HOME / human guinea pig: Humiliating myself for fun and profit.

My Starvation DietI've cut back to 1,500 calories a day. Will I live to be 120 years old?

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She makes a good point. Is CRON crazier than having a doctor suck out your fat, or staple your stomach? Is it crazier than a world in which a drug company is looking to market a product to temporarily eliminate people's sense of taste and smell so they will lose weight? Is it crazier than having a panniculus?

But can someone without any notable will power—me—stay on a CRON diet? I decided to try CRON for two months, but it's past that now and I'm still avoiding seconds and skipping my late-night snack. CRON was supposed to do much for me that it hasn't. My very poor sleep is not better; my low energy is not higher; my foggy mind is not clearer. I still have no desire to hang around long enough for my now 11-year-old daughter to collect Social Security. But I'm grateful to Dr. Walford for letting me experience something I thought I never would again: loose-fitting pants.

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Emily Yoffe is the author of What the Dog Did: Tales From a Formerly Reluctant Dog Owner. You can send your Human Guinea Pig suggestions or comments to .
Illustration by Nina Frenkel.
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