The food side of TikTok is no stranger to interesting characters, to put it lightly. From Americans putting full blocks of cheese in absolutely everything to fans of the carnivore diet eating full sticks of butter, there is plenty to be concerned about. Content creator Eddie Abbew has gone viral for somewhat different reasons, however.
The bodybuilder and gym owner has racked up more than 965k followers on the app and has quickly become a divisive figure due to his advice on food and nutrition. His videos in supermarkets encourage people to buy single ingredients, avoid ultra-processed food, and “wake the f*ck up”.
For the most part, Abbew makes some solid points; most of the stuff massive corporations are trying to sell us is absolute rubbish, and eating proper fresh food is good for you. His comment sections are full of people saying he’s changed their lives and that they’re already seeing the benefits.
Sometimes, however, his videos take it too far. “Morning goods, rise and shine,” he says in front of the bakery section in Aldi. “How about rise and die?” Another, filmed in M&S, he proclaims, “diabetes day” and “heart attack day” while pointing at displays for Valentine’s and Pancake Day.
God bless the supermarket staff that have to put up with him, honestly. In one video he even admits to wearing a wig to the shop because he’d been kicked out previously.
A problematic creator?
These videos creep into fear-mongering territory, with many commenters poking fun at his doom-and-gloom outlook: “Just ate a flapjack, am I about to die?” one asks. “Hey Eddie, I had a Kinder Bueno for breakfast, how long do I have left to live?” says another.
While his commenters are clearly joking, they do raise a fair point – Abbew is taking things way too seriously. Having a sweet treat once in a while isn’t a life-or-death situation at the end of the day. His demonization of certain foods can be dangerous, especially for people with eating disorders. No food group is outright evil – everything in moderation, eat that damn pancake if you want to.
Abbew’s day-to-day diet certainly isn’t for everyone (extremely heavy on eggs – at least ten a day) but if it works for him, good on him. Maybe just take his advice with a pinch of salt (pun not intended) before you go chucking everything out of the fridge – he’s making money off people too.
Featured image credit: Eddie Abbew/TikTok
Film, media and journalism student. I like writing about my inability to eat gluten.
