The mystery of the world's biggest eater

A man who is always hungry and has such a voracious appetite that he will devour grass, candles… even live cats. He has been the subject of many scientific experiments but the nature of his 'bottomless stomach' remains a mystery.

Gluttony by nature

Charles Domery was born in 1778 in the village of Benche in Prussian-occupied Poland. One of nine brothers, he was unusual among his siblings for being a glutton, constantly tormented by hunger.

Despite his unusual hunger, Domery was a healthy young man, standing over 6 feet tall, with a well-proportioned body. He had no mental illness and, although illiterate, was of average intelligence. It is not known what happened to his brothers, but there are accounts of Domery's unusual life.

The outside world first learned of Domery's formidable appetite when he was 13 years old and serving in the Prussian army. At the time, Prussia was fighting France in the War of the First Coalition (1792-1797). In the army, Domery found that the soldiers' rations were inadequate.

Even after his commander doubled his rations, Domery was still tormented by hunger. When he could bear it no longer, he decided to escape and join the enemy forces, the French, in search of more hearty meals.

However, after days of plenty, hunger quickly returned and Domery was unable to satisfy his hunger, even after spending his own money to buy more food. Hunger turned to desperation, and Domery is said to have eaten cat meat along with several pounds of grass almost every day, when he could not find other food.

Domery loved to eat raw meat, of which beef liver was his favorite . More frighteningly, while serving on the French ship Hoche, he almost ate human flesh. His crewmates had to struggle to pull the leg of a sailor who had been shot off by a cannonball out of Domery's mouth. They immediately threw the meat into the sea.

Many people thought that after eating such unhygienic food, Domery would get sick. However, his health remained good even after eating raw meat and large amounts of grass. His heart rate and body temperature were said to be normal, his eyes were bright, and his tongue was always clean.

It was observed that shortly after going to bed, usually around 8pm, Domery would begin to sweat profusely. After 1-2 hours, he would fall asleep, before waking up around 1am and very hungry, even though he had eaten before going to bed. At this point, he would eat any food available, then go back to sleep and wake up at 5-6am, covered in sweat.

Special prisoners

Illustration depicting Domery's gluttony.

In February 1799, tragedy struck aboard the Hoche in Liverpool, England, when it was captured by British forces. Domery and his crew were taken prisoner and held in a prison near Liverpool. During his captivity, Domery continued to shock his captors with his voracious appetite and surprising dishes.

During this time, the daily ration for French prisoners consisted of 56g of bread, 200g of vegetables and 56g of butter or 170g of cheese. They were also given small rations of beer, diluted rum and sometimes tea.

However, once again, these rations were not enough for Domery. This led to him eating spare candles, at least 20 rats, and the cell cat. Sometimes, Domery ate leftover medicine from the camp infirmary and washed it down with water or his beer ration.

After learning of Domery's hunger and unusual food intake, the British army decided to double the prisoner's rations. His insatiable hunger caused his rations to increase until they were equivalent to the daily food allowance of 10 men.

Stunned by what they saw, the British brought in two doctors to conduct tests. At 4am on the morning of the experiment, Domery was fed 1.8kg of raw cow udder, which he completed without incident.

About five hours later, he was served 2.2kg of raw beef, 12 large candles and a bottle of dark beer. Again, Domery consumed all of this without difficulty.

Doctors reported that he was in good health on all examinations. While most people would have vomited from such a large meal, Domery was said to be in a good mood and casually went outside to smoke a cigarette.

To this day, no one has been able to explain Domery's binge eating. While there is a medical condition called bulimia, in which sufferers have abnormal cravings, it is not known to be as severe as what Domery suffered from.

This has led some experts to speculate whether he suffered brain damage. However, what happened to Domery after the experiment remains unknown.