Influencer, 24, dies after problems from excessive consuming as docs concern warning
‘Ganfan Yingying’, who had more than a million followers online, was known for her mukbang videos – a genre of content which involves eating vast quantities of food on camera
Chen Ziyi tragically died after cardiac arrest(Image: JamPress)
A Chinese mukbang influencer has died following a cardiac arrest linked to “low potassium levels”.
Chen Ziyi – better known by her online moniker ‘Ganfan Yingying’ – tragically died on August 17, with her death prompting doctors to warn of the health issues that can come with laxative use.
Chen, 24, commanded over 1,000,000 followers online and was known for her mukbangs – a genre of content which involves eating vast quantities of food on camera. ‘Mukbang’ is a South Korean phrase which is a mashup of the words “meokd” and “bangsong,” which translate to eat and broadcast respectively.
She was well known for her mukbang videos(Image: JamPress)
In a final video, shared three days before her death, Chen said she had “not been posting as much” because she was in hospital due to low potassium levels, according to Global Times.
The clip was reportedly filmed from Chen’s hospital bed and saw the influencer revealing she had previously been hospitalised for the same reason.
Chen said her blood potassium had dropped to 2.3 millimoles per litre, a fatally low level she reportedly attributed to her career as a mukbang influencer.
Chen reported low levels of potassium days before her death(Image: JamPress)
Normal adult potassium levels typically fall between 3.5 to 5.2 millimoles per litre, with anything dropping below 3 millimoles per litre classified as severe hypokalemia – the medical terminology for dangerously low potassium concentrations in the blood.
Potassium, an electrolyte, plays a vital role in cardiac electrical function, extreme instances of hypokalemia can trigger cardiac arrest, as documented by the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
Hypokalemia is “often caused by an excessive loss of potassium in your digestive tract due to vomiting, diarrhea or laxative use,” according to Cleveland Clinic.
The influencer commanded around 1,000,000 followers (Image: JamPress)
In her final video, Yingying reportedly said she attributed her condition, at least in part, to her longtime habit of vomiting the food she consumes for her social media content.
Elsewhere in the video that became her final message, the influencer told her fans to take care of their health, stating that while “earning money is important, health should always come first,” several outlets reported.
