Eyeball licking, a growing trend among Japanese kids, comes with a host of health risks according to medical experts. Speaking with CBS News, Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency medicine physician said the practice spreads harmful bacteria:
"This is a dangerous practice which has the potential to spread a number of bacteria that reside in the mouth to the eye resulting in bacterial infections such as conjunctivitis to styes as well as abscesses involving the lids and eye socket."
In addition to the risks of infection and abscesses, the fad, also known as worming, can also cause corneal scratching, which can lead to ulcers and blindness. According to Decoded Science, the tongue's surface has ridges that can damage the cornea long-term.
Yet, tributes to the fetish have begun to fill the pages of photo-sharing sites like Tumblr. One such post described the psycho-sexual thrill of worming:
"My boyfriend started licking my eyeballs years ago and I just loved it. I'm not with him any more but I still like to ask guys to lick my eyeballs . . . it turns me on," wrote one student on the site.
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