How far would you go to lose weight? Would you let a 15-foot tapeworm live in your stomach in order to shed those unwanted pounds? The Tyra Show recently featured two women who would.
Click on the video above to see what a tapeworm looks like.
Chalk it up to shock TV, but it's true that some people become so desperate when traditional diets fail that they are willing to swallow a parasite to consume their extra calories. While this is arguably one of the most extreme methods of losing weight, it's actually nothing new. Ads dating back to the late 1800's feature a woman promoting the "easy to swallow, sanitized" tapeworms in order to lose weight without diet or exercise. Sounds like a magic diet pill -- eat whatever you want and still lose weight. Except this is no pill. It's the same parasite found in undercooked meat and seafood that can make people extremely ill.
In case you're not totally grossed out yet, here is how the tapeworm diet works: People ingest a tapeworm cyst from a cow (some come from pigs and fish too, but those are considered more dangerous). The tapeworm then grows inside the digestive tract absorbing calories from your body, which can result in losing one to two pounds a week. Once the target weight is lost, an antibiotic is taken to get rid of the tapeworm.
Tapeworm sales are banned in the U.S. because they carry substantial health risks. While a sizable portion of ingested calories go to the tapeworm, so do vital nutrients. This can lead to vitamin deficiencies and anemia. Other harmful effects include abdominal pain, bloating, digestive disturbances and intestinal obstruction, according to Joan Salge Blake, a clinical associate professor of nutrition at Boston University. There is also the potential for putting the weight back on once the tapeworm is killed -- if it doesn't kill you first (some strains can be deadly). Plus, some tapeworms can grow to 50 feet, which is just downright disgusting, no matter how you look at it. It's no wonder that "purposefully consuming tapeworms is not healthy," according to Blake.
The risks far outweigh the benefits (you can drop one to two pounds a week with diet and exercise). Stick with the tried and true methods of losing weight, and leave the worms out of it.
The tapeworm diet isn't the only crazy way people have tried to lose weight. Click on the gallery below to see celebs' extreme diets.
It's no surprise that skipping meals is one extreme way some celebs lose weight. But the article claims that Paris Hilton starves herself because she was once spotted in a Manhattan restaurant drinking Red Bull and water instead of ordering a meal. We'd love to see Paris gain some weight, but skipping a meal does not equal a pattern of starvation. Bottom line: Extreme calorie-cutting may work in the short-term but sending your body into starvation mode usually means overeating (and weight gain) is just around the corner.
It's no surprise that skipping meals is one extreme way some celebs lose weight. But the article claims that Paris Hilton starves herself because she was once spotted in a Manhattan restaurant drinking Red Bull and water instead of ordering a meal. We'd love to see Paris gain some weight, but skipping a meal does not equal a pattern of starvation. Bottom line: Extreme calorie-cutting may work in the short-term but sending your body into starvation mode usually means overeating (and weight gain) is just around the corner.
John Parra, WireImage.com
Britney Spears gets called out for taking Adderall, a drug used in treating attention-deficit disorder. Adderall abuse is certainly on the rise and one reason is its side effect, loss of appetite. Because the drug can act as an appetite suppressant and Britney takes it, the article concluded she uses it as a diet aid. Bottom line: Take prescription drugs as directed by your doctor. Why? Adderall's other side effects include addiction, depression and psychosis.
Toby Canham, Getty Images
Mary-Kate Olsen gets a smackdown for her coffee-habit. The article claims Hollywood is in the grips of a trend where stars drink the caffeinated stuff to boost metabolism and suppress appetite. while Mary-Kate is often photographed with coffee, we're not sure how much she consumes or how it figures into her weight control. Peterson's scary story about a starving star who drinks coffee instead of eating has nothing to do with Mary-Kate. Bottom line: While drinking coffee can result in a slight metabolism increase, you'd get a better boost (and fewer jitters) from exercising more and cutting a few calories from your diet.
Marcel Thomas, FilmMagic.com
Once photographed jogging with weights in both hands, Teri Hatcher is labeled an overexerciser. We're in total agreement that this TV star is borderline skeletal and that running with weights is a no-no, but the since we didn't talk to her (and neither did their reporter), we can't comment on whether her exercise routine is unhealthy or not. We do know that we'd like her to put on a few pounds. Bottom line: Exercise is key for weight control and overall health, but when it rises to the level of obsession -- an increasing problem -- it's time to seek professional help.
Eric Charbonneau, WireImage.com
Jared Leto is on the list for using the Master Cleanse to lose the weight he gained to play Mark Chapman in the new film "Chapter 27." Peterson tells a horror story about a client (not Leto) who got sick using the juice fast. We don't disagree that the diet is sketchy; if used for more than a few days, it can be outright dangerous. Bottom line: Liquid diets should only be used when under a doctor's care.
Steve Granitz, WireImage.com
Marcia Cross has been very honest about the pressure in Hollywood to be thin, and was recently quoted saying, "It's like they pay me not to eat." Maybe that's why she was spotted by an "insider" drinking juice in a restaurant while her husband ate a full meal. Bottom line: Many celebrities may feel their jobs rest on how they look, but a lot of stars aren't going to diet extremes. Need inspiration? Look to the celebs losing weight the right way.
Charley Galla, WireImage.com
The fact that Lindsay Lohan was found in possession of cocaine doesn't mean she's thin because of drug use as the 'Daily News' would like you to think. We certainly can't make a case for Lohan being a responsible person with good judgment considering her recent trouble with the law but we won't jump to conclusions about how she maintains her weight. Bottom line: Using drugs won't necessarily make you thin. It's never a good idea to use any illegal substances.
If you think thats all there is to it yu are wrong. Some people can't lose the weight with just 1200 cal and a power walk. A lot depends on your family genes also. I have been trying to drop 25 lbs for a very long time and have to battle with family history also. Its not as easy as you think it is.
It's sad to see how ignorant some people can really be. Let's see....risk your health and good chance of dying to lose weight or actually work at it a bit and lose it the correct, healthy way? This kind of dangerous and stupid "diet" are only for lazy idiots who are too dumb to actually lose weight the correct way - consume less calories in a sensible way, eat healthy, and exercise! If they or anyone else that is dumb enough to try that "diet" get sick or die then that is their own fault....I find it difficult to feel bad for people like that.
Yes it is dumb and dangerous but society has this thing for thin people. I am over weight but I work out. Weight doesnt come off easily But I am very healthy yet I am deemed socially unacceptable and a lazy slob because I am over weight. It is no surprise to me that people will go to an extreme to lose.
ewww!! that's nasty!!!!!! a 15ft long tapeworm??? ewww!!!!! and what if it crawls out of the mouth???? EWWWWW!!! i would be fat than have a worm inside of me!!!!!
Actually, they cannot come out the mouth. They attach their mouth piece to the inside wall of your intestines (the one where poop is formed). They then absorb their nutrients from you that way. By absorbing nutrients, they prevent those nutrients from going to you; thusly, you are not really losing weight at first, only preventing it from being made. You lose the weight because your normal movement is burning up what you already have, and the tape worm prevents you from replacing it. When the worm dies, you pass it the same way as feces. They can also just simply become to long for your intestines and begin to slip out the anus as well. This is how most people find out they even have a tapeworm.
I know all tapeworms are not alike, but our cat had them. She threw-up on the floor. I yelled, mom the cat threw up. She yelled clean it up. I looked at it and there was about five large tapeworms crawing out of the puke. I screemed but there is worms in it. Mom yelled back don't touch it, I will clean it. She ran in and surrouded the puke pile with bleach. The next morning she got some medication for the cat. She gave it to the cat. Then about two days later the cat died anyway.
Not only can this be deadly, but it's unsustainable! The people [who use tapeworms for weightloss] are doing nothing to change their actual eating habits, so once they lose the tapeworm, they'll gain back all the weight.
Watching that video makes me ask the question, don't schools teach biology anymore? I remember learning about tape worms when I was about 15 and in biology class. The audience, Tyra, and the two sitting there with the good doctor seem totally agasp at what they look like, how long they can get, and what they do. Go back to school and learn something . Anything for shock value. What is also " shocking" is when I went to the morgue during my studies for working in the health field, and saw a HUGE hair ball in a jar sitting on the shelf, that we were told came from the stomach of a young girl who pulled out and then ate her own hair. It got so big, she died from it. True. OCD result.
I'm in grade 12 biology right now and the only reason I'm learning about this is because we have to do a report on a fab diet and why it doesn't work in the long term and I just happened to stumble on this one and chose it as my topic.
TAPEWORMS in children are fairly common. a fact. ( Because they aren't the best at washing their hands--germs, microbes-get into the body from dirty hands and touching the face or eating without cleansing the hands especially after using the toilet) See? Washing AFTER using the bathroom is vital. Cleanliness IS next to godliness.
NOt only is this dangerous, but there are other ways to loose 1-2 pounds a week, without much effort. Most people do not drink enough water. Water helps the body metabolize fat, as does milk. So, drink up. Also, eating 5-6 small, handful sized, meals a day will really burn the fat. I did the bariatric diet, which gives you 5 small meals and lost 28 pounds in one month! It doesn't have to be a specific diet though. Just cut down portion sizes, eat low carbs, or healthy carbs, such as wheat bread instead of white, or brown rice instead of white. Eat lots of healthy protein, in small increments. Portion control is key. 5-6 small meals keeps your metabolism fueled like a fire to burn, burn, burn. It is much better than one big meal a day and starving yourself the rest of the time. Think about a fire in a fireplace. If I give you 6 logs and you throw them all on the fire at once, you will have a huge fire for a few hours. If you have no more logs to put on it until the next day at the same time, by then, there will be no fire left, just a few embers. However, if you put one log on, and four hours later add another, and so on, you will continually have a fire until the next day. The same is true with your metabolism. Fuel the fat burning fire by giving it a little something every 3-4 hours. And if your diet is rich in protein ( a handful of nuts, a boiled egg, half a can of tuna, etc.) and you are drinking plenty of liquids, you will not get hungry. Protein takes 4 hours to digest and we all know liquids fill you up. Another secret to weight loss is the amount of liquids you drink. For every 25 pounds overweight you are, you should drink an EXTRA eight ounce glass of water. So, drink your normal eight, eight ounce glasses, plus one for each 25 pounds overweight you are. These tips really do work. I know. I lost 25 pounds in a month!
The actual tapeworm isn't that gross really. It just looks like sea weed. I think it is more the fact that some people get them put in their bodies to eat fat away is the vile part. That is sick, who would do such a thing? So many better ways to lose the weight. Also, if I was sitting next to the doctor I would lick the tapeworm just to freak out Tyra and everyone in the audience, that's just the kinda guy I am! I'd be like "Wanna see somethin' real sick?" (lick) audience gasps in horror
Wow....people really think this is NEW!? This was done back in the 1800's and even till the 1920s or so. Sad...but in all honesty, if it can be done safely, eventually, it may help those with serious weight issues (those who are bedridden because of underlying medical conditions)
This is ridiculous. I've struggled with being overweight for a very long time myself, but I finally found a plan that help me shed 75 lbs. I even started coaching others. If you are interested, email me at beslimwithkim@aol.com or check out the website at beslimwithkim.tsfl.com. You won't be sorry...and you won't have worm swirling around in your body!!
