James Brittain-McVey, the lead guitarist of the band Vamps, has told MPs that pressure around his body image resulted in him undergoing liposuction to remove breast tissue at the age of 20.
The musician, now 27, told a Health and Social Care Select Committee discussing the impact of body image on physical and mental health that he had battled anorexia ever since he was a teenager.
Brittain-McVey also said that in the aftermath of his appearance on ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2018, he felt the need to “focus on myself more than ever, physically”.
Giving evidence to the committee, he said he started worrying about how he looked around the age of 14 and struggled to fit in.
But after seeing “ripped” men advertised on social media and “big American surf style companies”, Brittain-McVey said he would “think unconsciously every morning… that is what I need to look like”.
“Social media encouraged me to fall further down that rabbit hole,” he continued.
“The first thoughts I would have when I woke up in the morning was: ‘Should I be eating that, am I going to be able to get to the gym?’”
He decided to get liposuction at the age of 20 to remove extra breast tissue in his chest, which was the result of a common condition called gynaecomastia.
Brittain-McVey said: “People presume it was me striving for vanity – but it was pressure to conform to stereotypes and gender constructs.
“And before I realised it, my whole life was controlled by this chase to look a certain way.”
He called on the government to “clamp down on advertising” so that “bodies represent society and not unachievable bodies”.
“I worry about future generations,” he said. “How on earth are they meant to feel comfortable within their skin if you go on apps now and you scroll and see another person that looks a certain way?”
The guitarist, who now campaigns against unhealthy body image, also spoke about his experience during I’m A Celeb and said he went into the show “feeling extremely confident”.
“I came out of that show five or six kilograms lighter and when my wife saw me, she was shocked, almost scared by how ill I looked.
“However, I thought immediately I kind of look good again,” he said. “I had a six-pack in a way that I hadn’t for 10 years, since the beginning of my issues with food and mental health.
“And I think without realising, I still had unanswered demons in my head about my body.”
Brittain-McVey said he felt that the brand deals he received after the show were due to his lean appearance, and he felt pressured not to gain any weight.
“I still feel a pressure to look a certain way and that’s why I worry for a lot of our fan base,” he added.
The committee is examining the relationship between people’s perception of their body image and their physical and mental health.
It is considering how much unhealthy body image can hinder people’s access to NHS services and whether NHS training and government messaging should be changed to better support patients.
For anyone struggling with the issues raised in this piece, eating disorder charity Beat’s helpline is available 365 days a year on 0808 801 0677. NCFED offers information, resources and counselling for those suffering from eating disorders, as well as their support networks. Visit eating-disorders.org.ukor call 0845 838 2040.
