A new binge eating craze sees 'lonely' South Koreans gorge themselves for hours at a time while broadcasting their extreme eating performance to thousands of fans online.

Former body builder BJ Fitness Fairy is one of 5,000 eaters, or broadcast jockeys, who have signed up to use the website Afreeca TV, a streaming service which allows them to connect with an online community dedicated to watching their nightly dinner binge.

The slender young woman spends several hours each night stationed in front of her elaborate webcam set up while she consumes enough food to satisfy a three person household - in a single sitting.

'Fans watch to eat vicariously through me,' she told Dateline in an interview that airs on Tuesday night. 'Once I ate three large pizzas and three fried chickens in one day.'

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Former body builder BJ Fitness Fairy is one of 5,000 broadcast jockeys who have signed up to connect with an online community dedicated to watching their nightly dinner binge

While BJ Fitness Fairy can make up to $4,000 a week for broadcasting her radical diet, an investigation by Dateline revealed the trend – known as mukbang – is not simply a money making venture and may be a symptom of widespread loneliness.

Champ Yang, a mukbang enthusiast, said an economic decline and a rise in unemployment has meant many young South Koreans have found themselves living, cooking and eating alone.

He said online eating is a way for these individuals to experience a more traditional and social meal-time encounter.

'In single homes, single households, they have to cook by themselves, so they feel lonely sometimes,' he told Dateline.

The slender young woman spends several hours each night stationed in front of her elaborate webcam set up while she consumes enough food to satisfy a three person household, in a single sitting

Mukbang enthusiasts say online eating is a way for people living alone to experience a more traditional and social meal-time encounter

Health professionals have become concerned with the medical consequences of consuming such vast quantities of food

'When they watch cookbang and mukbang, they feel comforted. Food is a kind of escape from real life. That food is healing for us.'

While eaters like BJ Fitness exercise for around five hours a day to maintain their svelte figure, many health professionals have become concerned with the medical consequences of consuming such vast quantities of food.

Overeating is known to cause a range of medical complications including obesity, diabetes and heart disease, interestingly Afreeca TV said that it does not actively encourage extreme eating and warns against broadcasters putting their health on the line to increase traffic on their site.

Given her calorie-laden diet BJ Fitness exercise for around five hours a day to maintain their svelte figure

Due to the significant number of calories Bj Fitness Fairy eats at dinner, she must limit her consumption during the rest of the day

Off camera, the petite broadcaster only eats one meal a day which consists of fruit and a protein shake.

'For the spectators, it mentally satisfies them and leave them mentally full; some claim that it helps them be on a diet.'

Gabie Kook, a finalist in television show MasterChef Korea, agreed that mukbang - derived from the Korean words for eat and broadcast - is 'extremely unhealthy' for the broadcaster but argued the trend can beneficial for those watching.

'For the spectators, it mentally satisfies them and leave them mentally full; some claim that it helps them be on a diet,' she told CNBC.

BJ Fitness Fairy, who has uploaded more than 100 mukbang clips to her Youtube account, said that while some would say her diet promotes an unhealthy lifestyle, she believes her fans are merely participating in a fantasy, living 'vicariously' through her.

'Appearance matters in South Korea. Women want to stay lean. I tell them to eat healthily.'

Due to the significant number of calories BJ Fitness Fairy eats at dinner, she must limit her consumption during the rest of the day.

Off camera, the petite broadcaster only eats one meal a day which consists of fruit and a protein shake.