It is common to think that amusement parks have little to do with the world of medicine. If anything, they can arguably improve the mood of your visitors and their behavior, but hardly physical health as such. On the other hand, and as curious as it may be, there are exceptions.
This is precisely what happens with a well-known roller coaster at the Disney World park in Florida that, judging by the facts, allows nothing more and nothing less than to expel kidney stones. It is not a completely new story, but it has had a new protagonist, who has shared her peculiar experience through social networks.
Disney World’s “Healer” Roller Coaster
The story behind the popular Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster, which premiered at Disney World (Florida) in 1980, is not exactly new. For years there has been talk about the supposed healing properties the attraction provided to those who rode it. Specifically, to those people with kidney stone problems.
Over the years, some people have shared their experiences stating that after enjoying multiple rides on this roller coaster, they experienced a release or passage of kidney stones. AND The last to do so was the American Steph Fallon, a native of New Jersey.
During her visit to Disney World, the woman rode the last car of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster twice, following the process that is said to help end this health problem. Her surprise came the next day when she, Upon getting up, he discovered that his kidney stone had indeed ended. She herself confessed to being in “shock.”
The most viral thing about the matter, however, has come with his narration of the events in a video published on the successful social network TikTok and which, as could not be otherwise, is sweeping in views. But to tell the truth, how much truth is there in this story? Is it really possible for a roller coaster to cure kidney stones?
The research that confirms it
According to science, yes, it is possible. That was at least the conclusion reached by the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association after the study it carried out and which was led by Dr. David Wartinger.
He became interested in the issue after several of his patients assured him that a few roller coaster rides had indeed cured their kidney stones.
Their research, for which three-dimensional models were used, reached a surprising conclusion: between 60 and 70% of the tests that were done actually became a success, but only when people got on the last car of the attraction. Their effectiveness was reduced when they did it in the first seats of the same.
The basis of the theory of those who have supported this phenomenon usually suggests that the vibration and abrupt movement of the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad can contribute to displacing or breaking up small kidney stones.
Presumably the gyroscopic forces and speed of the roller coaster could generate enough agitation in the body to aid in the kidney stone passage process.