Anger over Millie's 'thinspirational' selfie: Anorexia campaigners' backlash after husband Professor Green uses term to describe her picture



Millie Mackintosh posted bikini picture showing her slender frame on Twitter

Husband Professor Green, 30, joked that she was a 'thinspiration'

The term is favoured by followers of pro-anorexia websites

Campaigners said she should think about message she sends to young girls



She regularly shows off her slender physique by sharing pictures of herself working out at the gym.



But Millie Mackintosh may have gone too far with this picture – provoking a backlash from anorexia campaigners after her husband joked that she was a ‘thinspiration’.



A picture of the Quality Street heiress flaunting her skinny frame was posted on the social networking site and immediately prompted Professor Green, 30, to use the word, which is favoured by followers of pro-anorexia websites.

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Defence: Millie Mackintosh defended her decision to post this image during a chat with the Loose Women on Thursday picture which she posted online. Her husband quickly joked that she was a 'thinspiration' - a term favoured by followers of pro-anorexia websites

Miss Mackintosh, who regularly shares images of herself training at a gym, replied ‘fitspiration!’



Experts yesterday accused the pair of encouraging young girls to starve themselves.



Dozens of Twitter users immediately echoed Professor Green’s comments with one writing: ‘I need Millie Mackintosh’s figure #thinspiration,’ while another wrote: ‘Millie Mackintosh is my thinspiration, absolute worldie #girlcrush.’



Many said they were heading for the gym after seeing the image, or embarking on a diet, and begged Miss Mackintosh to share her slimming secrets.



Miss Mackintosh, 24, a former Made In Chelsea reality TV star, joins a growing number of celebrities including Victoria Beckham, model Miranda Kerr and TV presenter Alexa Chung who have become part of a trend dubbed ‘thin-stagram’ whereby they post pictures on Instagram in which they appear worryingly slender.



Backlash: Millie Mackintosh with husband Professor Green. A spokesperson from eating disorders charity b-eat said celebrities have a responsibility to think about the body image messages they are sending out

Many of them have also been labelled ‘thinspiration’ by eating disorder sufferers in the past, who aspire to be just as slim.

Yesterday a spokesperson from eating disorders charity b-eat said celebrities have a responsibility to think about the body image messages they are sending out.



The spokesperson said: ‘With the growth of social media sites comes more pressure on individuals to aspire to often unhealthy and even dangerously underweight role models.



Role model: One of the tweets sent in response to the Quality Street heiress' picture. Dozens of Twitter users immediately echoed Professor Green's comments with one writing: 'I need Millie Mackintosh's figure'

Those in the public eye with the opportunity to encourage and influence should remember that they are icons for many young people and think responsibly about the messages they are conveying.



‘All too often we hear of young people damaging their health by trying to emulate celebrity role models with the added danger of the possibility of developing an eating disorder causing future serious health consequences.’



It is not the first time Miss Mackintosh has been dubbed a ‘thinspiration’. In 2012 Nicola Ross wrote on Twitter:

Fitness fanatic: The former Made In Chelsea star frequently posts photos of herself exercising on her Instagram and Twitter accounts. Young girls took to Twitter asking Mackintosh how they could be slim like her

‘Heading to my first gym class again in weeks, please be kind to me. Millie Mackintosh you are my thinspiration.’

Lauren Kinsella posted: ‘I am going to print off pictures of Millie Mackintosh and put them in my room and on the fridge to stop me from eating #thinspiration.’

