The Chinese streamer Pan Xiaoting passed away at the age of 24 during a 10-hour challenge in which she consumed large amounts of food.
What kind of trend is this? Mukbang is an internet trend from South Korea where people film themselves eating or live stream their meals. It started in the early 2010s on the platform AfreecaTV.
Originally, eating streams were meant to simulate the feeling of shared meals during times of increasing isolation and loneliness: viewers consumed their own food while watching the streamers and exchanged messages in chats.
Mukbang creators earn a lot of money, risking their health
Why is the trend dangerous? Successful Mukbang creators quickly earned thousands of US dollars per month when converted to their currency. However, the type of meals consumed became increasingly extreme: particularly large amounts of unhealthy or especially spicy food attracted viewers (via Quartz).
A prominent example is the American YouTuber Nicholas “Nikocado Avocado” Perry, whose Mukbang videos regularly achieved millions of views. However, his weight gain caused concern among many fans.
The Federal Center for Nutrition explains the trend and expresses concerns about eating disorders, health problems, and the glorification of unhealthy eating behaviors associated with Mukbang.
If you have concerns or distress, you can reach the telephone counseling service free of charge at 0800 1110111 or 0800 1110222.
How did the streamer die? In China, Mukbang videos were banned in 2021 with a law against binge eating. Nevertheless, the Chinese streamer Pan Xiaoting passed away during a 10-hour food challenge, during which she reportedly consumed 10 kilograms of food.
As our colleagues from 3D Juegos reported, the streamer circumvented the ban by live streaming her meals instead of posting them as a video. Pan Xiaoting was only 24 years old. An autopsy reportedly revealed that her stomach was deformed from excessive eating. Most of the undigested remnants of her last meal were found in her stomach.
