Grammy-nominated Machine Gun Kelly (MGK) posted a video of leeches perched on his tattooed abdomen in a ritual with many purported health benefits for the skin and circulatory system.
Leech therapy dates back to 1500 BC. when the ancient Egyptians used them for healing purposes long before people had any concept of disease. The purported benefits range from heart health to improving digestion.
The saliva of the parasitic worms has anticoagulant properties that some surgeons still use in recovering from reconstructive plastic surgeries and other procedures where it poses a risk.
The post of the MGK, born Colson Baker, with the worm-like creatures contained no reason for their use, such as: B. Digestive Aid.
Rapper MGK (pictured) posted a video of leeches sitting on his stomach sucking his blood to his Instagram Story – calling the worms his “best friends”.
The star posted the video to Instagram, calling the slimy creatures on his stomach “my best friends,” though he didn’t say why he was using leeches.
Leech therapy, or hirudotherapy, has become common for healing after facial surgery and for its ability to preserve soft tissue.
Therapy consists of placing leeches in a specific spot, allowing them to insert their three jaws with tiny rows of teeth into the skin, and infusing them with coagulants in their saliva.
Leech saliva contains an enzyme called hirudin that thins the blood and prevents it from clotting.
It is widely used in the recovery process for surgeries such as skin grafts and reconstructive plastic surgeries because sometimes there are complications that lead to clotting at the surgical site.
This isn’t the first time MGK has professed its love for leech therapy. In 2021, he released a video of leeches sucking on his tattoos, and fans were disgusted.
One tweeted, “Of all the things Machine Gun Kelly has done…this is BY FAR THE WORST!”
Another said: “I will have nightmares about them after seeing this story while going to sleep.”
Hirudin keeps blood flowing and reduces this potentially life-threatening clotting.
Its ability to keep blood circulating can also aid in the process of healing tissue damage as it keeps circulation flowing through the damaged area.
In rare cases, some hospitals even use leech therapy.
dr Rod Rezaee, director of surgical oncology for the head and neck at University Hospitals in Shaker Heights, Ohio, said: “Despite all the technological advances in modern medicine, we still rely on one of nature’s most primitive organisms – the leeches – for certain post-surgical situations – to help us achieve a good result.”
Leech therapy has been around for thousands of years due to its benefits for skin and circulatory health. Bloodsuckers’ saliva contains an anticoagulant called hirudin
The bloodsuckers were popular thousands of years ago in procedures called “bloodletting” that lasted into the 19th century.
The practice was based on the classic ideas of Hippocrates and Galen, an ancient Greek physician, that an imbalance in humor was the cause of disease.
Therefore, leeches were used to treat a variety of ailments, as people believed that excess blood was the culprit.
Why MGK used the leech therapy and what his goal is with the therapy is not clear.
The Cleveland native isn’t the only celebrity advocate of hirudotherapy, with model Miranda Kerr and actress Demi Moore swearing by the treatment’s anti-aging benefits.
Ms. Moore said in 2008 she uses the “high-level bloodsuckers” to detoxify her blood.
The post follows MGK’s fiancé Megan Fox’s admission that the couple are drinking each other’s blood for ritual reasons.
Fox, 36, opened up about the ritual in an interview with Glamor UK a few months ago.
“So I think drinking each other’s blood might mislead people, or people introduce us with cups and we’re like Game of Thrones and we’re drinking each other’s blood,” she shared.
“It’s only a few drops, but yes, we occasionally drink each other’s blood for ritual purposes only.”
Leech therapy carries the risk of bacterial infection and people with compromised immune systems are advised not to try it.
WHAT ARE FLUCKS?
Leeches are a blood-sucking species of worms that live in water or on land
They are found almost everywhere in Australia, but mostly in humid habitats
They feed by sucking the blood of fish, frogs, lizards, birds and humans
The length of a leech can range from 7 mm to 30 mm
Blood is an important food source for leeches to survive and reproduce
Because of this, leeches like to bite without causing pain or being removed
Leeches can swell up to five to ten times their body weight when covered in blood
Their bite is not usually dangerous to humans, but it can itch us
Federation University Australia