Influencer, 21, dies in Chinese weight loss camp after trying to lose 200 pounds

Cuihua, a 21-year-old Chinese influencer, died on June 10, while attending a weight loss camp. She was in the middle of trying to lose 200 pounds.

A Chinese influencer has died in a weight loss camp in China, her family has revealed. The influencer, who went under the pseudonym Cuihua on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok, had spent the past few months in a weight loss camp where she was trying to lose over 200 pounds.

Cuihua documented her progress online and also claimed to her audience that she initially lost 57 pounds in two months, and continued to shed another 23 pounds over the next six months, according to Shanghai Morning News.

Cuihua’s videos were set to private on Tuesday morning, June 13, Beijing time, Insider reported.

A short while later, it was revealed that Cuihua had died in the weight loss camp on the previous Saturday, June 10. The cause of her death has not been revealed.

Cuihua’s family announced the news of her death

Her family posted video statements to her account announcing the news. It read: “Thanks for your care and support for Cuihua, who is now in heaven. Everything has been handled properly. We hope that netizens will not be misguided by malicious individuals seeking personal gains, which could harm parents and family members. Let the child rest in peace. Thank you, everyone.”

Since 2022, Cuihua had been documenting her daily life at the camps on social media to her 9,000 followers. The videos showed her performing calisthenics or lifting weights, often displaying moments when she struggled to keep up with the workout but persevered, Sixth Tone reports.

She also ate a strict diet that included coarse grains, cabbage, eggs, and fruit. 

Weight loss camps have become increasingly popular in China. The programs involve trainees stepping away from their usual lives and staying on-site for several months, during which they will work out with a trainer or a fitness group and receive ready-to-eat meals.

But the camps remain controversial, with people concerned that the resulting rapid weight loss could be unsustainable or unhealthy, as the body can’t keep up with the rapid changes.