‘I really wasn’t well and took laxatives to lose weight’: Natalie Cassidy admits to unhealthy dieting

Natalie Cassidy came dangerously close to developing an eating disorder in a bid to control her weight after she famously slimmed down for her fitness DVD.

The former EastEnders actress, 25, lost two and a half stone and dropped down to a size eight for her best-selling DVD ‘Natalie Cassidy: Then and Now’, but has now returned to her original size 14 frame.

After the release of the fitness video, Natalie split from her personal trainer Dee Thresher and carried on losing weight through her own unhealthy eating plan, which included taking laxatives.

Natalie Cassidy is a happy size 14 now, compared to her slim size eight frame just over a year ago. Natalie was originally thrilled when she lost weight for the fitness DVD through healthy eating and working out.

With the huge response from the public to her transformation, the actress admits she soon became obsessed with her weight and her appearance. She tells Heat magazine: “I really wasn’t well. I was bordering on having an eating disorder.”

The 5ft 4in actress admits her weight plummeted as low as 7st 12lbs, which meant with a body mas index of 18.5, she bordered on underweight.

After parting with her trainer Dee, Natalie lacked guidance and began to experiment with a succession of diets in a bid to slim down even further. She explained her rationale: “There were nights I would go out for dinner and then I’d go home and take laxatives because I didn’t want the food inside me.”

When she was pictured at her skinniest in a bikini on the beach in Portugal in March last year, Natalie realised she had gone too far. She explained: “I looked too thin. I can honestly say I wasn’t happy then.”

When she returned from holiday, she started eating properly again and soon got back her original curves. Now a size 14, Natalie is happier with her weight, although she admits she would like to improve her eating plan and tone up with the help of Coleen Rooney’s trainer, Elise Lindsay.

She continued: “I just want to be normal, and if that means me staying this size, then I’ll stay this size. What I was doing wasn’t sustainable. I couldn’t keep on that way. I was ill. I had a problem and it was borderline obsessional.”

Natalie is now focused to getting fit and healthy again after going through a tough time personally over the last few months.

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