Scientists really tried to make zero-calorie food out of nonstick pan coating

TIL someone seriously proposed eating Teflon as a zero-calorie food. Yes. Teflon. The stuff most people associate with nonstick pans. 🍳 The idea was weirdly simple: if the body cannot digest it, maybe it could pass through you, make you feel full, and add basically no calories. Apparently, researchers even pointed to old DuPont studies from the 1960s where rats were fed a diet containing 25% Teflon. The rats lost weight, and the studies reportedly found no obvious signs of toxicity. Which is both fascinating and deeply cursed. 🫠 They even patented the idea as a possible meal additive. Imagine a future where diet food was not “low carb” or “high protein,” but just: “Now with pan coating.” The FDA did not approve it, so the idea never became a real food product. Honestly, that feels like one of those moments where science got very close to unlocking something and everyone else had to gently say: “Maybe let’s not.” Still, it is wild that “eating Teflon for weight loss” got far enough to become an actual proposal. Humans are terrifyingly creative when calories are involved.