A 43-year old morbidly obese man who had been stuck to a reclining chair for two years was found unconscious by roommates who immediately called the police. The Ohio man died later at Wheeling Hospital, West Virginia.

According to medical staff, the man lived with a girlfriend and a friend in Bellaire, Ohio. They used to feed him because his skin was literally fused to the chair.

An obese person has so much body fat built up that it might have a negative effect on their health. A person is usually considered obese if their bodyweight is 20% higher than it should be, unless that person is a weightlifter or athlete. Somebody with a BMI (body mass index) of at least 30 is obese, those with a BMI of 40 or more are morbidly obese.

The police and firefighters said that when they came to his home his skin was stuck to the chair’s fabric, he was infested with maggots and his own feces and urine. A policeman described the scene as the worst he had ever seen. After helping the man get out of his chair, another officer said he had to throw away his uniform. The conditions in the rest of the house were described as “filthy”.

In order to get the man out of the house a section of a wall had to be removed.

Local city code enforcer, Jim Chase told WTRF:

“The living room where the man lived in his chair was very filthy, very deplorable. It’s unbelievable that somebody lives in conditions like that.”

He said he told the landlady and the two tenants to clean the house, and explained that humans cannot live in such deplorable conditions. Apparently, the cleaning is underway. He added that he will be monitoring their progress on a daily basis.

According to the landlady, the man would cover himself with a blanket every time she came round, hence she had no idea what was going on.

A few years ago a morbidly obese female became stuck to a sofa and eventually died.

In March this year a 6ft 8inch 575-pound man, Blair River, who was spokesman for the Heart Attack Grill died of a flu complication (pneumonia). His job was to promote a restaurant that was proud of serving super high-calorie meals. (Link)

Obesity is caused by eating too much, not being active enough, taking some medications, and not sleeping enough. Some hormonal conditions may also cause obesity. Being obese increases your risk of developing osteoarthritis, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, gallbladder disease, high cholesterol and triglyceride levels, respiratory problems, several cancer, type 2 diabetes, and stroke. Obesity is linked to sleep apnea, however, recent research indicates that perhaps the effects of sleep apnea could lead to obesity, rather than the other way round.

Written by Christian Nordqvist