Health
Experts weigh in on the benefits, risks of using castor oil for weight loss
On social media, castor oil has become a popular trend for various uses, from hair growth to weight loss.
There have been millions of posts about the vegetable oil on TikTok, with many creators sharing how they’ve used it to improve their health.
In more controversial cases, creators have applied castor oil directly to their belly buttons — and have even taken to drinking it as a detox and weight-loss method, since the FDA has approved castor oil as a natural laxative.
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While some people on the internet have reported positive results, experts are warning that castor oil consumption could be dangerous for overall health.
Registered dietitian Ilana Muhlstein told Fox News Digital she has “never heard of castor oil being used for anything other than its traditional applications.”
Castor oil is a vegetable oil derived from the Ricinus communis plant, which is common in the Eastern areas of the world, according to the National Institutes of Health. (iStock)
The Los Angeles-based expert assumed that a primary use is for short-term, mild weight loss, since castor oil acts as a laxative.
“Laxatives can dehydrate you and cause dependency,” she said. “There are much safer alternatives.”
She added, “If you’re having trouble in the bathroom, try increasing your water intake, adding more fiber to your diet and getting more exercise. Speak with your doctor or dietitian if you have any questions.”
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Katrina Mattingly, M.D., chief medical officer at Option Medical Weight Loss in Chicago, said castor oil is a “tried-and-true, old-school laxative.”
She told Fox News Digital in an email, “The first thing that comes to mind is diarrhea.”
Castor oil is a “tried-and-true old school laxative” with a “distinct taste,” one doctor told Fox News Digital. But doctors warn about its use for weight loss. (iStock)
“I remember my 97-year-old grandmother giving it to us as kids, along with prune juice, when our GI systems needed help moving things along,” Mattingly said.
Castor oil “hastens our bodies’ elimination of solid waste products and also rids the body of essential water,” the expert noted.
While this can trigger weight loss, Mattingly said that “along with all the solid waste and essential water going down the toilet are essential vitamins and minerals, such as potassium and chloride” — which can lead to deficiencies.
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While castor oil can be helpful in relieving occasional constipation, overusing it as a laxative can lead to the bowels becoming dependent on laxatives, Mattingly warned, “making it difficult to go naturally on your own.”
The obesity doctor emphasized that she would not recommend castor oil for weight loss in any capacity.
One doctor only recommends drinking castor oil in small amounts for occasional constipation. (iStock)
“Although castor oil has been in use for centuries for a variety of reasons, from body detoxification to vision problems to labor induction, there’s no safety data to recommend routine use for any of these conditions, except constipation,” she said.
Current scientific studies and research do not support its use solely for the purpose of weight loss, the doctor noted.
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Mattingly said she would recommend ingesting castor oil in “small amounts” only for occasional bouts of constipation if it has worked in the past.
“Just remember to hydrate to replace the fluid loss, and if you have long-term or chronic constipation, that warrants a trip to your physician.”
‘Massive detox’ or health hazard?
Women’s health expert Dr. Mindy Pelz advocated for the use of castor oil packs to regulate organ function and move toxins through the body.
The California-based doctor claimed that castor oil can absorb through the skin and move into the organs “very easily.”
Castor oil application can spark a “massive detox,” one doctor said. (iStock)
“When it goes into our system, it creates dilation,” Pelz said to Fox News Digital. “It’s so simple, and so inexpensive … You could just rub it over your liver and gallbladder. You need castor oil to stay on there for two hours for it to … start to dilate these organs.”
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Pelz recommended applying castor oil at night, up to three times a week, for a “massive detox that opens the whole system up.”
The FDA has approved castor oil as a natural laxative. (iStock)
Mattingly, however, countered that castor oil “does not show promise in having inflammatory, antimicrobial properties or antioxidant properties.”
And while viral social media claims are often based on personal experiences, Mattingly noted that certain applications may not have the same effect on everyone.
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“When it comes to medical weight loss, leave that to the experts to ensure you are undergoing a safe and effective plan that won’t leave you miserable or taking that dreaded trip to the ER,” she advised.
Other castor oil applications
There are a few traditional applications for castor oil, including applying it to the scalp or eyelashes to promote hair growth, as well as using it on the belly button for better sleep, Muhlstein said.
“Some people say it helps ease muscle tension and promotes deeper sleep,” she said. “Just be cautious,” she added, “because I’ve heard that using too much of it can make you feel lethargic.”
“Perhaps future studies will give us another resounding medicinal use for [castor oil] other than constipation,” one doctor said. (iStock)
Another potential use for castor oil is as a topical treatment for skin irritations or scars, Muhlstein added.
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“People have reported positive results,” she said. “So, if you’ve got any annoying skin issues, it might be worth giving it a try, but always consult with a dermatologist for bigger issues.”
Mattingly recommended rubbing castor oil on your stomach or skin as a moisturizer only — but not for weight loss.
“Also, castor oil can have an unforgettable smell,” she warned. “So be prepared for this, particularly if using it on the face or hair.”
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Colorectal cancer, once considered a disease of older age, is becoming a crisis for younger adults. New research shows one group getting hit the hardest – those without a college degree.
A recent study from the American Cancer Society analyzed data from over 101,000 adults aged 25 to 49 who died from colorectal cancer between 1994 and 2023.
While death rates remained stable for college graduates, they climbed significantly for those without a bachelor’s degree, the findings showed.
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For young adults with a high school education or less, the mortality rate rose from 4.0 to 5.2 per 100,000 people, while the rate for those with at least a bachelor’s degree stayed flat, at approximately 2.7 per 100,000.
This does not mean that a degree offers some kind of biological protection, researchers cautioned.
Colorectal cancer, once considered a disease of older age, is becoming a crisis for younger adults. (iStock)
The difference is likely driven by the conditions in which people live and work, which often correlate with education levels, the researchers noted.
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The study suggests that the higher death rates are likely driven by differences in the prevalence of risk factors, including obesity, physical inactivity, smoking and diet, which are “known to be elevated among children and young adults with lower [socioeconomic status].”
Because the study relied on death certificates, researchers couldn’t say exactly why college graduates had better outcomes.
Because the researchers didn’t have the patients’ actual medical records, they couldn’t see things like frequency of screenings or treatment options, which would impact survival outcomes. (iStock)
Certificates typically list the cause of death, age, race and education level, but they do not include a person’s full medical history.
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Because the researchers didn’t have the patients’ actual medical records, they couldn’t see things like frequency of screenings or treatment options, which would impact survival outcomes.
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Colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death for men under 50 and the second leading cause for women in the same age group, according to recent statistics.
While colorectal cancer death rates remained stable for college graduates, they climbed significantly for those without a bachelor’s degree, the findings showed. (iStock)
Because the disease is highly treatable when caught early, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lowered the recommended screening age from 50 to 45 in 2021.
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Common signs and symptoms of colorectal cancer can include a change in bowel habits, such as diarrhea, constipation or narrowing of the stool, that lasts for more than a few days, according to the American Cancer Society.
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Other signs that warrant seeing a doctor include blood in the stool or a persistent feeling of needing to go to the bathroom but being unable to go.
The research was published in JAMA Oncology.
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A young woman who started vaping at the age of 15 has been given just 18 months to live — after being diagnosed with lung cancer in her early 20s.
Kayley Boda, 22, of Manchester, in the United Kingdom, was engaging in heavy vaping on a regular basis when she started coughing up a brown substance with “grainy bits” in it in January 2025, news agency SWNS reported.
The retail assistant said doctors turned her away eight times, telling her she had a chest infection — until she began coughing up blood.
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After seven biopsies, Boda was diagnosed with lung cancer. She underwent surgery to remove the lower lobe of her right lung, as well as chemotherapy — and in February 2026, got the all-clear, the same source reported.
Two months later, though, doctors said the cancer had come back in the pleural lining. Now she’s been given 18 months to live.
Kayley Boda, 22, is shown in the hospital. She started coughing up a brown substance with “grainy bits” in January 2025, she said. She had been vaping since the age of 15. (SWNS)
The young woman has now issued a warning to others to be aware of the dangers of vaping.
Boda said she smoked a bit as a young teenager. She took up vaping after that.
Then, “a few months after I switched from reusable vapes to disposable ones, I started coughing up brown, grainy mucus,” as SWNS reported.
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“Doctors turned me away eight times with a chest infection. … Then I started coughing up blood, so they did an X-ray and found a shadow on my lung,” she added.
“They told me they were 99% sure, [since I was] so young, that it wasn’t cancer, so not to worry about it. When I got the results back, and they told me it was lung cancer, it felt so surreal.”
Boda said she was “very naive” before her diagnosis and thought that “something like this would never happen to me.”
She said that she had surgery to remove half of her right lung.
“After the surgery, I started chemo and I had a terrible reaction to it. I couldn’t lift my head up. I was throwing up blood. I was urinating blood. I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep.”
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She said that when she got the “all clear [in Feb. 2026], it felt amazing, but just two months later I was told the cancer had come back, and I have 18 months to live.”
She added, “I’m 22. This isn’t meant to happen to somebody my age.”
“Stay off the vapes because they will catch up with you.”
She blames her cancer on vaping, she said.
“My symptoms started a few months after I started disposable vapes, and there’s no lung cancer in my family,” she said. “I haven’t vaped for three months, I’ve made my partner stop, I’ve made my mom stop, I’m urging all my friends to stop. Stay off the vapes,” she continued, “because they will catch up with you.”
When doctors did an X-ray, they found a shadow on Boda’s right lung. She was later diagnosed with lung cancer and has undergone surgery to remove the lower lobe of her right lung, as well as chemotherapy. (SWNS)
She said she’d been using reusable vapes since the age of 15 and began using disposable vapes a few months before her cancer symptoms started.
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In November 2024, when she developed a rash all over her body, doctors said it could have been due to shingles, chicken pox or scabies, she told SWNS.
‘Nothing worked’
“I got treated for all three, and nothing worked,” Boda said. “It got to the point where I was cutting myself from scratching so hard.”
A few months after that, she began coughing up a dark brown mucus, with “grainy bits, the consistency of sugar, in it,” she said. When the coughing continued, she visited the doctor’s office, but was told it could be scarring from pneumonia or a chest infection, she also said.
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It wasn’t until March 2025 that she began coughing up bright red blood. At that point, doctors gave her a chest X-ray and told her they’d found a shadow on her lower right lung.
Over the next four months, she had seven biopsies as doctors took samples from the “shadow.” In August, when she went to get the results, she was told she had stage one lung cancer.
Boda is shown in the hospital. She was diagnosed with lung cancer and had surgery to remove the lower lobe of her right lung, as well as chemotherapy. (SWNS)
In September 2025, she had surgery to remove the lower lobe of her right lung, and the surrounding lymph nodes. During the surgery, doctors upstaged her cancer from stage one to stage three after finding cancer in six surrounding lymph nodes, she said.
Following the surgery, Boda was unable to breathe properly and had to learn to walk all over again.
“The oncologist said this is so rare.”
After finishing chemotherapy in February 2026, Kayley was given the all clear, leaving her feeling elated.
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However, just a month after that, she began experiencing extreme chest pains and was told by doctors she had a pleural effusion — a build-up of fluid in the lungs. She had the fluid removed, but when doctors tested it, they discovered her cancer had returned to the pleural lining of her lungs, giving her 18 months to live.
“The oncologist said this is so rare, and usually something they see in patients that are 80 years old,” she said, as SWNS reported.
Increasingly, vacation hot spots are enforcing strict bans on the use of e-cigarettes in public venues. (iStock)
Boda claimed that doctors were unable to pin her cancer to a specific cause — but told her that smoking and vaping definitely didn’t help.
Since her diagnosis, she has stopped and is urging others to stop, too.
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She’s hoping to raise the thousands of dollars needed for treatment to try to prolong her life, she said.
Last year, Fox News Digital reported on the case of a Pennsylvania woman, 26, who said she vaped for just one year before her lungs collapsed. She was 22 when she took up the habit, she said in an interview.
“Everybody warned me about it, but I didn’t listen — I wish that I did,” she said.
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Dr. David Campbell, clinical director and program director at Recover Together Bend in Oregon, told Fox News Digital at that time that signs of collapsed lungs include sharp chest or shoulder pain, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
Lung issues are just one of the many health issues linked to vaping, he warned. The habit can also increase the risk of heart disease and stroke, as well as exposure to harmful heavy metals.
Melissa Rudy of Fox News Digital contributed reporting.
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The key to feeling better in a fast, overstimulated world might be surprisingly simple: Live a little more like your grandparents.
A growing social media trend, dubbed “nonnamaxxing,” draws inspiration from the slower, more intentional rhythms associated with an Italian grandmother.
The lifestyle is often linked to activities like preparing home-cooked meals, spending time outdoors and making meaningful connections.
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“Nonnamaxxing is a 2026 trend that embraces the slower, more intentional lifestyle of an Italian grandmother (a Nonna). Think cooking from scratch, long family meals, daily walks, gardening and less screen time,” Erin Palinski-Wade, a New Jersey-based registered dietitian, told Fox News Digital.
Nonnamaxxing, derived from the name for an Italian grandmother, is a trend that incorporates lifestyle habits hundreds of years in the making. (iStock)
Stepping away from screens and toward real-world interaction can have measurable benefits, according to California-based psychotherapist Laurie Singer.
“We know that interacting with others in person, rather than spending time on screens, significantly improves mental health,” she told Fox News Digital, adding that social media often fuels comparison and lowers self-esteem.
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Living more like previous generations isn’t purely driven by nostalgia. Cooking meals from scratch, for example, has been linked to better nutrition and more mindful eating patterns.
Adopting traditional mealtime habits can improve diet quality and support both physical and mental health, especially when meals are shared regularly with others, Palinski-Wade noted.
One longevity expert stresses that staying healthy isn’t just about food — it’s also about joy and community. (iStock)
There’s also a psychological benefit to slowing down and focusing on one task at a time. Anxiety often stems from unfinished or avoided tasks, Singer noted, and engaging in hands-on activities can counteract that.
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“Nonnamaxxing encourages us to be present around a task, like gardening, baking or knitting, or just taking a mindful walk, that delivers something ‘real,’” she said.
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Palinski-Wade cautions against turning the trend into another source of pressure, noting that a traditional “nonna” lifestyle often assumes a different pace of life.
The key, she said, is adapting the mindset, not replicating it perfectly.
Nonnamaxxing, derived from the name for an Italian grandmother, is a trend that incorporates lifestyle habits hundreds of years in the making. (iStock)
The goal is to reintroduce small, intentional moments that make you feel better.
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That might mean prioritizing a few shared meals each week, taking a walk without your phone or setting aside time for a simple hobby, the expert recommended.
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Singer added, “Having a positive place to escape to, through whatever activities speak to us and make us happy, isn’t generational – it’s human.”
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