How Emma found juicing diet and lost eight stone

A yo-yo dieting vegetarian who was addicted to junk food has shed eight stone after developing a new obsession — juicing.

Emma Houghton, 37, from Kent, had been trying out fad diets since the age of 13 when she received her first cruel jibe about being fat from a boy she liked. But nothing ever worked and by the age of 36 she was at her heaviest at 21 stone and officially classed as obese.

When doctors warned she was at a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes she finally decided to tackle her weight for good.

“When the doctor told me that it really freaked me out. He said I had to start eating healthily and I took it seriously this time,” she said.

So a size 26 Ms Houghton booked into the Obsidian health retreat in Spain where her daily diet of pizza and chips was swapped for juice, and just juice, every day for seven days.

Returning home a stone lighter, she bought a juicer, filled the fridge with fruit and threw out all the junk food in the cupboards.

Eighteen months later she is down to a healthier 12 stone and wears size 12 clothes. She said: “I was a vegetarian addicted to pizza and chips. It wasn’t that I didn’t like vegetables, I just didn’t eat them. The retreat completely inspired me to lead a different life . Now at night I read nutrition books. It’s the best hobby I’ve ever had.”

She and husband Ben, 30, an engineer, are now fervent advocates of juicing and between them have lost over 12 stone.

It has also boosted her confidence, and she has just been promoted to head of retail for cosmetics firm Models Own, based in London.