KIIS breakfast DJ responds to criticism of recent diet comments

RADIO DJ Jackie O Henderson is stunned by the negative reaction to her “off the cuff” comments about what she had for lunch.

Jackie O is concerned about the ­impact the fallout could have on her seven-year-old daughter. Source: @jackieo_official

WHEN she used to brag about scoffing big bowls of mac’n’ cheese and bacon, no one raised an eyebrow.

But when radio DJ Jackie O Henderson confessed to having just one avocado for lunch in her quest to shed some unwanted kilos, she got, well, smashed.

And while the KIIS FM brekkie host agrees her “off-the-cuff” comments about her eating habits may not have been the best healthy eating advice she could give, she is still shocked by the negative reaction it ­unleashed.

Jackie O Henderson at her Vaucluse home in Sydney. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“What I used to eat was horrific and I have ­always been very open about that on air,” Henderson told The Sunday Telegraph.

“I would come home every day from work and cook up a huge batch of macaroni and cheese with bacon and butter, and I would have a bowl, then another bowl, then another bowl for dinner.

“I was obsessed with macaroni and cheese and potato chips and I have said that on air — but no one even cared.

“As soon as I say I am eating an avocado for lunch, people say, ‘oh no you can’t do that’.

“People say I need to set a good ­example, but I am not going to lie.”

Henderson said her comments were taken out of context. Picture: Instagram

Jackie O on a Fijian holiday. Picture: Instagram

The 43-year-old was on the end of a huge backlash when she told listeners her 10kg weight loss was a result of having no breakfast, just an avocado for lunch and chicken and ­vegies for dinner.

The criticism from dietitians, nutritionists and mental health experts was swift, accusing her of normalising what was effectively a “starvation diet”.

Henderson believes her comments were simply taken out of context.

“I don’t even mention the word ‘diet’ in our house.” Picture: Sam Ruttyn

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“It wasn’t like we were doing a whole break about diets. If I’d known it was going to blow up like that, then I would have clarified more,” she said.

“I hated the idea that people thought I was promoting the fact that people should be starving themselves to lose weight.

“I have a daughter and that kind of message concerns me and I would never want to see her do something like that.

“I never said I was starving myself. I was simply asked what do you eat, I wasn’t saying this is what everyone should eat to lose weight.”

She is particularly concerned about the ­impact the fallout could have on her seven-year-old daughter Kitty.

Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“Kitty is now at an age where she has kids in her class who listen to the show,” she said.

“That worries me when you have a message that is out there that has been taken out of context.

“She is getting to an age where she is hearing what’s going on so you have to be careful.

“I don’t even mention the word ‘diet’ in our house and Kitty has a really healthy attitude towards food.”

Henderson’s weight loss recently prompted the notoriously body-shy radio host to share on social media a swimwear snap on a holiday to Fiji.