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AFP 14 June 04 Snakes hold no sting for Indian mountain man bitten 272 times
New Delhi: A 92-year-old man living in a Himalayan village in India has survived 272 snake bites by following a simple tip -- never eat salt.
Amar Singh, whose home is deep in the remote Narag valley in India's mountainous Himachal Pradesh state, loves the creatures and despite being bitten never hits or kills them, the United News of India said Monday.
Instead, he picks up the hissing snakes and deposits them in their jungle homes. Singh received his survival tip more than 50 years ago from a traditional healer of snake bites, the report said.
Snakes hold no sting for Indian mountain man bitten 272 times

Its all about him being bitten by essentially harmless snakes. Reminds me about an article I read in the Straits Times in Singabore about an 'elite' military unit in Indonesia that had an initiation ritual of being bitten by cobras. The general was demonstrating this to the press.... with a very nice Ptyas korros!

In the picture of the article referred to the brat is holding a flying snake (Chrysopelea paradisi)), a species commonly regarded as 'non-venomous'. The irony is of course that we've shown that it is indeed venomous (like all other 'colubrids') but of course in the outter mud-villages of India they probably aren't up on the latest research (and the species is essentially harmless despite being venomous). So, its just another in the long line of indigenous snake scams.

I'd like to see him take an untreated bite by a Russell's viper. Low salt diet or not, he'd be screwed.

Cheers
B
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Dr. Bryan Grieg Fry
Deputy Director
Australian Venom Research Unit
University of Melbourne

www.venomdoc.com

Total bunk all the low sodium diet helps his high blood pressure.
how about the low carb snake cure!
atkins friendly!
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Bud