Rozanna Purcell is an Irish model, charity worker who was crowned Miss Universe Ireland 2010 and represented Ireland at Miss Universe 2010 on 23rd August 2010 at Mandalay Bay Events Centre in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. She was placed at Top 10 of the competition and was highly appreciated for her performance during the competition. Purcell became the first Miss Universe Ireland to place since 1998 to place in the Top 10 at Miss Universe.
Rozanna hails from Clonmel, Co. Tipperary but now lives in Dublin who stepped into the world of pageantry when she decided to compete at Miss Universe Ireland 2009 which was held on 26th June 2009 at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. At the age of 18, Purcell went to college in Dublin, which is when she was approached by someone asking if she had ever thought about being a model. She stated "I thought it was a joke, but when an agency called me a few weeks later, I realized it was for real.” She was adjudged as the first runner-up at the end of the event finale, losing the title to Diana Donnelly. However, her desire to represent the country at Miss Universe stage brought her back at Miss Universe Ireland 2010 competition where she was crowned as the winner at the end of the event finale and got her opportunity to represent the country at Miss Universe 2010. The diva decided to move to New York after her stint in the pageant to continue her work and make a career in modelling.
After moving to New York, Rozanna worked with renowned designers, photographers and brands in order to make a name for herself in the field of modelling. Her hard work and determination made her reach at the top of the charts and she was one of the famous Irish models in the town. She was then invited to judge at the Miss Venezuela 2010 pageant. She later joined her mentor Andrea Roche's modelling agency in Ireland. She was also invited to judge Miss Universe Ireland 2012.
Except being a beauty queen and a flawless model, Rozanna was interested in blogging as well as cooking. She started her website ‘naturalbornfeeder.com’ at her home in Ireland. The blog is about her love for food and simple, healthy recipes in which she only uses whole foods. Her blog became so popular that people wanted more. She mentioned, “I was told I needed to lose weight but I didn't know what or how to do it so I just started eating too little and running all the time. I came irritated and sad. I loved food and I wasn't allowing myself to have anything enjoyable. I realized I had to change my life, so I got out of the industry and stayed at home for a while. I found a gym I loved and fell back in love with food."
Talking about her food blog, Purcell said, “Two years after I started my blog, I was asked to do a book. I realized people wanted everyday recipes that were simple. None of this kale and goji berry salads; it's just basic, healthy ingredients that make a delicious dinner." She left modelling and kept her focus towards encouraging a healthy lifestyle after her bad experience with food. She wrote Natural Born Feeder in 2016 which is full of healthy, tasty recipes. Her second cookbook Half Hour Hero was released in 2017 and a third one No Fuss Vegan was released in January 2020. She describes her recipes as "natural food that helps you look and feel healthier and happier." She also started a podcast this summer called Bite Back where she interviews women about all thing’s health, food and wellness.
Purcell opened about dealing with binge eating in her 20s during one of her podcasts. "I would eat very little Monday to Friday and at the weekends I would be overwhelmed by emotions and eat”. She posted her transformation picture on her social media with a caption to make people understand the importance of food in one’s life. She wrote, "I always thought if I got smaller things would be better, I would be happier and that life would fall into place. I based all my self-worth on what size I was. I was always congratulated for losing weight ,our society tells us it’s a good thing and people would always commend it, one of the hardest parts about getting better was the fear of what people would think and my own fear that putting on weight was seen as a failure or a bad thing in society. It definitely got worse before it got better and it’s something I still have to work on, sometimes there's triggers whether that's being online or someone commented on my shape but it has gotten much easier to manage."
Rozanna began her journey to recovery by seeking professional help from cognitive behavioural therapy, which she explains has helped her to rationalize more thoughts and be positive towards situations and herself. She also stated, "I'm finally at an age and time in my life where I thought if never be, I would rather use my page on social to be a place to make someone feel good rather than feed my own ego and I don't really need validation off people or strangers to tell me I'm enough.”
Rozanna has also focused on her physical activity in balance with her tasty and healthy recipes. She has taken up boxing as her favourite physical form of activity and even encourages more women to try the same. She has been vocal about how young girls and woman tend to get sucked in the world of ‘perfect beauty’ and forget that what they are is real. She has urged her fellow Irish people to put women's health to the forefront of the national conversation. She has stated that women’s health should be discussed and given importance like every other subject.
The fitness and nutrition blogger who left her beauty pageant stature to advocate about body positivity and focus on creating easy, healthy and delicious recipes for everyone has been an inspiration to thousands of girls who are put down by the ones in power. In one of her interviews, she mentioned, "Now my main thing is food and fitness. I’m only doing a few odd jobs, like photoshoots. It’s a little bit more manageable, and I enjoy it a little more.”
Rozanna’s social media is full of positivity, food and her workout regime. Beauty queens like Rozanna Purcell are not only pursuing their dreams but being a positive role model for the ones who are always looking for inspiration and hope. You can find her recipes on her social media or on her blog.