Conjoined Twins
For the unversed, conjoined twins are those who are physically joined at birth. These twins often share organs and, in some cases, can be separated by surgical procedures. Welcomed to the world in 1990, conjoined twins Abigail and Brittany Hensel were born with separate hearts, lungs, stomachs, and spinal cords.
Though Abigail and Brittany can eat and write independently, they have to work together as a team when it comes to executing certain activities such as running or brushing their hair.
The Human Barbie
Ukrainian model Valeria Lukyanova is famously known as the human Barbie. To enhance the Barbie effect Lukyanova uses makeup and contact lenses over her naturally green/gray/blue eyes. She has stated that she has had breast implants, but that the rest of her body is natural and slender due to daily gym workouts and a particular diet.
The model has since claimed to be all-natural and has denied going under the knife on many occasions. According to Lukyanova, “I practice every day with free weights in the gym. I don’t really do aerobics, but I prefer working with dumbbells.”
Biggest Hands
At one point, Mohammed Kaleem’s hands were close to 40% of his body weight. Born with Proteus syndrome — a rare medical condition that causes bones, skin, and muscles to overgrow — Kaleem was mercilessly bullied by his peers during his childhood.
Kaleem was insensitively branded ‘Devil’s Child’ — to the point that he was banned from going to school because his fellow classmates think he was the “devil.” In 2014, Kaleem underwent surgery led by India’s top hand surgeon, Dr. Sabapathy, to prevent his condition from escalating further in the future.
World’s Tallest Man
At 8 feet and 2.82 inches, Sultan Kosen holds the Guinness World Record for being the tallest living man in the world. Sultan’s height is caused by a medical condition known as pituitary gigantism. Because of his circumstances, he had to drop out of school in the middle of his academic year.
On the positive side, though, Kosen was able to assist his parents with all sorts of household chores that kids his age wouldn’t normally be able to do — such as fixing light bulbs or hanging curtains.
World’s Shortest Man
Speaking of the tallest man in the world, here we have Nepalese national Chandra Bahadur Dangi — the shortest man to ever be recorded in the history of Guinness World Records. Measuring a mere 21.5 inches, Dangi claimed the title of World’s Shortest Man when he beat the previous contender, Gul Muhammad.
Dangi used his fame to put Nepal in the global spotlight. He once said that his title allowed him to travel to different parts of the globe – something he had envisioned since his childhood. He even got to meet Sultan Kosen, the tallest man in the world!
World’s Shortest Woman
Hailing from Nagpur, India, Jyoti Amge is the shortest living woman as per the Guinness World Record. Measuring 24.7 inches, Amge is a celebrity in her own right. She’s even been part of several famous television shows such as American Horror Story and Bigg Boss (an Indian adaptation of the reality show Big Brother.)
She has become so famous, in fact, that a wax statue has been designed in her honor. If you’re interested in checking it out, head over to the Celebrity Wax Museum in Lonavala, India.
Papa Smurf
Known as Papa Smurf due to his blue skin, Paul Karason wasn’t born with the skin tone that made him famous in the first place. Paul’s skin color is a result of ingesting colloidal silver to treat his skin condition.
The silver in the medicine reacted with sunlight causing argyria – a medical term used to describe blue skin. But, that didn’t deter him from using colloidal silver. Karason continued ingesting silver till he passed away, as he believed it to cure him of his acid reflux, arthritis, and other medical conditions.
World’s Hairiest Man
Body hair can be a nightmare for many. While most of us have body hair to some degree, a man named Yu Zhenhuan is literally covered with it. Yes — you read that right!
96% of Zhenhuan’s body is covered with hair, making him the world’s hairiest man ever known. Also known as the hair boy, Zhenhuan underwent laser treatment in 2009 to get rid of all his body hair.
Plastic Surgery Aficionado
Nicknamed Catwoman for a feline-like appearance and a borderline devotion to cosmetic surgical procedures, Jocelyn Wildenstein has gone under the knife more times than she can actually count or deny.
In her famous interview with the Daily Mail, the socialite denied ever having gone under the knife and instead credits her ‘Swiss heritage’ for her high cheekbones and long hair.
World’s Strongest Man
Considered the greatest strength athlete of all time, Zydrūnas Savickas has won almost all the big global strongman competitions under the sun. Savickas, for instance, has won the title of World’s Strongest Man four times.
Also known as Big Z, Savicka has been working on becoming more shredded these days. An avid user of Instagram, he has been documenting his transformation for the world to see.
World’s Longest Dreadlocks
A self-proclaimed ‘Black Rapunzel,’ Asha Mandela holds the Guinness World Record for having the longest dreadlocks in the world. Mandela’s dreadlocks measure around 19 feet and 6 inches.
Mandela has been growing her hair for more than 25 years and follows an elaborate regiment when it comes to taking care of those precious locks. For starters, she uses more than six bottles of shampoo for each wash — followed by an intensive dry-out process that takes up to two days to finish.
Most Tattooed Woman
Nicknamed ‘The Illustrated Lady’ or ‘The Irvine Walker,’ Julia Gnuse is the most tattooed woman as per the Guinness World Records. 95% of Gnuse’s body is covered in tattoos ranging from her favorite cartoons to actors to even a self-portrait.
Gnuse’s love affair with ink began after she developed a skin condition known as porphyria. She started getting tattoos on her legs, slowly moving to the other parts of her body including her face.
Most Tattooed Man
New Zealand-based performance artist Lucky Diamond Rich can be best described as the ‘male version of Julia Gnuse.’ Rich became the most tattooed man (he’s fully tattooed) in the history of Guinness World Records, replacing the former title-holder Tom Leppard from his position.
Rich’s tattoos have been done by various tattoo artists all across the globe. These tattoos have taken collectively more than a thousand hours of time to be completed.
World’s Widest Hips
American Mikel Ruffinelli holds the title of having the World’s Widest Hips as per the Guinness World Records. Ruffinelli’s hips measure an unusual eight feet in circumference, although her waist is only 3’4″.
Mikel was a normal-sized young woman, although, in her early 20s, she weighed above average. Still, it wasn’t until she was 22 years old that she put on 56 pounds after having her first child. After her daughters followed, her weight and hips continued to grow.
Elephant Legs
British women Mandy Sellars’ legs just won’t stop growing. Sellars, who suffers from a rare genetic mutation, jokingly describes herself as a ‘part-time television star.’ Her condition, in simple words, causes excessive growth in both her legs, rendering her immobile.
But, Sellars refuses to be seen through the lens of her medical condition as she feels she’s much more than that. She, in fact, uses her story to educate people and draw attention to those that suffer from similar medical conditions.
The World’s Heaviest Man
Weighing over a thousand pounds, Patrick Deuel was undoubtedly the world’s heaviest man. Deuel was known to have grappled with weight issues throughout his life. Deuel often cited depression as the reason behind his enormous weight gain.
An avid junk food lover, Deuel felt often famished despite being overweight. Since he ate nothing but junk food, his body lacked the other necessary nutrients needed to sustain life. In the end, his lifestyle proved to be lethal for him, and Deuel passed away in 2016.
World’s Longest Tongue
There are countless benefits if you’re blessed with a long tongue. You can lick your ice cream faster, or perhaps paint with your tongue if your hands are feeling tired. Nick Stoeberl does all that and more with his almost four-inch tongue.
Stoeberl, for example, is able to lick his nose and elbows with ease. He even tried to impress the judges of America’s Got Talent by painting a picture of a heart with his tongue. Now, isn’t that tongue-tastic?
Syndrome X
Here we have Brooke Greenberg pictured along with the rest of her family — her parents and two sisters. Brooke Megan Greenberg became known around the world due to her lack of growth. Specifically, Brooke’s doctors termed her condition Syndrome X in which she remained physically and cognitively similar to a toddler, despite her increasing age.
She was about 30 inches tall, weighed around 16 pounds, and had an estimated mental age of nine months to one year. She passed in 2013, at the age of 20.
Human Chimera
It’s quite hard to believe but Taylor Muhl is her own twin. Born with a rare condition known as chimerism, Taylor Muhl has two sets of DNA. Since birth, Muhl’s body has been defined by the fact that the left and right sides of her torso are two conspicuously different colors, with an almost-perfect line running right down the middle of her torso both front and back.
Well, it turns out, Muhl was conceived with a fraternal twin sister who she then fused with in the womb. Muhl — a singer-songwriter, model, dancer, and awareness advocate — has revealed that she felt relieved after her diagnosis. “Finally, I know why my stomach looks the way it does,” she says.
World’s Dirtiest Man
The phrase ‘cleanliness is next to godliness’ is obviously lost on Amoo Hadji, as he’s anything but clean. Known as the world’s dirtiest man, Hadji is believed to not have showered for over 65 years.
Apart from refraining from bathing, Hadji has picked up some pretty unusual habits to keep him company — such as eating carcasses or smoking elephant dung. We’re honestly taken aback.
World’s Longest Fingernails
Christine Walton holds the Guinness World Record for having the world’s longest fingernails. Walton, whose nails measure a total of 19’9″, hasn’t touched the nail clippers since 1990.
Growing her nails out to this point wasn’t a part of Walton’s life plan. As she says, it just happened. Her fingernails apparently grew so much that they started touching the floor. Well, that’s some serious level of dedication… or procrastination.
World’s Most Flexible Woman
Meet the woman who’s more elastic than a rubber band. Known as the world’s most flexible woman, Julia Zlata is able to contort her body into all sorts of positions with ease and grace.
Besides being born with elastic limbs, Zlata practices rigorously to perfect the talent she’s famed for. From the looks of it, Zlata has no plans to slow down anytime soon. Kudos to her!
Iranian Hulk
Born and raised in Iran, Sajjad Gharibi is a weightlifter, aspiring bodybuilder, and mixed martial artist. Thanks to his gigantic frame, he has become known as the “Iranian Hulk” or “Persian Hercules.”
He’s become a famous social media figure with about half a million followers, and avidly posts videos and pictures via Instagram.
The Jaguar Woman
Mexican lawyer María José Cristerna Méndez is also known as as The Vampire Woman or — as she prefers, The Jaguar Woman. Cristerna uses her body as a device to share a strong message against domestic violence.
Maria has covered 96% of her body with ink, apart from having body modifications such as dental implants, split tongue, ear expansions, eye tattoos, and more. Besides working as a criminal lawyer, Cristerna is an entrepreneur, with her own tattoo studio and a clothing line.
World’s Widest Mouth
Francisco Domingo Joaquim holds the Guinness World Record for having the world’s widest mouth. Joaquim’s mouth measures 6.7 inches. This means Joaquim is easily able to swallow a can of Pepsi sideways without any challenges.
Joaquim can also eat faster than other people, as he can stuff more food in his mouth than a group of people combined together. He’s giving the phrase ‘big mouth’ an entirely new meaning.
Skin and Bones
Tom Staniford was born with an extremely rare genetic condition called Myelodysplastic Preleukemic Syndrome, a.k.a. MDP syndrome, which affects the metabolism. People with MDP syndrome are unable to store fat in their bodies.
This condition is so rare that there are currently only eight people in the world who are affected by it. Luckily, Tom’s condition hasn’t prevented him from living a full life. He’s now a cyclist and has participated in multiple competitions.
The Most Pierced Man
Rolf Buchholz holds the record for the most pierced man in the world. He has a whopping 453 piercings, 94 of which are on his mouth. In addition, Rolf split his tongue and received various implants in his fingers, arms, and chest — as well as those famous horns on his head.
Not only is he the most pierced man in the world, but Rolf also holds the record for being the man with the most body modifications.
Human Silly Putty
Gary “Stretch” Turner was born with a rare genetic disorder called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome — which can weaken a person’s blood vessels, joints, or skin. In Gary’s case, it’s the latter.
Gary explained, “If [you] … look at your own skin cells under a microscope, they’d be nice and round and lock in many places. … But my skin cells tend to be more jagged, and don’t fit together quite so well. The best way to describe it is I’m built rather like a badly woven basket (…) which will pull apart.”
All That Glitters Is Gold
Lauren Wasser suffered from Toxic Shock Syndrome and ended up being put in a medically induced coma with only a 1% chance of survival. A week and a half later, Lauren woke up and her right leg had been amputated.
Several years later, she chose to amputate her left leg as well, due to the pain it was causing her. Not to be discouraged, Lauren continued on with her dreams of becoming a model and has since successfully marketed herself as the “girl with the golden legs.”
The Human Tree
Dede Koswara, a.k.a. Tree Man, worked for a traveling freak show as a half man/half tree. Dede injured his knee at the age of 10 and began to notice warts developing around the injury. Unfortunately, he was unable to afford medical attention and even tried to remove the wart himself.
Eventually, Dede’s warts grew and spread across his body. It was later discovered that the craftsman was suffering from Epidermodysplasia Verruciformis (EV), which causes HPV to spread throughout the body.
A Ken Doll
Justin Jedlica got his first cosmetic surgery done at 18 years old in an effort to become a human Ken doll. Justin’s first surgery was a nose job — which was followed by implants in his chest, shoulders, biceps, and triceps. Justin also got his brows shaven and lifted, as well as cheek and lip augmentations.
Overall, the now 41-year-old has undergone over 190 cosmetic procedures. He’s since explained that he considers plastic surgery to be part of a lavish and glamorous lifestyle, which is why he’s so enamored by it.
A Zombie Invasion
Billy Owen, a.k.a. One Eyed Bill, has everyone’s dream job in that he makes a living pretending to be a zombie. After losing his right eye to cancer, Billy decided to make a tragic situation into a career.
He now performs various tricks, including putting objects into his eye socket and sticking his fingers through it so that it looks like a hand is growing out of his face. Sometimes, Billy even leaves his eye socket completely uncovered so that the audience can see his skull.
The World’s Longest Mustache
Ram Singh Chauhan has gotten himself into the Guinness World Records by having the world’s longest mustache. In 2012, Ram’s facial hair was a whopping 14 feet long!
The world record holder started growing his mustache back in 1970 and he hasn’t cut it since, with the exception of an occasional trim around his mouth. Unsurprisingly, it takes him a full hour to wash and comb his mustache — which he does every day.
The Strongest Woman
Aneta Florczyk is an athlete and strongwoman who regularly competes in weight lifting competitions. Aneta started her career at 16 years old, as a powerlifter. She was named the World Champion/World’s Strongest Woman a total of four times.
This means that Aneta has more wins in strongwoman competitions than any other woman in history! Another of Aneta’s achievements was winning a competition in which she had to lift an adult man over her head. She was able to lift 12 men total.
Balkan Barbie
Andrea Ivanova, a.k.a. Balkan Barbie, has the largest lips in the world. However, it’s worth noting that they’re not exactly natural. Andrea got her first lip injections at 21 years old. She now has a total of 26 injections in her lips and intends to get more!
Andrea also got cosmetic surgery on her chest, chin, and jawline. The Balkan Barbie explained, “I like my lips now, more than before and I feel very good and very happy with them because according to me, with bigger lips I look prettier.”
The Real-Life Magneto
Arun Raikwar inexplicably stuck a nail to his body while doing some housework and the nail didn’t fall off. Since that incident, Arun has discovered that his body is essentially a magnet!
Doctors have explained, “This is an extremely curious case but I am not surprised because all of us have some magnetic field in our body. The same magnetic field allows us to get MRI and ECG scans done. In Arun’s body, the magnetic field has increased and it will go away with time. It is not permanent.”
Finally Walking Tall
Chen Tuanzhi was born with Congenital Genu Recurvatum Disease, a.k.a. backward bending knee, an extremely rare condition that affects roughly one out of every 100,000 people. Unfortunately, this disease left Chen unable to walk or even lie down flat.
Until the age of 26, she was known as ‘Crawling Girl’ because of how she went from place to place. Luckily, people donated money to help her pay for corrective surgery. Now, after seven surgeries and 10 months of treatments, Chen is finally able to walk!
Separated at Birth?
It’s widely believed that the average person has roughly seven doppelgangers and it’s highly uncommon for anyone’s face to be entirely unique. That being said, when Niamh Geaney turned to social media to find her doppelganger, she probably didn’t expect such a precise result.
Karen Branigan not only looks uncannily like Niamh but they live a mere hour and a half away from each other. The two women are not related in any way and, moreover, they look more like each other than they do their own siblings!
Bending Over Backwards
When Claudio Vieira de Oliveira was born, doctors thought he wouldn’t live past a single day due to the fact that he has Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita, which essentially means that his head is upside down.
The condition has left Claudio with muscular atrophy in his legs and his arms are stuck to his chest. However, Claudio still lives an extremely full life as a motivational speaker. The now 44-year-old has said, “I’ve never had (difficulties), my life is normal.”
Making the Most of It
Grace McDaniels was born with Sturge-Weber Syndrome, which is an extremely rare skin disorder that can cause deformities. Grace used her appearance, and her nickname of the ‘Mule-Faced Woman’, to get a job working for a traveling circus.
Other than an initial difficulty speaking (which she overcame), Grace’s condition didn’t affect her day-to-day life in any way. She got married, had two children, and enjoyed traveling the country and working with the circus.
The Zombie Model
Rick “Zombie Boy” Genest was born looking perfectly human but had roughly 90% of his body tattooed in order to resemble a zombie. Rick rose to fame through Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” music video and enjoyed a successful modeling career from it.
Before his passing in 2018, Zombie Boy had managed to rack up over 139 tattoos of bones and upwards of 176 insect tattoos. Many people suspect that Rick’s fascination with death came from when he had a brain tumor and was on a surgery waitlist for over six months.
Benjamin Button
Shin Hyomyung is 30 years old, yet he’s never gone through puberty. Shin was born with Highlander Syndrome, which causes the body to age at an extremely slow pace.
He grew normally from birth but his growth stopped right before puberty. Now, Shin is currently only 5’4 and his voice has the pitch of a young boy’s. Luckily, Shin’s condition doesn’t affect his health in any way and he enjoys living the life of a typical 30-year-old.
Horsing Around
Robert Huddleston, a.k.a. The Pony Boy, made the most out of his medical condition by using it to get him a career in the circus. He was born with Congenital Genu Recurvatum, a knee deformity that left him unable to stand.
Robert would get around by crawling on all fours, which earned him the nickname of Pony Boy. Determined not to be a burden, Robert worked on his family farm while growing up and even served in the second World War working as a blacksmith and carpenter.
The Human Lightbulb
Deepak Jangra, a.k.a. Electric Boy, is the real-life Thor. The teenager can withstand up to 11,000 volts of electricity, which is enough electricity to power 500 houses. Most human beings would experience electric shock from a mere 50 volts.
Deepak discovered his ‘superpower’ when fixing his mother’s heater one day. He’s been to doctors but they couldn’t find any explanation for his abilities. However, medical professionals have warned Deepak that his performances with electricity are a “disaster waiting to happen.”
Life Without Body Fat
Lizzie Velásquez was born with an extremely rare congenital disease called Marfanoid–Progeroid–Lipodystrophy Syndrome. Lizzie’s most noticeable symptom is that she’s unable to store body fat or gain weight. She’s never weighed more than 64 pounds and her body fat is at nearly 0%.
Tragically, Lizzie was bullied mercilessly and even called the “Ugliest Woman in the World.” Rather than letting it get to her, Lizzie used her experiences to become a motivational speaker and advocate against cyberbullying.
Largest Eyes
For those who don’t know, Kim Goodman holds a Guinness World Record for the largest eyes in the world. She holds the world record for the farthest eyeball protrusion. Goodman discovered her talent by chance!
Since then, she has been popping eyeballs whenever she wants to. If that’s not enough to impress you, consider the fact that Goodman can also pop her eyes out even when she yawns!
World’s Tallest Model
Models of the yore were normally tall. Anyone less than six feet wasn’t considered to be a model in the olden days, no matter how beautiful. All the supermodels of the ’90s, therefore, were taller than the models we see on the runways today.
But, no one is taller than Russian model Yekaterina Lisina — known professionally as Ekaterina Lisina. Standing at 6’9″ tall without heels, Lisina was a professional basketball player before she decided to try her luck in the modeling world.
World’s Smallest Waist
A tiny waist was another physical prerequisite the models of yesteryears were expected to adhere to. To achieve that size, a lot of these models used to engage in tons of unhealthy dietary habits.
But, none of them came close to Michele Kobke, who holds the title of the world’s tiniest waist. Kobke has revealed that, in order to achieve her 16-inch waist, she hasn’t taken off her corset in three years.
Heaviest Sumo Wrestler
Sumo wrestlers on average weigh in at about 330 pounds. But, not Orora Satoshi — the heaviest of the Sumo wrestlers we’ve come across so far. The now-retired Sumo wrestler weighed around 645 pounds at his peak.
The wrestler’s weight gain was purely unintended as he wasn’t aiming to break or create any record. But, as destiny would have it, his weight put him on the path of fame, making Satoshi the heaviest Sumo wrestler of all time.
Human Tow Truck
Velu Rathakrishnan, from Malaysia, used his teeth to pull two KTM commuter trains, with a total weight of 260.8 tonnes
Rathakrishnan treats his talent as a meditative practice — as he feels it helps him channel all his might and power in one place. We wonder which toothpaste or tooth powder he uses to keep his teeth and gums so strong.
Today, we as a society have definitely evolved. We’ve become more enlightened, and more accepting of the differences that make every individual unique. We’ve compiled a list of people whose extraordinary features — natural or enhanced — set them apart from the traditionally accepted norms.