Abbie Chatfield discusses an alarming diet trend in her younger years 

Abbie Chatfield weighs in on the rise of eating disorders as she blames the likes of Mischa Barton on magazines in the early 2000s for creating impossible body standards

Abbie Chatfield has made a name for herself as an advocate for positive attitudes toward sex and body image.

But the 25-year-old told Yahoo! Lifestyle on Wednesday that it wasn’t always the case for her.

‘I think growing up in that era where Mischa Barton is on the front cover with her cottage cheese thighs – I think that kind of led to a lot of eating disorder tendencies,’ she told the publication on Tuesday.

Changing attitudes: Abbie Chatfield has weighed in on the rise of eating disorders, singling out the likes of The O.C. star Mischa Barton’s ‘cottage cheese thighs’ appearing on magazine covers in the early ’00s for leading to ‘eating disorder tendencies’ in teens

‘But I also think that was kind of just the “normal” culture of going to an all-girls Catholic school, where everyone would have these water bottles and we would put a dash of lemon water in it, with gum and an apple, and that was what we’d eat in a day,’ she added.

The Bachelor star admitted she would put intense pressure herself to workout in order to lose weight in her younger years.

Abbie said she was now a changed woman and has learned to listen to her body and views exercise as a way to feel good and reduce anxiety. 

Not just Mischa! 'But I also think that was kind of just the "normal" culture of going to an all-girls Catholic school, where everyone would have these water bottles and we would put a dash of lemon water in it, with gum and an apple, and that was what we'd eat in a day,' she added

Not just Mischa! ‘But I also think that was kind of just the “normal” culture of going to an all-girls Catholic school, where everyone would have these water bottles and we would put a dash of lemon water in it, with gum and an apple, and that was what we’d eat in a day,’ she added

'If I feel yuck, that's ok, if I feel great, that's amazing': The Bachelor star admitted she would put intense pressure herself to workout in order to lose weight in her younger years. These days, she has learned to listen to her body and exercises purely to feel good and reduce anxiety

‘If I feel yuck, that’s ok, if I feel great, that’s amazing’: The Bachelor star admitted she would put intense pressure herself to workout in order to lose weight in her younger years. These days, she has learned to listen to her body and exercises purely to feel good and reduce anxiety

The It’s A Lot podcast host noted that her self-love philosophy is to acknowledge how she’s feeling about her body, rather than to try and bury negative thoughts. 

Being more in-tune with her mental health has allowed her to recognise and move on from harmful thoughts and focus on elevating positive feelings.

‘Not being overly body positive, or body neutral. This is how I look, how I look today. If I feel yuck, that’s ok, if I feel great, that’s amazing,’ she said.

Rise to fame: Abbie first rose to fame after she was left heartbroken when astrophysicist Matt Agnew broke up with her in the season finale of The Bachelor in 2019

Rise to fame: Abbie first rose to fame after she was left heartbroken when astrophysicist Matt Agnew broke up with her in the season finale of The Bachelor in 2019

Abbie first rose to fame after she was left heartbroken when astrophysicist Matt Agnew broke up with her in the season finale of The Bachelor in 2019.

She went on to take part in Bachelor In Paradise and won the 2021 season of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

The reality star has garnered regular media attention since launching her podcast, in which she speaks openly about sex and taboo topics. 

Queen: She went on to take part in the 2021 season of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! where she won the show and was crowned Queen of The Jungle

Queen: She went on to take part in the 2021 season of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! where she won the show and was crowned Queen of The Jungle

Sustained interest: The reality star has garnered regular media attention since launching her podcast, It's A Lot, in which she speaks openly about sex and taboo topics

Sustained interest: The reality star has garnered regular media attention since launching her podcast, It’s A Lot, in which she speaks openly about sex and taboo topics

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