Frustrated and angered by vile comments on her body weight, Nur Afiqah took to TikTok to say it’s okay to be thin as long as one’s healthy. – Screengrab via Tiktok/_afiqahzulkifli
PETALING JAYA, Feb 11 – A Kedah woman fed-up with nasty body-shaming comments because of her slender figure has taken it to TikTok to channel her frustrations.
In a TikTok video, Nur Afiqah Nabilah Zulkifli, 23, who weighs 39 kilogrammes said that she received unkind comments from friends about how she is too thin and should eat more.
“It’s really not a joke to be receiving these really nasty comments – thin people like us also suffer from not being good enough or undesirable enough in the eyes of the public.
“I’ve had friends from secondary school and even in my university who would say that I’m unable to get pregnant in the future or unable to get a boyfriend because of how thin I look,” she told Malay Mail.
Nur Afiqah, a student attached to Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) Puncak Alam campus added that she has been 39kgs since secondary school.
She has also sought advice from the doctor to check if there was anything wrong with her some time ago.
“The doctor comforted me and told me that although I’m underweight, my cholesterol and blood sugar levels have been good as I lead a healthy lifestyle.
“At one point, I was consumed by insecurities and even asked the doctor for supplements to increase my body weight.
“But he advised me not to, for fear of the side effects and so I didn’t.”
The 23-year-old added that the doctor comforted her saying that she was underweight due to genetics – her mother was also underweight before she got married.
Uploading the video as a form of awareness, she said that it was crucial for people to know and understand that it isn’t okay to pass such vile comments to anyone who was deemed “too thin” or who were plus-sized.
“I can’t do anything about my body so I hope more people will be kinder to each other.
“And I know I’m healthy – I go for my regular hikes and walks to keep fit,” she said.
Many too agreed with what she said and confessed that they too have been body-shamed for being too thin in the eyes of the public.
One user wrote that she had cried because someone “advised” her to eat more to look better.
“If you put on a bit of weight, you will look more beautiful. How hurtful is that?” wrote the user.
Another user shared the same experience saying that she was obsessed with putting on more weight because she felt so insecure about how thin she was.