New Zealand researchers have developed a weight loss device that uses magnets to hold a patient’s jaw, and they see it as a new tool obesityAlthough critics have compared it to a medieval torture device.
Discovery, “the world’s forerunner”, a dentist Place magnets and locking needles on the patient’s upper and lower molars, allowing the jaws to open only two millimeters.
Paul Brandon, a leading researcher at the Otago College of Health Sciences, said it restricts the user to liquid food without restricting breathing or speech.
“It is a non-invasive, reversible, inexpensive and attractive alternative surgery method,” he said. “There are no adverse effects on this device,” he added.
The researchers said they had “developed the world’s first weight loss device to fight the global obesity epidemic”.
In an article published this month in the British Dental magazine, they note that seven women lost an average of 6.36 kg each during a two-week test called Dental Slim Diet Control.
Patients experienced some initial comfort discomfort, but the device was generally considered “tolerable”.
Unlike jawbones, which were a popular way to restrict people to liquid foods in the 1980s, dental slim gets an emergency release if the patient vomits or has a panic attack.
During the two-week trial, no patient sought release, although one woman admitted to cheating on liquid food by melting chocolate.
The discovery generated a strong response on social media, with many users accusing the researchers of embarrassing obese people and questioning the ethics of the investigation. One of the critics called it “disgusting and inhumane”, while another said it was in danger of strengthening unhealthy eating habits.
“Instead of building torture devices, they can explore how the medical industry systematically fails based on outdated and inappropriate BMI (body mass index) levels,” one user posted.
The researchers in their article approved this test by an ethical committee and conducted it according to international guidelines.
Another epidemic.
Experts say that obesity is a contagious disease. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), overweight and obesity are the sixth leading cause of death in the world.
About 3.4 million adults die each year from overweight or obesity.
Furthermore, overweight and obesity account for 44% of the burden of diabetes, 23% of the burden of ischemic heart disease, and 7% to 41% of the burden of some cancers.
Obesity and obesity affect all ages: its prevalence in children and adolescents (5 to 19 years) increased from 4% in 1975 to more than 18% in 2016.
The increase was the same for both sexes: 18% of women and 19% of boys were overweight in 2016. In 1975 less than 1% of children and adolescents were obese between the ages of 5 and 19, and in 2016 they were 124 million (6% women and 8% boys).
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