Actress Jameela Jamil has described her obsession with weight as a "horrifying waste of happiness".

She was consumed by the task of being thin and struggled with crash diets and anorexia, reports mirror.co.uk

The 33-year-old actress said she weighed herself every day for more than 20 years and her mood was dictated by what she saw on the scales.

Jamil told Stylist magazine: "I ended up weighing myself every single day of my life until last year. That's 21 f***ing years of waking up every morning and my entire mood for the day being determined by the number on a stupid little machine in my bathroom.

"What a horrifying waste of happiness. What a horrifying waste of time. What a sad thing for a bright girl who technically knew better, to keep as her deep, dark secret for so long."

Speaking about when the insecurities began, Jameela said it was being publicly weighed in school and that she was the heaviest in her class.

At home, she said her parents were not supportive, but put her on a crash diet to tackle her weight. She added that her teenage years became more consumed by her obsession, leading to dangerous weight loss, bed sores, a thinning heart and thyroid problems.

"I was depressed. I was weak. I was in chaos," she said.

Jameela also said the pressure put on young girls to be thin began long before the advent of social media.