'Real life-Wolverine' lives off two ounces of chicken and two cookies a day due to rare condition
A man dubbed the ‘real-life Wolverine’ due to a rare condition has opened up about the daily challenges he faces, including sticking to an extremely restrictive diet.
FAiZY Jamal was born with Waardenburg Syndrome, a group of rare genetic conditions that cause hearing loss and pigmentation changes in the hair and skin, and Hirschsprung's disease, which resulted in him having a large part his intestines removed.
Outwardly, his condition means that he has a loss of pigmentation across his face, neck, elbows and hair, making him look a little bit like the character Wolverine from X-Men - something that saw him become the target of cruel bullies as a child.
Speaking to LADbible, FAiZY said: “I got teased a lot, people would make fun of my face and ask me if I had been burnt. Or they would tell me that I looked 80 years old because of the white patches in my hair.”
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In a bid to fit in at school, FAiZY, who lives in Texas, said he would wear make up to try and cover up his lighter patches, but said he began to feel more confident in his appearance after discovering Canadian model Winnie Harlow, who has vitiligo.
“I was, like, ‘Wow, people really love her’,” he recalled.
“And I wanted to be a model, not a model who is 6ft or with abs, but a model where I can actually be a role model to others.”
The 29-year-old started sharing updates about his life on social media and his accounts quickly blew up, racking up almost 800,000 followers across TikTok and Instagram alone, and picking up millions of views.
He also works as a model, which he says has helped him embrace his unique looks.
Alongside his lack of pigmentation, FAiZY’s condition means that he wears a cochlear implant in his left ear and has had around 85 percent of his intestine removed because of Hirschsprung's disease.
As a youngster, he spent much of his time in and out of hospital and had to be fed through a feeding tube for years until he was in his late teens.
And now as an adult, it means he can only eat tiny amounts of food and can’t join in with his pals when they dine out at restaurants.
He shared: “I only eat two ounces of chicken and two chocolate chip cookies a day. I don’t eat pizza or pasta, you name it, I haven’t eaten it in my whole life.”
'There's not one second in my life that I want to change'
Despite his limited diet, FAiZY says he has been working hard in the gym and has managed to put weight on and build muscle.
“I’ll always find a way to make it work,” he added.
“I know there are limitations on what I can eat but I know I can work with it.”
More importantly, he’s also able to use his social media profile to inspire others who are living with health conditions to not let it hold them back or to be dragged down by bullies.
And although his younger years weren’t easy, FAiZY says he ‘wouldn’t change a minute’.
“I want to experience the pain that I had in the past, so I can gain from it,” he explained.
“And I can share my story to others to inspire them. So there's not one second in my life that I want to change.”
Claire Reid