Miley Cyrus came under fire for her recent weight gain, and yesterday, the “Hannah Montana” star decided to defend herself and voluptuous women everywhere through Twitter.

Cyrus tweeted: “By calling girls like me fat this is what you're doing to other people. i love MYSELF & if you could say the same you wouldn’t be sitting on your computer trying to hurt others.” Along with the tweet was a picture of an emaciated woman, most likely the victim of an eating disorder.

In addition, Cyrus posted a picture of Marilyn Monroe with a caption reading: “Proof that you can be adored by thousands of men even when your thighs touch.”

Although it is certainly appropriate for the teen actress to defend herself from insulting media like The Sun’s “Miley Cyrus shows off her fuller figure,” and a post on Yeeeah.com stating, “Miley Cyrus Got FAT,” the more prevalent issue concerns whether the teen idol should have to justify gaining a few pounds.

Miley certainly does not think so.

“I don’t wanna be shaped like a girl I LOVE being shaped like a WOMAN & trust me ladies your man won’t mind either,” tweeted the star.

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Miley’s “man” is 21-year-old Australian actor Liam Helmsworth. He does not seem to mind his girlfriend getting curvy. In fact, he encourages it.

“When I look over at her when she’s biting into a steak sandwich and there is some steak sauce dripping down her chin, there is nothing sexier than that,” said Helmsworth to Who magazine.

Also coming to the singer’s defense was pop singer Demitria Lovato, who tweeted: “Whoever called you (Cyrus) that has it coming,” and later, “#curvesareBEAUTIFUL.”

The two are close friends, and Lovato has been personally invested in this kind of situation in the past; the songstress did a short stint in rehab for an eating disorder earlier this year.

“I I became very depressed, and my only way of really coping with it was through my eating disorder. So I just stopped eating,” said Lovato to ABC News.

Eating disorders like anorexia are surprisingly common in the United States, and occur 10 times more in females than males. Anorexia nervosa has the highest death rate of any psychiatric condition currently known.

Cyrus, who started her career with a solidly Christian, unsoiled appearance, faced controversy when she began to take on a more sexualized image.

The provocative way she was dressed for her “Party in the U.S.A.” video caused a media uproar, and many parents refused to continue their support of the singer.

The media’s subsequent embrace of Miley’s adult image promoted comments on her body, like FHM’s listing of her on their “100 Sexiest Women in the World 2011” list, and Maxim’s “2011 Hot 100” list.

When the pop superstar allegedly got thicker, media organizations felt they could take the same license to comment on her body in a negative manner.

Although Miley allegedly put on a bit of weight, she still has numerous fans, a veritable fortune, a successful career, and the support of her family, friends, and boyfriend.

Perhaps that is more important than whether Miley "got fat.”