Megan McKenna on Loose Women (Credit: ITV)
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Megan McKenna hits out over being “skinny-shamed”

Reality star said people "don't understand" her health issues

Megan McKenna revealed how she’s often trolled about her weight as she appeared on Wednesday’s Loose Women.

The Ex On The Beach star said she’s frequently subjected to abuse because of her figure, as the panel discussed whether fat-shaming should be made a hate crime.

Megan, 25, said: “You’ve been talking about fat-shaming and I get skinny-shamed all the time and I think it’s just as bad.

Megan McKenna on Loose Women (Credit: ITV)
Megan opened up on Loose Women about being trolled because of her figure (Credit: ITV)

“I have had really bad issues with my weight and people have called me skeletal, anorexic, gaunt, ‘you look awful, put on some weight’.”

The former Celebrity Big Brother star, who has recently launched a successful country music career, said people “don’t understand what I am going through”.

She said she struggles to gain weight due to a number of health conditions.

“I have coeliac disease, I have just been diagnosed with IBS and I have a severe wheat allergy so I don’t exactly have it easy,” she explained. “I was in hospital last year because of my weight.”

Megan McKenna on Loose Women (Credit: ITV)
The reality star said she has health issues which make it difficult to gain weight (Credit: ITV)

Megan said trolls “see a picture and they think I’m dieting all the time but I’m not”.

She said the abuse over her size she has received since finding fame three years ago isn’t new to her – as she was also bullied in her youth for being skinny.

“I have always been a bit different. I was a victim of ‘happy slapping’ if you remember that from back in the day. I was always very skinny. When I was 12-years-old I had hairy arms and braces, I wasn’t the most attractive thing,” she recalled.

Megan McKenna Enters The 2016 Big Brother House
Megan said she’s always been skinny and was bullied for it in her youth (Credit: Grant Buchanan / FameFlynet.uk.com / SplashNews.com)

She’s glad those days are now behind her as she spoke on the show about how happy she is with her blossoming singing career.

Recently she’s performed with Michael Buble and supported Ronan Keating on tour, as well as soaring to the top of the iTunes chart.

In a recent exclusive interview with ED! she revealed it was Louis Walsh she has to thank for pushing her into the music industry.

She’s also added another string to her bow by releasing her autobiography, Mouthy, this week which she admitted she produced with the help of a ghostwriter.

Megan McKenna performs live in concert at the Scala in London, England.
Megan is delighted her singing career is going well (Credit: Flynet – SplashNews)

The reality star has a lot to cram into her book which covers her childhood, rise to fame and relationships.

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She’s had high profile romances with exes Jordan Davies and Pete Wicks, and current boyfriend, Mike Thalassitis, best known to many as Love Island’s Muggy Mike.

Megan told the Loose Women she was glad she followed her mother’s advice to keep a diary when she was younger as it’s given her plenty of material to include in her autobiography.

Do you agree with Megan about skinny-shaming? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor

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