A woman is warning other ‘drunkorexics’ - people who sign up to calorie controlled diets to lose weight, but skip meals so they can drink alcohol instead.

Louise Gibbons, from Temple Hill, Dartford, was one of an increasing percentage of women who ‘cheat’ on diets to continue living the party lifestyle - but put their health at risk to get slim.

At a time of year where people are more prone to quick-fixes and crash diets, Mrs Gibbons is urging people to lead a healthy lifestyle instead of consuming the wrong things.

Speaking from experience - after bingeing in her 30s the 44-year-old was a size 20 and weighed more than 16 stone - she said: “When I hit 40 and looked at birthday pictures, I hated what I saw.

"So I went on this diet, and I went to the gym, but I didn’t want to give up my party lifestyle.

"I liked going out and having a drink at the weekend. I’d skip lunches and dinners to give myself an extra 500 calories here and there to use at the weekend.

“There was this idea of ‘eating is cheating’ so you’d eat less to get drunk quicker and then swap wine for things like vodka as they have less calories as well.”

In a year, she lost about four stone, but felt lethargic and ill.

Together with husband Ken, they decided to kick the habit and make a lifestyle change.

The mum-of-three added: “It takes it toll as you get older, and I was waking up on a Monday still groggy.

"My hair and skin weren’t looking healthy either.

“We decided to stop, and after a year now I feel much better. My nails are stronger, even the whites of my eyes are brighter.

“It’s worth everyone just thinking, do I need to drink quite as much?”

New Department of Health guidelines announced last week recommend drinking no more than 14 units of alcohol week spread over three of more days in order to limit health risks from drinking.

A YouGov survey of 2,025 women, commissioned by the website Driet, found one in 20 who drink admit to skipping a meal so they can drink more later.

This has been dubbed drunkorexia because it can starve your body of essential vitamins and minerals.

Consuming so many empty calories can lead to deficiencies and long-term health impacts.

The advice is to reduce alcohol intake, rather than looking at it as an ‘either-or’ with food.

While many women seem concerned about weight gain associated with alcohol, only a quarter surveyed said they thought cuting down on the booze would improve their health.

In fact it can cause high blood pressure, liver disease and cancer.

A woman’s risk of breast cancer increases by 7% for each 10 grams of alcohol typically consumed per day.