A British man whom media had identified as the fattest
person alive has died of pneumonia after a devastating
battle with an eating disorder that brought him to 980
pounds.
News.com.au reported that Keith Martin, of London,
underwent a gastric sleeve operation that removed
three-quarters of his stomach, and was bound to his
bed eight months before his death. He was 44.
According to The Daily Mirror, Martin had consumed
about 20,000 calories a day in a diet that included six-
egg fried breakfasts, and lunches and dinners with
pizza, kebabs, takeout food and Big Macs. He also
reportedly consumed 3.5 liters of coffee and 2 liters of
carbonated drinks every day.
“Keith, like many people, had some emotional issues,
and he turned to food for comfort,” Kesava Mannur, the
surgeon who fitted Martin with his gastric belt at
Homerton University Hospital in London, told The Daily
Mirror.
“That type of behavior is nothing new, but what is new
is how easy it is for people in that situation to buy a lot
of cheap food,” said Mannur, who urged the U.K.
government to consider a fast-food tax to help the
morbidly obese.
Martin shared his story in a documentary that aired in
the U.K., according to news.com.au. He said he lost
his mother at 16— also to pneumonia— and had
struggled with depression and anxiety ever since. He
began to gain a serious amount of weight in his 20s,
when he was severely depressed.
Martin was unemployed and spent his days playing
video games and watching TV.
“I started eating to ease the pain, and before I knew it,
I was bingeing every time something upset me,” Martin
said during the documentary. “I’ve always been
depressed.
I am an agoraphobic— I’m afraid of public
places— but it was never treated.”
“I just want to be happy, without needing food to make
me happy.”
No comments:
Post a Comment