"They were making me sick": Nicola Robinson says her breast implants were destroying her body.

Pete Evan’s wife, Nicola Robinson, has claimed her breast implants made her extremely ill.

Speaking on Sunday Night, the 41-year-old former model opened about the breast enlargements, which she calls the “biggest regret” of her life.

“When I do think of how they used to look. Like, I was just so ashamed of myself,” she said.

Nicola, who modelled for Playboy before meeting her husband celebrity chef Pete Evans, has had three breast augmentations since she was 21 years old.

But after coming to the conclusion that her implants were affecting her health, Nicola had them removed in mid-2017.

“I didn’t actually like them. They were making me sick and essentially ageing me. So it just made perfect sense to me that they had to go,” she said.

“I’ve had to have a number of surgeries to correct ongoing complications. It’s been a painful, expensive process.”

In an Instagram post on Sunday morning, the former model admitted that while she has had her implants removed, she still experiences breast implant illness symptoms, including “tip to toe swelling”.

“I feel it’s important to express the fact that I blame no one, not even myself for my choices & I’m candidly communicating my perception of breast implants with the pure intent for us all to choose self love over judgement,” she wrote.

What is breast implant illness?

Women who believe they have breast implant illness complain of rheumatoid arthritis, extreme fatigue, hair loss, and recurring infections.

For any woman who is concerned, it’s important to note breast implant illness is not officially recognised. A recent paper released on breast implant illness by the Therapeutic Goods Administration said: “To date, no causative link has been established between having a breast implant and these symptoms. However, this does not mean the TGA doesn’t consider the reporting of these symptoms to be unimportant.”

Although Macquarie University hospital’s Dr Louis Wessels says this needs to change.

“Breast implants aren’t 100 per cent safe,” Dr Wessels said on Sunday Night.

“I think the first step in treating this condition is to acknowledge that it exists and that certain women are susceptible.”

Each year in Australia, close to 30,000 women get implants – a trend that is largely driven by social media.

“We’re seeing it on Instagram, on Facebook. It’s a part of every day,” Dr Wessels said.

Breast implant illness is believed to be caused by the leakage of silicone from the implants into the body, normally caused by a rupture.

Watch: Nicola Robinson speaks about breast implant illness on Sunday Night.

In the case of Nicola, however, her implants weren’t ruptured at all.

Despite this, husband and celebrity chef Pete maintains: “They’re causing her body and other women’s bodies major issues.”

Mother-of-two and former personal trainer Mel Ward also spoke to Sunday Night about her experience with the illness and the number of debilitating symptoms she has endured.

“I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. I’ve had two bouts of pneumonia. I’ve had bladder infections, chronic infections, major hormonal imbalance, depression, anxiety,” the 37-year-old said.

“Being this sick has become my new normal.”

Mel, who suffered a ruptured implant after having implants for 11 years, chose to have her implants removed in the hopes of alleviating her symptoms.

“I feel the healthiest I’ve felt in 10 years. I’m not fatigued anymore. I’m not in pain anymore,” she said.

Nicola Robinson is now campaigning for other women who may be suffering from the illness.