New Zealand researchers said they have created a device against obesity that uses magnets to clamp a patient’s jaw together. This involves a dentist fitting magnets and locking bolts to the patient’s upper and lower molars, allowing the jaws to open only two millimetres. 

Lead researcher Paul Brunton, from the University of Otago’s school of health sciences, said this device restricted the user to a liquid diet without limiting breathing or speech.

“It is a non-invasive, reversible, economical and attractive alternative to surgical procedures. The fact is, there are no adverse consequences with this device,” he said. 

The researchers added they had “developed a world-first weight-loss device to help fight the global obesity epidemic.”

The device has received a strong response from social media users who are calling it an instrument of medieval torture. Some are also accusing the researchers of shaming fat people.

“Maybe instead of developing torture devices, you could do some research into how the medical profession consistently fails people based on the out-of-date and inappropriate bmi (body mass index) scale,” one user posted on Twitter. 

Following the outrage, the University of Otago issued a clarification saying, “To clarify, the intention of the device is not intended as a quick or long-term weight-loss tool; rather it is aimed to assist people who need to undergo surgery and who cannot have the surgery until they have lost weight.”