The truth about the raw diet that killed a Russian beauty

Social media star Zhanna Samsonova's raw vegan diet causes physical exhaustion, malnutrition, and can lead to death from malnutrition, according to experts.

Posting posts about her raw, vegan diet to “detox” on Instagram and TikTok every week, Russian influencer Zhanna Samsonova is considered an inspiration to thousands of followers. She gives up all meat, fish, nuts, dairy, grains and even water, eating mainly fruits, vegetables and drinking juices.

Samsonova died earlier this week at the age of 39. Her mother said her daughter had "an infection and a cholera-like disease." However, Samsonova's friends said she died of malnutrition and exhaustion.

Samsonova said on social media that her diet could “make people healthier.” But her death has raised questions about the unregulated wellness industry, which has turned orthorexia into inspiration for a better life.

According to close friends, before her death, Samsonova often appeared tired, thin, with swollen legs and lymphatic drainage. Dr. Rebecca Reynolds, a nutritionist in Sydney, said that a diet consisting entirely of "fruit, sunflower sprouts, smoothies and juices" left Samsonova's body exhausted.

"When you cut out certain food groups, you have to supplement them with other foods that contain the same nutrients. Without supplements, you will die of malnutrition. You cannot live on sunflower seeds," said Dr. Reynolds.

Nutritionist TC Callis said that Samsonova's healthy facade allowed her to deceive herself and others, hiding her mental health problems. According to her, the Russian blogger may suffer from orthorexia, an obsession with certain eating habits - a type of mental disorder. People with the condition often believe in certain healthy diet concepts and stick to them, regardless of nutrition. According to Dr. Reynolds, when the body is in a state of starvation, the brain does not function normally, causing cognitive decline.

The photo was posted by female influencer Zhanna Samsonova on her personal page. Photo: Zhanna Samsonova — The photo was posted by female influencer Zhanna Samsonova on her personal page. Photo: *Zhanna Samsonova*

Samsonova's diet is extreme, but quite common. Leanne Ratcliffe, an Australian YouTuber with 330 million views, also eats a vegan diet rich in fruit, especially bananas. She caused controversy when she claimed that not having a period for 9 months was a sign of good health, because the body has few toxins that need to be eliminated through menstruation.

This view is scientifically unreasonable, because the loss of menstruation during childbearing age is an abnormal sign warning of illness, according to the UK National Health Service (NHS).

When their eating habits become an obsession, many influencers find themselves at odds with the online communities they’ve built. Model Essena O’Neill deleted all her social media accounts after saying her vegan diet left her “lost” and “sick.” She received backlash, including death threats, from vegan fans.

The wellness industry is now worth $3.5 trillion. That number is so absurdly large that it shows how convincing pseudoscientific claims can be. It has led many to believe in a perfect future free of disease, excess weight, anxiety, and depression, all thanks to the concept of “detoxification” and “rebalancing and healing the body.”

"Detox is a completely meaningless term. There is no medical concept of 'rebalancing'. Our bodies have amazing detoxification tools: the liver and kidneys. You absolutely do not need to drink green juice for 5 days to cleanse your colon like the ridiculous instructions on the internet," Callis said.

She acknowledges that putting toxins in your body is bad, and advocates cutting back on soda, sugar, and processed foods, quitting smoking, and limiting alcohol. But she objects to the way the wellness industry packages these simple habits as “detox” to make money.

Healthy eating is essential in an age of widespread obesity, but the diets that influencers peddle are sometimes dangerous. People like Samsonova and Ratcliffe practice a raw vegan diet, which can easily lead to starvation, especially for women trying to conceive. A lack of fat can cause reproductive disorders.

"I'm pro-meat. We evolved for millions of years eating meat. The human body needs high-energy fats. We're omnivores, and we learned to make fire to preserve the nutrients in our food," Callis said, adding that today, people's food is infested with thousands of chemicals. But the solution isn't to go vegan or eat raw food.

"If we eat like that, we need different types of teeth and much longer intestines," the expert said.

Yet in many articles, influencers refer to meat and dairy as dirty foods that pollute the intestines. They argue that the only way to achieve a “higher lifestyle” is to eat clean, eating only vegetables, fruits, nuts and water.

Raw vegans are all slim and attractive. Their fans are inadvertently receiving the wrong message: thin is healthy, healthy is thin. Viewed in this light, the industry is less concerned with the psychological issues, more focused on the extreme dieting culture of the past.

“I actually think the term ‘cure’ helps a lot of people hide their eating disorders. When they do it for so long, they get into a habit and really believe they’re doing the right thing, especially if they’re being praised by others,” says psychologist Sheri Jacobson, founder of Harley Therapy.

Thuc Linh (According to Telegraph, NY Post )

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