Eating worms, laxative-laced teas & unlimited red wine… how celebrities lost weight before fat jabs

IT’S no secret that Hollywood stars are under a lot of pressure to look their best at all times.

And a new generation of A-listers are now taking drastic measures to achieve their dream body – whether that’s by fat jabs or going under the knife.

From detox teas to shocking liquids-only days, many celebrities tried bizarre diets before the jab craze instagram/khloe kardashianThe Kardashian-Jenner clan were known to promote Flat Tummy tea to their millions of young followers[/caption]

But long before Mounjaro and Ozempic were a thing, celebrities were trying a wealth of different diets, with N-Dubz star Tulisa Contostavlos eating lentils every day and fashion designer Carolina Herrera enjoying scrambled eggs with truffle to maintain her svelte figure at 86.

However, some famous faces have used extreme and very strange means to shed the pounds and attain what they consider – or used to see – the elusive ‘perfect’ figure.

From tapeworms to detox teas and lots of red wine, here we take a look at some of the craziest celeb diets through the year.

”A lot of these diets came from much less digital, less informed eras,” wellness expert Jamie Love told Fabulous.

”Gen Z grew up with information at their fingertips, and it’s made them much smarter customers. They can Google the ingredients in your “detox tea” in seconds — and call out the nonsense just as fast.

”There’s a consistent thread running through these diets: extreme measures in service of outdated beauty ideals.

”Whether it’s tapeworms or raw eggs, there’s often a darker undertone — the pressure to shrink, conform, or completely overhaul your body to be seen as desirable or successful.”

Raw eggs for breakfast – Marilyn Monroe

GettyMarilyn Monroe was not immune to the pressure to stay in what she deemed shape[/caption] Twentieth Century Fox Film CorporationThe Hollywood icon resorted to having raw eggs whisked in milk as the first meal[/caption]

By the 1950s, fuller-figured women were heralded as the beauty standard – yet the extreme diets continued. 

Celebrated as one of the most beautiful women in the history, even actress Marilyn Monroe – who was a healthy 8.5 stone in her prime – was not immune to the pressure to stay in what she deemed shape.

The Hollywood icon resorted to having raw eggs whisked in milk as the first meal of the day to maintain her figure.

In a September 1952 edition of the now-defunct Pageant magazine the Some Like It Hot star spoke of her ‘’bizarre’’ choice for breakfast.

She said: ‘‘I have been told my eating habits are absolutely bizarre….but I don’t think so.

‘’I doubt if any doctor could recommend a more nourishing breakfast for a working girl in a hurry.’’

Marylin wasn’t wrong, as Jo warned that ”raw eggs for breakfast aren’t actually a way to lose weight”.

She explained: ”They may help you lose weight if you are swapping out sugary pastries but that’s about it.

”Most eggs are salmonella-free now as chickens are routinely treated with antibiotics, but there is a bigger risk if the eggs are organic as they won’t have been treated.”

Tapeworm diet – Maria Callas

When Maria Callas first entered the opera world in 1947, she had embraced her 390-pound figureRex GettyThe performer rejected the tapeworm diet rumours and insisted her weight loss was due to healthy eating[/caption]

Growing in popularity around the 1940s, the tapeworm diet involved swallowing a live tapeworm in the hopes that it would absorb the food consumed – and thus, would lead to weight loss.

In her quest to achieve a slimmer frame, New York soprano and food lover Maria Callas shed almost 90lbs within a year by apparently swallowing a tapeworm.

When Maria first entered the opera world in 1947, she had embraced her 390-pound figure – which in today’s world is considered to be obese – because opera singers were generally known to be on the heavier side.

She soon felt the pressure to look thin after a cinema director Luchino Visconti said he would not work until she shed about 70lbs.

The opera star also sensed the urgency to drop the weight when she realised her figure was getting in the way of performing. 

In an interview with English conductor Edward Downes, Maria revealed: ”I was getting so heavy that even my vocalising was getting heavy.

”I was tiring myself, I was perspiring too much, and I was really working too hard. And I wasn’t really well, as in health; I couldn’t move freely.

”And then I was tired of playing a game, for instance playing this beautiful young woman, and I was heavy and uncomfortable to move around.”

Callas shed a huge chunk of weight in such a short space of time that rumours began to swirl she had ingested a tapeworm to achieve the figure.

However, the performer rejected these rumours and insisted her weight loss was due to healthy eating.

Nutritionist and Registered Dietitian Jo Travers explained how ingesting a tapeworm has serious health implications on the body.

She told The Sun: ”Tapeworms are parasites and can deplete micronutrients as well as energy.”

Speaking about the parasite found in the undercooked meat of infected animals, she said: ”They can also cause blockages in the gut and even potentially migrate to other parts of the body.

”While 90lbs in a year isn’t necessarily a dangerous amount to lose in a year, doing it this way could be.”

Callas – who would collect recipes of her favourite meals but never eat them – clung to her healthy lifestyle up until her death in Paris aged 53 in 1977.

1,000kcal a day with lots of red wine – Matthew McConaughey 

The Hollywood hunk, pictured in 2007, before dropping down to just 9 stone 6lbs for a roleRex Matthew lived on just 1,000 calories a day in preparation for Dallas Buyers ClubRex

It’s arguably one of the most shocking weight loss transformations an actor has taken to achieve drastic results for a role – Matthew McConaughey, now 55, lived on just 1,000 calories a day in preparation for Dallas Buyers Club in 2013.

The Hollywood hunk was playing Texan rodeo-riding electrician Ron Woodroof who was given just a month to live after being diagnosed with HIV.

“Through pure rage and by any means necessary this guy did what he had to do to self-preserve and stay alive,” says Matthew, who shed nearly 3st 7lb for the Oscar-nominated role.

His unusual approach involved eating nothing but fish, egg whites, tapioca pudding — and “as much wine as I wanted to drink”, the dad-of-three said on an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.

“I did not torture myself. I was militant. The hardest part was making the damn choice.

The actor told Rogan he wanted to lose all the weight to show the reality of living with advanced stages of HIV as he paid homage to Woodroof’s life and legacy in detail. 

“It was my responsibility,” the 55-year-old said.

“If I looked how I look now and played Ron Woodroof from ‘Dallas Buyers Club,’ you are out of the movie the first frame.” 

In just five months, he went from his usual 13 stone 4lbs to pounds to just 9 stone 6lbs.

The actor said he would eat 140g of fish for lunch and dinner, small amounts of vegetables with each meal, and egg whites for breakfast.

His daily treat would be a small amount of tapioca pudding. 

“I found tapioca pudding, and I found the tiniest little antique spoon in New Orleans, a little-bitty sugar spoon, and I would eat it with that so it would last longer,” the actor told a crowd of reporters at the 2014 Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Sharing her thoughts on the low-calorie diet, Jo warned it’s ”very difficult to get all the micronutrients you need a day with only 1,000kcals of food”.

Not only does restricting yourself much ”lead to hunger and deficiencies”, but ”adding copious amounts of red wine adds calories without useful nutrients so is not a sensible way to lose weight at all”.

Steak slathered with peanut butter – Elizabeth Taylor 

GettyBritish-born actor Elizabeth Taylor and her fourth husband, American singer and actor Eddie Fisher, pictured in 1963[/caption] Getty - ContributorThe Cleopatra icon, pictured in 1974, even detailed the bizarre recipes in her book, Elizabeth Takes Off[/caption]

The protein-heavy diet has long been the classic regimen sworn by celebrities as the perfect diet, with our very own Holly Willoughby, now 44, limiting her carb intake before joining I’m A Celeb in 2018.

At her time, Elizabeth Taylor was the Hollywood icon who every woman dreamed to be and every man wished to be with.

But in the last 20 years of her life, she weighed over 12 stone 8lbs after an injury left her bedridden and made her prone to ”stuffing” herself with fried chicken and fancy desserts.

In the 1960s, when Taylor weighed 8 stone 5lbs, her eating habits were more so absurd than they were unhealthy.

For breakfast, the legendary actress would down scrambled eggs, bacon, and a mimosa as a refreshment.

Hollowed-out French bread filled with peanut butter and bacon was her go-to lunch meal – while her dinner consisted of fried chicken, peas, biscuits, gravy, mashed potatoes, corn bread, homemade potato chips, trifle, and a tumbler full of Jack Daniels.

The London-born star – who married eight times – decided to take control of her diet after her seventh marriage failed and resorted to extreme diets, such as having cottage cheese and sour cream as well as steak and peanut butter for dinner. 

The Cleopatra icon even detailed the bizarre recipes in her book, Elizabeth Takes Off.

Describing the book which was published in 1988, she said: ”It is more than a specific program for weight loss; it’s a chance for you to throw away old self-destructive habits and embrace a more positive way of life.”

She would maintain her diet until she passed away aged 79 in 2011.

Although celebrities boast of their adherence to such extreme diets, Jo said these approaches can turn into a ”disaster”.

”I’m guessing this was a low-carb diet which actually isn’t too bad a way to lose weight in the short term.

”However it’s really important to get low-carb vegetables in as well for those essential water-soluble vitamins and fibre.

”Without the veg it can be a disaster for your gut health,” she explained.

Trendy ‘detox teas’ – Ferne McCann and the Kardashian-Jenner clan

Instagram @skinnycoffeeclubLauren Goodger, pictured in 2018, posted a body transformation saying that it was entirely down to drinking Skinny Coffee[/caption] instagram/kylie jennerAccording to the Daily Mail, the reality star scored an astronomical £751k for the lone post promoting the detox tea[/caption]

If you were on Instagram around 2015, you’ll remember what felt like countless celebs praising detox teas to achieve a toned body – Kylie Jenner, Ferne McCann and Vicky Pattison to name a few.

The Jenner mogul confused fans in 2018 by posting an ad for a Teami Blends detox programme on social media, claiming it got rid of her tummy bloat like “magic”.

The brand doesn’t exactly have the best reputation. In 2017, Demi Lovato came under fire for promoting the same 30-day Detox Challenge that Kylie, 27, posted.

Detox teas in general are often criticised for containing a tonne of caffeine and even traces of laxatives to help you “lose weight”.

Some teas, experts have warned, also come with unwanted side effects, such as cramping, headaches, and increased anxiety.

Obviously, celebrities are paid to endorse any product on social media, even the controversial ones — and according to the Daily Mail, the reality star scored an astronomical £751k for the lone post.

The Kardashians are notorious for promoting diet teas, as are reality TV stars from programmes like TOWIE – including Lauren Goodger and Love Island’s Kady McDermott.

The former TOWIE legend and mum-of-one Lauren has openly battled with her weight for some time, and in 2018 posted a body transformation saying that it was entirely down to drinking Skinny Coffee.

“I lost 6lbs in just SEVEN days,” she wrote.

”It was insane! It’s been the only diet product I’ve found that’s worked for me.”

Skinny Coffee say that “92 per cent of customers looked visibly thinner in just one week”.

GP Dr Jarvis said: “Garcinia cambogia is widely marketed for weight loss, but the few studies there have been show minimal (maximum 2lb) benefit, and even this may well have been for reasons other than the supplement.”

instagram/fernemccannTOWIE legend Ferne McCann also praised the detox tea after ‘seeing some changes’ in her tummy[/caption]

Ruth Kander, Consultant Dietician at Fleet Street Clinic, stated that coffee itself can have a laxative effect on some people but interestingly, some of the ingredients in Skinny Coffee are quite decent.

Although there is “no evidence in the medical literature and medical scientific trial to show that this helps to lose weight”.

”None of the ingredients are reported to scientifically or clinically cause weight loss”, she said.

Sharing her thoughts on the tea-tox craze, Jo told Fabulous: ”These are not good for your body.

”You can end up with vitamin and mineral deficiencies and in the worst case your bowel can become dependent on them so you can end up with chronic constipation.”

She added: ”Also a nightmare for the delicate balance of the gut microbiome which we rely on to keep our immune system functioning as well as producing fuel for our cells.”

Marilyn Monroe dress diet – Kim Kardashian

Instagram/KimKardashianThe SKIMS mogul pictured on 2021 – a year before her controversial Met Gala diet[/caption] GettyKim went on a strict diet ti lose 16lbs to be able to fit into the iconic Marilyn Monroe’s gown for Met Gala in 2022[/caption]

Just like the rest of the billionaire clan, SKIMS mogul Kim Kardashian, 44, is no stranger to shocking restrictions to achieve her figure – most notoriously, losing ”16lbs on strict diet’’ to fit into Marilyn Monroe’s dress at Met Gala in 2022.

The reality star stepped out in Marilyn Monroe’s gown, which she famously wore as she sang Happy Birthday, Mr. President in 1962, with former partner Pete Davidson on her arm.

At first, the dress didn’t fit the mum-of-four’s signature curves, but that didn’t stop her from wearing it to the Met Gala.

She told Vogue: “I tried it on and it didn’t fit me. I said, ‘Give me three weeks.’

“I had to lose 16 pounds,” said Kim – who said she would’ve skipped the star-studded event if she hadn’t been able to squeeze into the frock.

Kim went on: “It was such a challenge. It was like a [movie] role. I was determined to fit [into] it. I haven’t had carbs or sugar in about three weeks.”

Although Jo reckons Kim’s low-carb approach wasn’t necessarily ”the worst as she made sure to get vegetables and protein while cutting out sugar”, the sheer amount of weight dropped was alarming.

”However she did lose a lot of weight very quickly which is likely to be unsustainable.”

All-liquid diet – Melissa McCarthy

AlamyThe Gilmore Girls actress was put on a liquids-only diet in 2003, consuming a mere 500 calories a day[/caption] AlamyThe mum-of-two dropped a staggering 5 stone in just four months – but has since said she ‘felt starved and crazy half the time’[/caption]

Extreme diets can be dangerous – and they don’t help you to build sustainable healthy habits.

While talking with People in 2011, actress Melissa McCarthy, now 54, recalled an all-liquid diet a doctor put her on in 2003 when she scored her role on Gilmore Girls.

Describing how she’d consume only 500 calories a day, the mum-of-two said she ended up dropping a whopping 5 stone in just four months.

Looking back at the shocking diet, the Bridesmaids legend said: “I’d never do that again.

“I felt starved and crazy half the time.”

While the meal replacement plan provided Melissa with ”all the micronutrients and protein she needed while restricting calories”, Jo said this approach was not suitable for everyone.

”This can help with quick weight loss and she did hers under the supervision of a doctor but i’t’s very hard to do if you a) like food and b) ever feel hungry.

”The rate of weight loss wasn’t too bad (about 3lbs/week on average) but I don’t really recommend these diets for as long as she did hers for. They’re generally not great for the gut microbiome.” 

Over the next decade her weight tended to fluctuate, but you’ve probably noticed the brunette beauty looking much trimmer again lately.

But her weight loss secret has nothing to do with crazy diets, intense calorie restriction, or sweaty gym sessions – and she’s still reportedly lost more than 5 stone.

While upping her protein and getting more exercise have played a key role in the past, it’s been a simple shift in outlook that has ultimately helped her shed — and keep off — the pounds.

While speaking with CBS This Morning, Melissa revealed her surprisingly simple weight loss secret.

“I finally said [to myself], ‘Oh for God sakes, stop worrying about it, and it may be the best thing I’ve ever done.”

It might sound too easy to be true, but stress can definitely be a factor in weight gain and there’s no denying turning off the weight stress worked for the mum-of-two.

GettyFans have noticed the brunette beauty looking much trimmer again lately – but this time, thanks to healthy eating and keeping her stress levels low[/caption]