Cement worker and amateur magician Chen Yawen eats a light bulb shard in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province. Chen claims to have been eating bulbs for nearly 30 years. Photo: taihainet.com

Perhaps we'll never know how many guys from Zhangzhou, Fujian Province it takes to screw in a light bulb, because for the past three decades Chen Yawen has been eating them all.

Doctors recently warned the 44-year-old Dongpu villager to cut back on his unusual addiction to light bulbs - a habit he explains started as early as 15 years old.

"The bulbs are tasteless and far from delicious," explains the cement worker turned amateur magician. "I just like the challenge of trying something new and bringing joy to others."

Chen demonstrated his method of consumption for reporters by smashing a fist-sized tungsten bulb in his hand, chewing the bits and swallowing them without leaving a scratch.

Chen explained he does not eat the filament out of "health concerns."

"My mouth and tongue bled my first few tries, but as soon as my cuts heal I eat more - I can't seem to stop," he said.

Chen's cravings for bulbs reflect symptoms of pica, a pathological disorder where sufferers develop an appetite for clay, dirt, chalk or other similar substances that are considered socially unusual to eat.

And like other recorded glass-eaters - such as Sichuan-native Wang Xianjun who according to The People's Daily has eaten 1,500 bulbs over the past 42 years - Chen likely suffers from hyalophagia, or a pathological desire to consume glass.

Though Chen claims he has never had any health problems, Su Junkai, associate chief physician at the 175th Hospital of PLA, warned against the swallowing glass fragments, which can do serious damage to the mouth, stomach and intestines as they pass through the system.

fjsen.com-Global Times

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