NEW FOOD for thought
Zara Mcdermott questions whether influencers like her have increased eating disorders…
Before becoming a Love Island contestant in 2018, Zara Mcdermott never looked at the calorie content in food. But that changed when fans reacted to a photograph of her posing in a bikini. ‘The comments were awful – someone called me a fat whale,’ says Zara. ‘I tried not to let it affect my relationship with food. But there’s only so many times you can hear people say you’re fat before you believe it.’
Eventually, Zara started calorie-counting, got fit in the gym and lost weight. Since then, her social-media content has been about sharing her daily exercise regime and the healthy food she eats.
Trying to help
But with eating disorders spiralling since lockdown, Zara worries that influencers like her might actually be contributing to the problem.
For this documentary, she talks to an eating-disorder psychiatrist and meets several young women with eating disorders, including Lauren, who’s been diagnosed with anorexia and can track the start of her illness back to social media, making Zara question her content.
‘I’ve learnt so much making this film and I need to make some changes,’ says Zara. ‘Gone are the days where I’ll post a lot of photos of my body, and there’s less focus on calories. I’m determined to be more thoughtful.’