Looks that kill
If you think dieting, wearing high heels, putting on lots of makeup, and undergoing plastic surgery are the most extreme or desperate ways for a woman to make herself look more attractive, think again. It turns out some women are more obsessed with their looks than you could imagine. Let's sneak a peek at a few things that you won't believe some women are willing to do.
For a slimmer body - roundworms
The usual methods of losing weight include jogging, dieting and drinking slimming tea. Some people even try vomiting, injecting Botox, eating very spicy food, undergoing Chinese acupuncture, and taking diet pills.
But here is the ultimate way of losing weight in no time - infecting your digestive tract with giant roundworms.
Roundworms infect humans and pigs, causing a disease known as ascariasis, which leads to the illness of the host by siphoning away their nutrition. In other terms, the host will be sick yet slimmer.
Capsules of roundworm eggs are for sale to those who are brave enough. Swallowing the capsules requires great courage, and the eggs inside the capsules will supposedly gradually grow up and cause weight loss.
A shop assistant surnamed Chen, from a Taobao store selling all kinds of weight-loss products, said that their sales of roundworm capsules are "OK." The store also sells appetite suppressants, pills that help break down fat, herbal medications that move the bowels, and diuretics, which give the impression of being slimmer by elevating water loss through urination. But diuretics easily bring about metabolic disorders and kidney diseases.
"Usually we only recommended the capsules to those who find conventional methods of losing weight ineffective," Chen said.
The side effects are very terrifying, according to the description of the capsules sold in one online store called Medusa's City. There'll be a low-grade fever in the first week, and usually 4 kilograms of weight will be lost in the first month.
Chen said the side effects include "loss of appetite, nausea, and allergies." "Rates of having serious side effects are very low. There are no serious side effects reported to us so far," Chen added.
Possible complications include itchy skin, constant coughing, and diseases such as urinary tract disorders and hives.
When the ideal weight is achieved, you can take medicine to get rid of the worms.
The capsules are expensive. Each one costs about 100 yuan ($16), and you need to take four capsules each time.
However all this didn't stop Ji Xueer, a young girl who wants to lose some weight so badly she decided to give it a try. She bought four capsules, and swallowed them down her throat. She was worried about health problems, but she found that nothing had changed - no weight loss, no loss of appetite and no discomfort. "I only feel thirsty more constantly than usual," Ji said.
For a younger appearance - placenta
Vitamin pills, collagen drinks, herbal snacks - all those are not enough for some people who want to look more beautiful by eating the right food.
Placenta is believed to make a person look fresh as a baby, with fewer wrinkles and glowing skin. The organ that connects a developing fetus to its mother is rich in protein, hormones and other nutrients. Extracts of sheep placenta are widely used in hair or skin treatment products.
Placentophagy, the act of eating placenta of the newly born, is a common thing in the wild. Most mammals do it. But when it comes to humans, placentophagy raises moral questions and arguments. It also turns stomachs.
Dried human placenta, or ziheche as it is known in Chinese, is a substance used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to treat infertility, impotence and other conditions. According to Bencao Gangmu (Compendium of Materia Medica), a classic TCM book, taking human placenta can benefit eyesight, make the hair color darker, and prolong life.
Trading human placenta is prohibited, but many still talk about using the placenta of themselves or their relatives.
Vicky Li, 45, felt disturbed at first when she heard some of her friends were using placenta. Later she had to take ziheche for her weak health. Her symptoms included a pale, tired appearance, and irregular menstruation. "My colleagues say that I look better and my skin is glowing these days," said Li. "I think it's the ziheche I took."
For whiter skin - injections
Intramuscular injections were invented to treat disease and save people's lives, but now they are also used to make a person beautiful.
Getting Botox injections is a commonly known way of getting rid of wrinkles. But there are more kinds of injections used in the pursuit of beauty.
Skin-whitening injections are among the most popular. Many beauty clinics in Beijing provide this service.
For centuries, Asian females were raised with the belief that white skin is more important than anything else when it comes to good looks.
Dong Xiaoxuan, a 24-year-old model from Dongcheng district, is no stranger to those injections. Craving better looks, she has been using face-slimming Botox, lipolysis (for breaking down fat), and whitening injections.
"The method is very effective, and the changes are very obvious," said Dong. And she didn't have any of the alleged side effects.
However, each injection costs approximately 1,500 yuan ($240) and should be repeated every six months, so it cost Dong a lot of money, more than she expected. Therefore Dong has decided to get plastic surgery next time instead, putting things right once and for all.
Scientists and beauticians are making every effort to tackle the loss of beauty that comes with aging, and using modern science to invent more and more ways to satisfy women's quest for power through beauty. Whoever said beauty comes from within obviously had no idea what they were talking about.