Pump your stomach after eating a doughnut? Sure, that seems normal.
Legend has it that in days of yore, Romans included in their massive villas a room called a 'vomitorium.' Which, as the name spells out fairly bluntly, was where they'd go to throw up after eating so they could fit in a few more delicious stuffed kidneys.
These days, those Romans would be classified as having an eating disorder - because we now understand that the best way to stay healthy is (surprise!) to eat a balanced diet and keep active.
But now, US weight-loss company Aspire is threatening to drag us straight back to the dark ages with the AspireAssist - a pump that allows you to eat as much as you like before pumping it right back out of your body.
Because that's totally normal, right? *facepalm*
Due to hit UK shores in September, the device works by allowing users to dump up to a third of the food they've eaten, following a 20-minute procedure to fit their stomachs with a tube and valve.
Claiming "dramatic results," it sounds more like something that would happen to you after being abducted by aliens than an idea even on nodding terms with 'good.'
"Once you become proficient at aspirating and chewing well, it takes 5-10 minutes to aspirate a meal," the website claims, grossly. "In the beginning, however, it may take longer to aspirate each meal."
Yum!
Although some doctors are cautiously optimistic that the device might offer a solution to the obesity crisis, most people seem to think it's totally ridic - including Self Esteem Team member and Cosmo Confidence Columnist Natasha Devon (MBE):
"With all the super-clever brains that are devoting hours and hours of (wo)man power into tackling Britain's obesity crisis, you'd think they'd come up with something better than legitimising and medicalising bulimia nervosa," she says.
"As a former bulimic, I find this deeply unsettling. Happiness and wellbeing comes from programming yourself to adopt a healthy lifestyle and treat yourself in moderation. No-one binge eats because they're happy. This doesn't tackle the root of the issue, or any of the psychological elements of obesity."
And so say all of us.
http://www.cosmopolitan.co.uk/body/news/a37039/aspire-assist-stomach-pump-gross/
I'm sure this video will convince you of the merits of the AspireAssist pump Warning those of a delicate disposition may find the graphic content of this video upsetting