A nurse has raised the alarm over a viral social media trend in which dieters are drinking and bathing in oil in a bid to lose weight.
Search the term castor oil on TikTok and you’ll find an avalanche of clips that have attracted nearly 100 million views.
The videos show young women spraying fat on their bodies and drinking it while promoting supposed benefits, including “burning fat” and “preventing cancer.”
But Jane Clarke, a continence nurse specialist in the UK, said following this trend will likely leave you with debilitating stomach problems.
“Consumption of castor oil can cause violent diarrhea, even in small doses,” he said. “In large doses it can cause abdominal cramps, possible electrolyte imbalances, possible dehydration, nausea and vomiting.”
There are almost a million videos on TikTok advising different ways to use castor oil, including putting it in your belly button or ingesting it, for everything from losing weight to supposedly curing cancer.
Even drinking castor oil in small doses can cause explosive diarrhea, Clarke warned.
Some influencers even recommend putting the oil in your belly button. The only effect this will have is ruining your clothes, Nurse Clarke said.
Additionally, he added that oil drinkers are unlikely to see any change in their weight or risk of disease.
Castor oil has long been used in the alternative health arena as a “natural” laxative to cure constipation.
It was also an ancient remedy for inducing labor in delayed pregnant women, but experts do not recommend its use in any of these situations for safety reasons.
Researchers have discovered that the main fatty acid in castor oil, called ricinoleic acid, binds to receptors on muscle cells in our colon.
When absorbed by the receptors, it causes the muscles to contract and expel stool.
This laxative effect is why some believe castor oil could help with weight loss.
However, experts explain that frequent use of the bathroom does not lead to real and lasting weight loss.
The food we eat goes through many processes before reaching the intestine and becoming feces.
The body absorbs calories, fats, and most nutrients before they reach the large intestine.
What’s left is mostly water and some minerals that your body doesn’t need. Some is absorbed by the body in the large intestine.
If someone takes castor oil or laxatives and loses weight, they are only losing water.
As soon as they drink something, they will regain the weight.
Some people even claim castor oil can cure cancer, but Ms Clarke said “none of these things are true”.
The oil is “perfectly safe to use externally,” she said, but it’s unlikely to have any benefits other than smooth skin.