Doctors believe that this woman has the "World's biggest hands" since each of her arms weighs 21 pounds. Duangjay Samaksamam is a shop owner from Surin province in Thailand. For over 50 years, she has suffered from a very painful and rare condition that has her limbs permanently swollen. She says that moving is painful for her even when handling simple tasks. "My hands are so heavy I can barely lift them to comb or shampoo my hair, it's very difficult. Getting dressed is also very difficult and painful," she says.
The 59-year-old was embarrassed by her condition and spent her first 20 years as a recluse. She was ashamed of her look and never even went to school. Circumstances forced her to stop hiding so that she could earn a living and take care of her parents. She took over the running of her family's grocery shop. Medics around the world have a keen interest in her and many of them have attempted to reduce the swelling through surgery. None to date however has succeeded. "Some doctors said the only solution was to cut off my hands if I wished to walk around freely. But I don't want to do that," she says.
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.