"I'VE been called fat and ugly and I was bullied because of the way that I looked, so doing something to help others lose weight feels amazing."
So said glamour girl-turned bodybuilder Jodie Marsh this week, as she thumbed through images of people who claim to have shed extraordinary amounts of weight using her fat burning tablets, Semtex.
Against a backdrop of two thirds of British people now officially being obese, she revealed that a major retailer has agreed to stock the meal replacement products, protein shakes and thermogenic tablets and a stack of stories about the supplements' success circulated on Twitter, you would think the 34-year-old has been proved right.
Never one to shy away from controversy, Jodie, now 34, has once again moved into an area that some may consider dubious.
In the 1990s she hit the town with just an ammunition belt covering her modesty and more recently made the decision to become a bodybuilder.
The former helped to launch her career, while the latter saw her crowned the International Natural Bodybuilding Federation (INBF) Natural North America Bodybuilding Champion last year.
Venture
But what of her venture into the powdered shakes and the weight loss market? "First things first, the ingredients are 100 per cent natural," the South Weald resident said.
"But also my products are not just for bodybuilders, every adult can lose weight using them.
"Of course, for them to work you can't just take them and sit on your bum all day, but exercise doesn't have to be running or going to the gym.
"They can still help you lose weight from doing the housework, gardening and taking the dog for a walk.
"Be imaginative with how you exercise and Semtex will help you lose weight and keep it off."
Her tablets burn off calories at around twice the normal rate.
Jodie fell into body building and later set up the website www.jstjodie.co.uk, after fearing she may start losing modelling work because she was piling on the pounds.
Having won the bodybuilding title stateside using her own supplements, she has spread the word to her family.
"Mum takes them," Jodie said, "and loads of my friends do as well. After I won the bodybuilding competition, I got approaches from a number of companies asking me to be the face of their products, but the truth is, I just didn't believe in them.
"I won't put my name to something that I don't completely believe in, that's why I am the guinea pig for all the products that we are producing."
Jodie may have profited handsomely from her six-month supplements business, but she insists that for her, the rewards are greater than just financial.
"People are sending me pictures of them before and after taking Semtex, and it makes me feel so proud," she smiled.
"I was bullied, called fat, and was very insecure, so the fact that I have played a part in changing how other people feel about themselves, is amazing.
"I know it sounds like a bit of a laugh, but I'm getting messages from people on Twitter now saying 'Jodie, you've done more for obesity than the Government ever did'."
Just for visitors of thisistotalessex.co.uk, Jodie is offering 15 per cent off all of her products until midnight on February, 15, 2013.
To claim the deal you need to register on www.jstjodie.co.uk, make a purchase and claim your discount by entering the code GAZETTE.
