The death of the 21-year-old influencer, who posted under the name Cuihua, has prompted state media to warn over the safety risks involved in weight-loss camps and renewed concerns over the pressures women are under to conform to mainstream beauty standards. It has also intensified scrutiny of the influencer industry, coming just weeks after a young man in the country died after live-streaming himself drinking several bottles of strong alcohol.
Experts in eating disorders and sports nutrition warn that even seemingly healthy behaviors such as increasing levels of exercise and dieting can be harmful when motivated by a negative body image and taken to extremes. In extreme cases, the resulting problems can go beyond mental health and lead to severe medical complications affecting the heart, brain, liver, kidneys and other organs.