Overweight teenager Emma Daly used superhuman willpower to lose nearly half her bodyweight - by giving up her favourite Chocolate Digestives.
The 18-year-old ballooned to 15 stone by chomping on Britain's favourite biscuits. But after becoming the target of cruel school bullies, she decided to ditch the treats – and now the svelte 8st, 11lbs teen is set for a career as a model after entering a beauty contest.
Emma's biscuit bingeing started in primary school and by the time she left, she weighed more than 12 stone. By 13, she was tipping the scales at 15 stone and had become the target of cruel jibes from school bullies.
Emma, from Dewsbury, who is training as a make-up artist, said: "I was one of the first girls to hit puberty and it was horrible. I would just come home and comfort eat a whole packet of chocolate digestives.
"I also drank about seven hot chocolates every day. Some nights I would go to my grandma's for supper and then come home and have a second one with my mum. I hid the junk food I ate from my mum."
She said her life was made such a misery by bullies that she would feign illness to stay off school.
Eventually Emma's mother intervened and helped her to swap biscuits for salad. The pounds started to drop off almost immediately.
"I started eating fruit and vegetables instead of biscuits and snacks," says Emma.
"I used to have sugary cereal or biscuits for breakfast but now I have fat free yoghurt and fruit I feel so much healthier."
Emma's new confident prompted her to enter Miss Teen Queen UK and, much to her delight, has made it through to the second heat.
She said: "My friends made me sign up to the pageant and I totally forgot about it until I got a letter through my door.
"I think deep down every girl would love to be a model, but I just never ever thought I could do it. Now I am being told to sign up to modelling agencies. I can't really believe it."
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