A popular Disney rollercoaster has been proved to cure kidney stones.
According to experts, The Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Walt Disney World in Florida has just the right number of twists to shake kidney stones loose.
Researchers confirmed the finding by using a silicon model of a kidney filled with stones from a real one.
They rode the rollercoaster, which is similar to one in Paris, 20 times with the organ – and found that sitting at the back of the rollercoaster worked best.
Two-thirds of the time, stones shifted to positions ideal for the body to expel them.
As reported by The Sun, rival rollercoasters were tested – but proved to be less effective, and experts decided to complete the experiment after kidney stone sufferers claiming to have passed them thanks to the ride.
Dr David Wartinger, who was behind the Michigan State University research, said, “Preliminary study findings support the anecdotal evidence that a ride on a moderate-intensity rollercoaster could benefit some patients with small kidney stones.”
“Passing a kidney stone before it reaches an obstructive size can prevent surgeries and emergency room visits. Rollercoaster riding after treatments like lithotripsy and before planned pregnancies may prevent stone enlargement and the complications of ureteral obstruction.
“The osteopathic philosophy of medicine emphasises prevention and the body’s natural ability to heal. What could be more osteopathic than finding a relatively low-cost, noninvasive treatment that could prevent suffering for hundreds of thousands of patients?”
