Christina Applegate detailed her struggle with anorexia

Christina Applegate has revealed she suffered from an eating disorder early in her career. In a new episode of Messyher podcast with Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Applegate recalled a time when she “starved me for years and years and years.”

“It was fucking torture,” she said of her battle with anorexia, before adding that it all started when a neighbor called her fat growing up. When she was cast as Kelly Bundy in Married with children at age 15, her mother signed her up for Weight Watchers.

“She was always competitive,” Applegate recalled. “If I got down to 110 (pounds), she’d be like… ‘How did you do that?’ And the reason was I had an eating disorder I would eat five almonds a day and if I had six I would cry and I wouldn’t leave the house for years and years.”

Her character became known for her fashion sense, which included miniskirts and crop tops, and at the time, Applegate said she “wanted my bones to stick out, so I didn’t eat”.

Applegate added that eventually, the cast and crew noticed and approached her about it. “It was very scary for everyone on set because they were like, ‘Christina never eats.’ They talked to me about it,” she said. There was even a point where the costume department had to size him down to a size 0.

“But for me, I was huge,” she explained.

Applegate said she still struggles with negative thoughts today. After gaining 100 pounds due to MS and her medications, the actress said: “The demon in my head comes back really strong and it scares me. I have to be aware of it so I don’t start developing bad habits .to hurt me.”

Applegate has “never discussed” her eating disorder in a public forum, although she has always been candid about her health. The actress has spoken out several times about her battle with multiple sclerosis since her diagnosis in 2021.

Last month, Applegate said she was in the midst of a relapse. “I haven’t slept in 24 hours because my eye is doing something weird, and every time I close my eye to go to sleep, my right eye starts moving like this,” she said . “My legs have never been this bad, so I don’t know what’s going on, like, no energy, legs are just gone, like, I can’t get circulation, I can’t get make them stop hurting me.”

If you are suffering from an eating disorder, NEDA has a toll-free, confidential national eating disorder helpline.