But he began 'dumpster diving' as a new focus to beat his anorexia

A teenager who began raiding dumpsters in a bid to distract himself from his anorexia revealed he has since found nearly $27,000 (£20,000) worth of abandoned goods.

At his most unwell, 6ft tall Matt Smith weighed 120lbs (8st 5lbs), meaning his BMI - which in a healthy person should be between 18.5 and 25 - was a dangerously low 15.

In an attempt to give himself a new focus, the 18-year-old from Grand Rapids, Michigan, began 'dumpster diving' – scouring bins and skips for valuable items.

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In an attempt to give himself a new focus, the 18-year-old began 'dumpster diving'

At his most unwell, Matt Smith from Michigan weighed just 120lbs

Now, he has beaten the devastating eating disorder - and found tens of thousands of pounds worth of food, stationery and electrical goods in the process.

Nursing student Matt said: 'I had a rough two years and started dumpster diving for giggles to boost my mood a little.

'When I began finding all the stuff and seeing all the potential it had, I started donating it to food banks, launching an online business from it and taking it as far as I could.'

Previously, Matt was a talented runner.

But when he was 16, his passion for fitness teetered into obsession and he began exercising for eight hours a day, existing only on three separate 300 calorie meals of salad leaves a day.

Matt found controlling food a welcome escape from the pressures of school work – but it soon began to affect his health.

Now, he has beaten the devastating eating disorder - and found tens of thousands of dollars worth of food, stationery and electrical goods

Matt had come across the practise of dumpster diving on YouTube, and was amazed that shops were abandoning expensive electrical goods worth hundreds of dollars

He shed 30lbs in a short space of time and was admitted to Forest View Psychiatric Hospital in Grand Rapids.

There, his heart rate plummeted into the 20s. A healthy rate is anywhere between 60 and 100 beats per minute.

He continued: 'They said there's no way I would have survived the summer - my heart would've stopped.

'When I got out three weeks later, I did alright for a little bit, but things soon got bad again.

His first trip was to an office store, where he found hundreds of school supplies, including pens, paper, calendars and electric staplers

Armed with a pair of gloves, he drives around local shops, searching for freebies, targeting office stores for school supplies and pharmacies for food, where he sourced this haul

His biggest prize to date was a brand new Toshiba laptop worth £600

'That's when I started dumpster diving as an outlet from the obsessions with food, weight, and exercise. At that point, it was the only thing I enjoyed.'

Matt had come across the practise of dumpster diving on YouTube, and was amazed that shops were abandoning expensive electrical goods worth hundreds of dollars.

His first trip was to an office store, where he found hundreds of discarded school supplies, including pens, paper, calendars and electric staplers.

'I'm fairly cheap and the idea of free things caught my imagination,' he said.

From there, Matt was hooked on the practise - which is legal in his home state but illegal in the UK, as the goods are still classed as the shop's property despite being discarded.

Dan often nets bags full of unopened fresh fruit and dozens of packets of sweets and chocolates, like the ones pictured

Armed with a pair of gloves, he drives around local shops, searching for freebies, targeting office stores for school supplies and pharmacies for food.

Dan often nets bags full of unopened fresh fruit and dozens of packets of sweets and chocolates, hauling as much as $600 (£460) worth of goods from a single trip.

He's also taken home iPods, an Xbox and cameras - but his biggest prize to date is a brand new Toshiba laptop worth $800 (£700).

He said: 'Shops will throw something out if it's been in the store too long, or it's out of season.

Thanks to dumpster diving, Matt is healthier than ever and putting his focus into helping his local community - donating goods to food banks every three months

'I think it's a reflection of the consumer culture we live in. It's just 'buy, buy, buy.'

'There's no regard to the cost to the environment and the cost of all the human labour it takes to make these products.'

After 'diving' for several months, the booty from Matt's hauls began to take over his family home, so he started donating the electrical items and food to charity.

In November 2015, he set up an eBay shop selling his unwanted wares, earning $3,000 (£2,600) so far - money which he put towards his degree.

And at Christmas, instead of buying gifts, he invited his friends and family to rummage through his stash.

Matt says lots of stores will purposefully destroy the goods. They cover items in special paint that you can't get off

Thanks to dumpster diving, Matt is healthier than ever and putting his focus into helping his local community - donating goods to food banks every three months.

He said: 'Some stores do catch me and threaten to call the police, but there's nothing they can do – it's legal.

'Now lots of them will purposefully destroy the goods. They cover items in special paint that you can't get off.

'I found a dozen GPS systems and all the screens were smashed, which was pretty upsetting.'

Matt's family, pictured, have all been thrilled with the dumpster diving efforts

Matt says he is horrified by this uncharitable behaviour.

'The store's mentality is if we can't have it and make a profit from it then neither can you,' he said.