A 35-year-old man in China reportedly suffered a broken femur bone following a coughing spell.

The man, referred to only as Mr Ye, left the doctors at the Second People’s Hospital of Fujian Province stunned by the non-contact femur fracture as it typically occurs for men his age from “significant trauma, such as car accidents or falls.”

It’s understood that Mr Ye initially complained about experiencing sharp pain during a severe coughing spell, thinking it was a cramp. However, he later sought medical attention after walking became too painful, which led to the discovery of the broken bone following examination.

X-ray of broken Femur image via Oddity Central

Following more examinations, it was revealed that the fragility of Mr Ye’s bone density was comparable to that of an 80-year-old man, Oddity Central reports.
It was further revealed that his weakened bones were due to his unhealthy lifestyle.

Speaking with Doctors regarding his nutrition, Ye confessed to the heavy consumption of sweet, carbonated drinks over water, which impaired his body’s calcium absorption.

Doctors at the Second People’s Hospital of Fujian Province were stunned by the incident, as femur fractures in men his age usually result from significant trauma, such as car accidents or falls.

Dong Zhong, director of the Department of Orthopedics at the hospital, noted that “cola-based drinks contain phosphoric acid, which combines with the calcium in normal food intake to form calcium phosphate after entering the body.”

“The latter is harder to assimilate by the human body, so drinking such beverages frequently for long periods can have devastating consequences on bone density”, as per Oddity Central.