Boy who ate tomato-based foods for 10 years finally eats a proper meal

Fourteen years old, Liam Pierce, hasn’t been able to look at a vegetable without feeling sick since he choked on a pea when he was aged two.

The childhood trauma caused Liam to become addicted to tomato-based products, and he would get through more than three bottles of ketchup a week.

He would smother his food in ketchup and eat an entire 250g pack of cherry tomatoes every night as a snack. He also had up to ten cans of tomato soup a week.

His parents desperately tried to wean their son off tomatoes but every attempt failed. Liam was finally cured of his addiction and fear of other non-tomato foods after he underwent hypnotherapy sessions. After just one hour-long session, Liam tucked into roast vegetables without any tomatoe sauce.

“I’m not over it completely, but I’m gradually lowering the amount of ketchup I have and increasing the amount of vegetables.

“But I have to use ketchup to help me with most new things. If I just put a little bit of ketchup on something new it calms me down and I’m able to eat it.”

Robot dog could be your next pet!

If you’ve always wanted a dog but cleaning up after it just isn’t for you — then this could be the answer to all your problems. Meet PnueHound, a robot puppy designed to act like a real dog — but with a lot less mess.

Scientists at Osaka University’s Adaptive Robotics Lab, Japan, have developed the alternative pet known as a quadrupedal robot that moves via a set of pneumatic artificial muscles.

It has short, stubby legs, and essentially runs around excitedly like many tiny puppiesdo. Owners can take the device for a walk, holding a cord attached to the robot’s metal structure.

And it could be perfect for you if you’re looking to get fit because the dog can reach speeds of up to 5.9 miles per hour.

The puppy even greets its owner after they return after a day of work. Footage of the robot dog in action has been uploaded to YouTube where it has

been viewed more than 30,400 times.

World’s hottest chilli hits British supermarkets

The world’s strongest chilli — the Carolina Reaper — has arrived in shops. Customers are advised to wear gloves while handling the pepper (officially the hottest in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records).

One of the buyer’s said, “The Carolina Reaper is absolute meltdown material — it’s one for absolute hot food connoisseurs. Despite it being astonishingly hot it also has a wonderful fruity taste. Only a sliver is needed to add exciting flavour to your favourite curry.”

A chilli fan who ate a quarter of the specimen said for the first 20 to 30 seconds he wondered what all the fuss was about. Then panic set in after two to three minutes when he said he feared “the pain would never end.” The searing pain began to wear off “after about ten minutes”.

So will you dare to eat the one?

Published in Dawn, Young World, August 13th, 2016