Nathan Rimington, a truck driver from Yorkshire in the UK, ordered a 6.6-pound container of Haribo Happy Cola Gummy candy from Amazon after developing a craving for the candies. He proceeded to consume the gummies — all 10,461 calories worth — in just three days. The 33-year-old began experiencing serious physical symptoms shortly after and was taken to the ER with severe abdominal pain, sweating, and high blood pressure. Initially, the doctors suspected he was suffering from food poisoning, but further tests revealed unusually high levels of gelatin in his digestive tract. After performing several other tests, Rimington was diagnosed with acute diverticulitis — a condition in which small protrusions form in the colon wall, causing inflammation and infection. Doctors explained that consuming large amounts of gelatin can increase the risk of intestinal obstruction. Symptoms such as fever, chills, abdominal pain, indigestion and vomiting can occur. In Rimington’s case, doctors immediately stopped all food by mouth and began intravenous fluid therapy. He was hospitalized for six days in ICU with a high fever and severe abdominal pain. Fortunately, he made a full recovery. It’s safe to say that Rimington probably won’t indulge in gummy candies for a very long time.
