14 DAY TRIAL // A woman from Iowa has stunned the medical world by deliberately ingesting a tapeworm in order for it to help her lose weight.
According to a report by the Des Moines Register, officials with the Iowa Department of Public Health were alerted about the patient eating the worm.
The doctor was stunned by the medical issue and needed information on treating the woman. Authorities suggested that Dr. Patricia Quinlisk have the patient ingest anti-worm medication.
She advised other doctors to let their patients know that eating the worms will not help anyone lose weight, as they just do not absorb enough nutrients for that.
“Ingesting tapeworms is extremely risky and can cause a wide range of undesirable side effects, including rare deaths. [...] Those desiring to lose weight are advised to stick with proven weight loss methods; consuming fewer calories and increasing physical activity,” she wrote in an email.