It’s a favourite of celebrities including Miranda Kerr, Kate Winslet and Kate Moss, and now the optical illusion clothing trend is infiltrating the mainstream market, with UK label Asda producing a line of £16 pants with carefully placed “slimming” panels down the sides.

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“Lots of celebrities have been wearing illusion clothes recently,” explained the brand. “We wanted to give our customers something similar but affordable.”

The pants give the illusion of a slimmer leg by forming a panel that is slightly wider at the top, around the “hip and thigh area”, before tapering down the leg.

“This is because women’s widest point is at the top of thigh,” says designer Kausar Mitha. “The panel draws the eye in and then follows the contour of the body, which creates an illusion of slimmer legs and hips.”

While the demand for optical illusion clothing may seem harmless enough, image consultant Angela Marshall, owner of Appearance Management, says the trend is detrimental to a healthy body image.

“There is a lot of pressure to be thin,” Marshall commented. “Even very slim celebrities are wearing clothes designed to make them look even smaller. This sends out a dangerous message.

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“The trend for slimming clothes has gone too far. A lot of designers don’t even know how to make clothes for a curvy shape. I wish the fashion industry would let people be what they are born with. We need to start celebrating healthy bodies.”

What do you think? Is the optical illusion clothing trend dangerous or a harmless fix?

Pictured: Kate Winlet wears an optical illusion dress by Stella McCartney.

Images by Getty Images