The Tapeworm Diet: A Look at Extreme Weight Loss

There are thousands of people who are looking for a quick fix for losing weight and are resorting to extreme weight loss methods to shed the pounds. There are many different controversial diets and weight loss methods, such as the tapeworm diet, that are actually more popular than most people think.

People are taking weight loss to whole new levels with such things as the tapeworm diet and are risking their health by doing so.

What is a Tapeworm?
A tapeworm is a type of parasite worm that is found in raw meat in cows and other animals. They are passed through feces and eating contaminated raw meat. It is not uncommon for children in poverty-stricken countries to get tapeworms due to contaminated meat and their environment. Tapeworms can grow up to 35 feet and it is not unusual for a tapeworm to be in a human and measure as tall as the person is.

The Tapeworm Diet Explained
The tapeworm diet is basically as it sounds. A person ingests the eggs of a tapeworm which then attaches to the inside of her stomach. The tapeworm grows and feeds off the food that a person eats when it reaches their stomach and intestines. Tapeworms keep growing until they reach the end of the digestive tract and then a person secretes parts of them out. Sometimes the tapeworm can be secreted out of the body in full naturally but most of the time a medicine is given to the dieter to make the tapeworm come out the anus.

The people who support the tapeworm diet claim that a person can lose anywhere from 3-5 pounds in a week without having to exercise or eat differently.

The Dangers of the Tapeworm Diet
Anyone who goes on this extreme weight loss diet literally has a parasite growing in their body. The tapeworm takes vital nutrients and vitamins away from a person which can cause vitamin deficiency and anemia. Tapeworms have also been known to travel to other parts of the body such as the brain and cause serious problems like strokes, seizures, and even death. Anyone who follows this extreme weight loss method is taking their own life in their hands. It can never be predicted what will happen when this parasite is living in your body. Some people have even reported that they gained weight on the tapeworm diet instead of losing due to malnutrition and water retention.

The tapeworm diet is nothing new as tapeworm pills were being sold in the 1910's to help women lose weight, but the extreme weight loss diet is becoming more popular with the everyday woman rather than just the elite or celebrities. Although it is illegal in the United States, a person can go over the border to Mexico and have a tapeworm treatment done with no problems. Before anybody follows this extreme weight loss method they should be aware of all the complications that come with the diet and think twice before they allow a parasite to invade their body.

Source: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2009/12/tyra-banks-show-tapeworm-diet.html