefore get much more international exposure. The journal is cur- rently on the government-accredited list of journals and this status will not be negatively affected if the journal gets ISI accreditation. While we glow in the success of the Springboks at the Rugby World Cup it is appropriate to reflect on the contribution that the sports medicine support staff made to the victorious team. After reading Jake White’s book (In Black and White) it is clear that the coach valued the input of his medical support team and acknowledged the role they had in the success of the team. The management of the health and fitness of professional rugby players in South Africa is world class, and rugby is the only sport which consistently implements a multidisciplinary approach in managing the players. A challenge for all of us is to utilise this vast database of experience and intellect, and transfer it to the other sports which are currently lagging behind. Fingers are crossed that we are not going to be exposed in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The support structures for rugby worked together for 4 years – at the time of writing the medical support team for the Olympics 6 months away has not yet been announced. On another note, the journal is going to have to be stricter about publishing papers which do not have appropriate ethical clearance – this includes informed consent from subjects. This is a trend being adopted in journals all over the world. There is also some talk about the Department of Health playing a bigger role in granting permission for research to be done on children, particularly at schools. While it may be argued that this will tighten up the standard of research and reduce the risk of poor-quality studies, there is also concern that this will be another bureaucratic hurdle which researchers are required to clear. Anyone dealing with the Medicines Control Council from a research perspective will know that the bureaucracy is unwieldy – another body imposing the same level of bureaucracy will stifle many aspiring projects. Surely the various ethics committees around the country can fulfil the role of quality control? News The South African Sports Medicine Association (SASMA) and the South African Institute for Drug Free Sport have an- nounced a partnership to combat doping in sport. The past president of SASMA, Dr Demitri Constantinou, said that ‘SASMA is pledging its members to respect the rule of law in the fight against doping and to practise ethically in that respect; and further, in the optimal care of athletes and sports participants at all levels, using best practice knowledge and models. Athletes sanctioned for doping offences may have been incorrectly advised and guided by some health care practitioners, sometimes even deliberately, and these profes- sionals should be held accountable’. Dr Louis Holzthausen is the new president of SASMA. The staff of the journal wishes him all the very best for his term of office. The past president, Dr Demitri Constantinou, is congratulated and thanked for the tireless effort he has put into SAMA during his term of office. Mike Lambert Editor-in-Chief Rugby setting the pace A topic which is receiving much publicity as I write is the banning of 5 skinny models from participating in the Madrid fashion week. Madrid’s regional govern- ment imposed the rules ‘to protect the models as well as teenagers who may develop anorexia as they try to copy underweight catwalk stars’. 1 They used a body mass index of 18 as their cut- off value. The ‘anti-thin’ move has been criticised in Paris and New York, two of the world’s leading fashion centres. However, in Italy the move was supported by the mayor who intimated that she would like to apply the same rulings when the fashion show moves to Milan. The motive for imposing the ban is noble, as the ‘skinny trend’ is not showing signs of abating. A recent report by the British Medical Association identifies a link between the images of ‘abnormally thin’ models that dominate television and magazines, and the increase in cases of anorexia nervosa and bulimia. 2 The incidence of anorexia is at an all-time high with predictions of 0 - 5% of all females having eating disorders. While eating disorders were previously usually regarded as a female syndrome, the situation is changing with a steady increase in the number of men being diagnosed with eating disorders. A recent estimate predicts that of the 60 000 people with eating disorders in the UK, 10% are male. 2 This trend can most likely be explained by the contemporary lean, hungry look of male stars. To get a snapshot view of changing body beautiful images of different eras one only has to compare the ‘hunks’ of the 1960’s movies (i.e. Sean Connery as James Bond) to modern day hunks to see how the masculine image has changed. Marilyn Monroe, with her curvy body shape in the 1950s would probably be regarded as too fat for a leading role 50 years later. While the organisers of the fashion shows should be complimented for taking a bold stand against their skinny, unhealthy-looking models, they can be criticised for the way in which they have gone about it. Using a body mass index of 18 as a cut-off value is inappropriate and may penalise some models who live normal healthy lives. Instead of this approach the organisers should establish a structure that evaluates the health status of the models including their eating, sleeping and substance abuse habits and make decisions accordingly. The information on how to do this is available; it just needs to be applied. This third issue of the journal for 2006 has 4 interesting papers. The first paper by Professor Mars and colleagues examines the cooling of skin, subcutaneous fat and muscle with an icepack, at rest and after short-duration exhaustive exercise. This study produced some interesting results with important clinical applications. The next paper by Ian Cook examines the accuracy of different types of pedometers. It is well known that people who use pedometers are encouraged to be more physically active, so therefore there is great value in making pedometers available to the general public. However, the enthusiasm to make and distribute pedometers has exceeded the concern about their accuracy. This study addresses this point with a comprehensive research design. The results make a valuable contribution to the literature. The third paper, by Dr McHardy and colleagues from Macquarie Injury Management Group, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia, is a clinician’s perspective of the modern and classic golf swing. This paper is relevant to sports physicians, biokineticists and physiotherapists and provides a clear analysis of the different types of golf swing and their possible link to injury, particularly lower back pain. Finally the paper by Dr Draper and her colleagues describes the state of the fitness industry in South Africa. This comprehensive study gathered data from 442 facilities around the country. The data provide an important benchmark for the state of the industry and will make a significant contribution to the development of perceived weaknesses in the industry. Mike Lambert Editor-in-Chief 1. Milan fashionistas fear Spanish skinny model ban. news.yahoo.com/s/ nm/20060914/od_nm/italy_models_dc (accessed 18 September 2006) 2. The changing shape of the model. news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/769460.stm (ac- cessed 18 September 2006) Skinny fashion – a role for sports medicine? SAJSM voL 18 No. 3 2006 57 editoriAL pg57.indd 57 9/21/06 12:15:22 PM editoRiaL SaJSM voL 19 No. 5 2007 105 pg105.indd 105 1/11/08 11:11:48 AM