By Luke Alsford
Copyright metro
The live frogs were all smaller than the palms of her hands (Picture: Paul Hilton/EPA/Shutterstock)
A pensioner ended up in hospital after eating eight live frogs to relieve her lower back pain.
The 82-year-old woman from China heard in folklore that munching on the amphibians could help ease the agony caused by a herniated disc, according to local media reports.
Referred to only by her surname Zhang, she asked her family for help catching the frogs in September, without letting on as to why she suddenly needed them.
Zhang ate three right away and then consumed five more frogs, all smaller than the palm of her hand, the next day.
Her family helped to collect the frogs (Picture: Shutterstock / I Wayan Sumatika)
It didn’t take long for her to develop abdominal pain which landed her in hospital.
Her son said: ‘My mother ate eight live frogs. Now the sharp pain has made her unable to walk.’
After telling doctors what she’d done, they soon established she had a parasite infection.
One of the medics at the hospital in Hangzhou in Eastern China explained: ‘Swallowing frogs has damaged the patient’s digestive system and resulted in some parasites being present in her body, including sparganum.’
Another doctor at the hospital, Wu Zhongwen, said many other patients had ended up in his care with a similar condition.
Frogs and tadpoles are often used to treat skin conditions in traditional Chinese medicine (Picture: JUAN CARLOS CHAPARRO/Peru’s Biodiversity Museum/AFP via Getty Images)
Other cases have hit the headlines before too.
A 29-year-old had a 10cm-long parasite removed from her head back in 2015, with doctors saying she’d consumed a live frog diet since the age of five.
Another mum went viral in 2018 when she was recorded feeding her kid live tadpoles.
Animals crop up a lot in traditional Chinese medicines, with frogs, snake bile and salamanders used to treat a range of ailments.
The giant salamander is said to be effective in treating anaemia and dysentery, while frogs and tadpoles are often used to help with skin conditions.
Most doctors have warned that consuming these animals live or raw can cause serious health complications.
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