Joey Chestnut has claimed an 18th Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest crown, but one medical expert says competitive eating can come with serious health dangers.
Chestnut won the 2026 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest on July 4, 2026, in Coney Island, downing 66 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes to retain the Mustard Belt. The total was well short of his own record of 76, but still far ahead of the field and enough to secure another title.
Putting away dozens of hot dogs in one sitting might sound impressive, but doctors say the aftermath can involve far more than discomfort.
His latest win has also renewed discussion about the physical toll that eating contests can take on the body.
Competitive eating involves training the body to handle huge quantities of food in a very limited time, often with minimal chewing.
Many contestants also consume large amounts of water to help swallow food more easily, but that can create additional problems.
“For professional eaters, often they’re training to distend their stomachs, and they’re using lots of water to do that,” Dr Fong said, per ABC.
He warned that this ‘could lead to potentially fatal water intoxication’, which happens when someone drinks too much water too quickly.
Water intoxication can cause hyponatremia, a dangerous drop in blood sodium that can lead to confusion, seizures and, in severe cases, coma or death.
Dr Fong also explained that repeatedly stretching the stomach may contribute to ‘gastroparesis, which can, in turn, lead to chronic nausea and vomiting’.
Gastroparesis is a disorder in which the stomach empties too slowly, causing symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, bloating and abdominal pain.
He added that occasional participants may face an even greater danger because their bodies are not conditioned for that kind of strain.
“You’re distending the stomach … and if your stomach is not used to it, then I think you’ve got a greater risk of perforation.
“Especially if, for example, you’ve already got an area of your stomach that’s weak because, you’ve got an undiagnosed stomach ulcer.”
“Another thing that can happen, especially if you’re not used to it, if you eat a lot, you might vomit,” he added. “If you vomit you risk tearing your oesophagus or your food pipe.”
If that wasn’t enough risk, he said that you could also ‘suck back your vomitus into your airway, which can be a potentially fatal thing’ as you’d essentially drown in your own vomit.”
For competitive eaters, the danger is not just the amount of food consumed, but the speed at which it is swallowed. Forceful vomiting can also injure the esophagus, and aspiration of vomit into the lungs can become a medical emergency.
There have also been deadly examples linked to food competitions.
In 2023, 37-year-old Natalie Buss collapsed and died after competing in a marshmallow eating contest in Wales.
In another case, a man reportedly choked to death on a donut during a challenge where participants tried to eat one as fast as possible to win it for free.
According to Dr Fong, choking remains the leading cause of death in competitive eating events.
“It just doesn’t seem like it’s worth dying for, and there’s been numerous accounts of people dying in these sorts of competitions,” he said.