Vegan influencer Zhanna D’Art ‘dies of starvation and exhaustion’ after switching to restrictive tropical fruit diet

A vegan raw food influencer who lived on a diet of exotic fruit has reportedly died from starvation and exhaustion.  

Zhanna Samsonova, originally from Russia, had been living in South-East Asia and eating an exclusively raw vegan diet consisting of ‘fruits, sunflower seed sprouts, fruit smoothies and juices’ for the past five years.

However her eating habits became worryingly restrictive in the last few months of her life according to her friends. 

The 40-year-old, known as Zhanna D’Art online, passed away on July 21 reportedly from a ‘cholera-like infection’ exacerbated by ‘exhaustion of the body by a vegan diet’ her mother told Russian newspaper Vechernyaya Kazan. 

Zhanna’s official cause of death has not yet been determined as her family try to get her body back to Russia. 

Originally from Russia, Zhanna had been living in South-East Asia eating a raw vegan diet consisting of ‘fruits, sunflower seed sprouts, fruit smoothies and juices’ for the past five years

The food blogger’s mum Vera Samsonova told local news outlets Zhanna was supposed to fly home to Kazan on the day of her death. 

Vera did not approve of her daughter’s extreme diet and tried to convince her to introduce more balanced eating habits but she refused. 

Speaking with Newsflash, an anonymous friend of Zhanna claimed they saw Zhanna a few months ago in Sri Lanka ‘looking exhausted’. 

‘They sent her home to seek treatment. However, she ran away again. When I saw her in Phuket, I was horrified,’ they said. 

Her eating habits became worryingly restrictive in the last few months of her life according to her friends. Zhanna’s official cause of death has not yet been determined

In a post published on June 7, Zhanna said she was excited for fruit season in Thailand saying it was ‘time to gain weight’

‘I lived one floor above her and every day I feared finding her lifeless body in the morning. I convinced her to seek treatment, but she didn’t make it.’

Zhanna had been following a vegan diet for about a decade starting out by allowing herself fish and dairy occasionally. 

However over the years, her restrictive eating became more and more extreme with one friend claiming for the past seven years she would only eat durian, a spiky fruit known for its pungent smell, Time News reported. 

Her Instagram feed shows different, however, and is filled with videos with tens of thousands of views with colourful raw dishes including soups, salads, fruits and even burgers and cakes. 

In a post published on June 7, Zhanna said she was excited for fruit season in Thailand saying it was ‘time to gain weight’.