Man eats 40 knives, promises surgeons he won't do it again

An Indian man went to the hospital after experiencing stomach pain only to confirm to the shocked surgeons that yes, he had willingly consumed the dozens of knives they found in his stomach. "In 20 years, I've never seen such a patient," chief surgeon Jatinder Malholtra told The Washington Post. "I was amazed."

The pocket knives were both swallowed with and without their blades out, and were about seven inches long. The man was bleeding badly internally, and the surgeons, who recovered 28 knives, said he would not have lived much longer without their intervention. Although the patient said he'd eaten 28 knives total over a two month period, the surgeons' suspicions were aroused. They scanned him again, and found an additional 12 knives in his stomach.

When asked why he ate the pocket knives, the man, a 42-year-old police officer, replied, "I have made my mind to take the knives. I don't know why. Impulse. They were taken on impulse only." He confirmed to the surgeons, "I will not do it in the future."

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Malholtra said the man "seems to" have a mental problem, such as Pica — which drives people to eat non-food substances — but said otherwise he seemed "very much a normal man."