The Untold Truth Of Mukbang

Mukbang. Yeah, it sounds like an NSFW word you'd never punch into your computer's search bar in the presence of other people. We get it. It's a foul-sounding word that brings about cringes when you ask people if they know what it means. However, it's exactly the opposite of the gratuitously explicit corner of the internet you might expect.

So, what exactly is mukbang? Punch that seven-letter word into YouTube and you'll find thousands of videos of people eating. That's right. Just... eating. And they're eating a ton of food. It sounds weird, and honestly, it kind of is. Watching someone eat doesn't sound like it could offer any kind of entertainment or intrigue, but once you take a deep dive into the world of "mukbangers," you realize there's a massive sect of society that actually loves watching hosts stuff their faces with lots and lots food.

You might want to add "mukbang" to your vernacular because this trend is blowing up quicker than an Eminem diss track. This is the untold truth of mukbang.

Where exactly did this whole mukbang thing start anyway? If you're thinking it sounds like something that came from overseas, you're right. The word 'mukbang" is of South Korea origin, and that's exactly where the whole craze started sometime around 2010. Even though it sounds like it might be some sloppy fetish genre, the word is totally tame.

The word is a portmanteau — a word made up of the smashing together of two other words — and when you break it down, it makes total sense. "Muk-ja" means "eating," and "bang-song" means "broadcast." So, the word means "broadcast eating," which is exactly what it is. People broadcasting themselves over the internet while they stare into the camera and consume a (very large) meal.

And chances are, even if you know what the word means, you're saying it wrong. It doesn't sound like it looks — the word is actually pronounced "mook-bong" or "moak-bahng." 

It can't be healthy to stuff hashbrowns, chicken nuggets, fast-food burgers, and a variety of dipping sauces into your body in one session, right? No, it isn't. 

Nowadays, people pride themselves on how much kale they consume and how many carbs they leave out of their daily diet. But, many mukbangers thrive on saturated fats and caloric intakes. One popular American mukbanger who goes by Nicokado Avocado puts his body through hell for most videos. He says nhaling thousands of calories in a sitting often leaves him sick — and crying on the toilet.

Dietician Theresa Kinsella told The New York Times, "The short-term health risks are physical discomfort, gastrointestinal distress, lethargy and fatigue." She added that, in the long-term, mukbangers may see weight gain, heart disease, and diabetes.

Nicokado weighed 140 pounds before he discovered mukbanging, but ever since his slew of videos, he now clocks in at 220 pounds. He claims he eats lots of greens outside of his videos, but an 80-pound weight increase proves that might not be enough to balance things out.

Just because you're a part of a community like mukbang doesn't necessarily mean you totally understand the craze or the attention the community garners on a massive scale. People join groups because they have fun engaging with others who share the same interests, but even though someone's having a blast, they may not really get the point of it all.

Take mukbanger Bethany Gaskin, known as B-Love, for example. This is a woman who, night after night, treats viewers to a massive feast in front of her camera and leaves them satisfied. You might assume someone with such an immense following and passion for the activity would truly understand why someone tunes in to watch her shovel food down her gullet. Well, as it turns out, she doesn't really understand the craze. But hey, it makes her a bunch of money, and what she does understand is bills need to get paid and this is an enjoyable way to do it. "I don't understand it, but I just do it," Gaskin said. "To have people watch you eat, it's weird. But the numbers are looking good, the money is right, so I'm going to keep on doing it!"

For those of us who love eating crustaceans and cracking open their exoskeletons to find the succulent treasure inside, we couldn't imagine actually making money doing so. Lobster and crab ain't cheap, and we expect to rack up a hefty bill eating them. But, what if you earned your salary simply by chomping down mouthfuls of delectable lobster tails and crab legs? Well, one woman does, and she couldn't be happier doing it.

Bethany Gaskin is a popular YouTuber widely known for eating shellfish online. On her YouTube channels Bloveslife and BlovesASMR Eating Her Way, she doesn't just tackle a one-pound lobster or a few measly crab legs during a video. This lady tackles a serious level of shellfish. She takes on massive Dungeness crab legs, several lobster tails at a time, and dozens of mollusks, all while talking into the camera about how amazing everything is. Once a child daycare owner, Gaskin now uploads daily videos of herself enjoying seafood feasts so exquisite it would make any seafarer green with envy.

Life is good when you're a mukbanger.

Even though "mukbang" is a Korean word that Americans have embraced and try themselves, many of the videos from the states have some stark differences from the ones in Korea. Yes, they both involve people eating in front of a camera and broadcasting the action, but the American versions veer down a slightly different avenue.

Many American mukbangers (not all, just to be clear) like to talk while they eat. It's almost as if they guide the viewer through the taste sensations they're experiencing and explain how delicious each bite is, which is incredibly appealing to many mukbang fanatics. 

Lots of videos are also pre-recorded and uploaded at some point after the host wraps their meal up. Most of the Korean videos, however, are actually streamed live during typical dinner hours so viewers can literally eat alongside their favorite personalities. Korean hosts mostly stay silent, as well. Americans tend to talk about themselves (how typical) and treat the camera as if it's a therapeutic way to get things off their chest.