After a long day of work, there’s only one way that 23-year-old Nadia* knows how to unwind. While eating a reasonable dinner of chicken, rice, and beans, she watches her favorite YouTube star down two days’ worth of food.

“That’s my favorite thing to do,” she tells Men’s Health. She’s not alone. Her favorite online personality, Nikocado Avocado, has more than a million YouTube subscribers. The account is run by 26-year-old Nicholas Perry, who records himself eating massive amounts of food best consumed in moderation: spicy ramen (a fan favorite), chili cheese fries, and buffalo wings are a few examples. Perry’s videos are part of a trend dubbed mukbang, wherein people earn a living by eating large quantities of food for an online audience.

Mukbang is a mashup of two Korean words: “mukja,” or “let’s eat”; and “bang song,” meaning “broadcast.” It originated in South Korea, but it’s gone on to garner international attention and recruit legions of mukbangers and fans alike, all united by the desire to watch ordinary people consume extraordinary amounts of food.

Even the most hearty of eaters will be impressed by these caloric feats: People inhale upwards of 4,000 calories in one sitting. The mukbang stars who spoke to Men’s Health said their bodies suffer the consequences–but the money (and attention) they’re collecting in this strange digital age mean it’s a sacrifice they’re willing to make.

Before making it stateside, mukbang began airing on the South Korea-based live-streaming service AfreecaTV. There, viewers chat with the Broadcast Jockeys, request specific foods, or make donations–which is how most earn money, Splinter News reported.

Mukbang is a little different in the United States. Instead of live-streaming, professional eaters upload their videos to YouTube in hopes of gaining an audience and earning a portion of the ad revenue generated by views on their videos. Some accept donations and make money through corporate sponsored videos. Their success is dependent on the appetite of fans, like Nadia, who are ravenous for new content.

“Last night I got so annoyed because my old roommate from college called me as I was getting my dinner ready,” Nadia says. “I was ready to sit down and have my YouTube time. I had to eat while I was talking to her, and that really annoyed me.”

Nadia may tune in because she’s “a huge foodie,” but viewers swarm to mukbang for a variety of reasons: pure entertainment; a virtual taste of their favorite food while dieting; or company when they’re eating solo, as is the case in South Korea.

“In Korea, it’s not common for people to go out to eat by themselves,” Candian blogger Simon Stawski, who co-founded “Eat Your Kimchi” and lived in South Korea, told the TODAY show. “Dining is a social activity, and you don’t sit and eat alone. For those that can’t eat with others, they’ll more than likely stay home to eat alone, but they’ll still have the urge to socialize while eating, which is what I think mukbangers replicate.”

23-year-old Madison Killer, who regularly watches videos from YouTube channels Erik the Electric, Peggie Neo, and YummyBitesTV, became a mukbang enthusiast during her first year of college.

“Given that I am not into the typical partying, I found I was having quite a bit of free time and felt a little lonely,” she explains to Men’s Health. “I don’t know how I came across those types of videos initially, but I honestly think at my lowest, they made me feel less alone.”

Becoming a mukbang star seems like a good gig if you can get it. After all, getting paid to eat all the processed, fried, and sugary foods we begrudgingly enjoy in moderation sounds like a dream. But Perry of Nikocado Avocado fame says trading calories for clicks is more work than you’d imagine.

“I know it sounds like an easy job,” he tells MensHealth.com. “You sit. You gorge. You make thousands of dollars. Whee, it’s so much fun.”

What you don’t know is that one video, ranging from 20 to 60 minutes, takes hours to produce. Perry posts at least once per week and says these videos take up more time than his previous full-time gig. Prior to Mukbang, he supported himself as a freelance violinist and by pushing carts at Home Depot. Initially, he uploaded videos of his musical performances to YouTube, but transitioned to gorging after a dieting friend introduced him to this online feeding frenzy.

“It’s a full time job. I’m the business,” he says. That means Perry treks to the grocery store, cooks, sets the stage, films, and cleans up the mess. The process is shorter for videos filmed at restaurants; Perry has orchestrated mukbangs all over the world, including at a Las Vegas buffet.

In a way, these YouTube channels are akin to a personal red carpet: “It’s very powerful to have millions of people following your every move to the point where they want to know what you’re doing,” Perry claims.

But this self esteem boost comes with a cost.

Perry reveals his sex life has become, well, less sexy since jumping into this line of work. “I started having erection problems,” Perry admits. “It never happened until I started doing mukbangs.

There’s no scientific evidence linking erectile dysfunctions to binge eating, but Perry says he’s just not in the mood after a full day of work. It makes sense. Think about the last diarrhea-inducing-meal you ate: did sex sound that appealing after?

It goes without saying that regularly gorging on junk food takes a toll on your body, and frequent diarrhea is a problem for Perry–along with weight gain. When he began eating, Perry weighed 140. He now tops 220.

“Most people, when they think about it, are not willing to destroy their bodies for money,” Perry says.

You can add gas, bloating, and stomach pains to the list of Perry’s ailments–especially when he eats spicy noodles.

“I can’t fall asleep because I feel like my digestive tract is on fire,” he says. “And then I’m running to the bathroom. I’m sitting on the toilet crying.”

Despite all this, Perry really isn’t worried about his health because he eats plenty of greens outside of filming.

But not every online glutton experiences such drastic consequences. Erik Lamkin, 25, is an amateur competitive eater who manages one YouTube account for food competitions and another for mukbangs, because yes, there is a difference.

In a food challenge, Lamkin aims to consume as many calories as possible, which means eating quickly—there is no time for small talk. In his mukbang videos, relegated to a separate channel called The Electrics, Lamkin is chatty, and often films these videos with his girlfriend.

Lamkin’s experience with mukbang has been positive. “It’s kind of fun for me,” he says. He admits the constant farting, water retention, and bouts of diarrhea aren’t ideal, but manages by drinking plenty of water and exercising.

One time, after a particularly sodium-heavy feast, Lamkin could barely move at the gym.

“I tried to run on the treadmill and it felt like I had another stomach on me,” he says. “It was horrible.”

Now, he usually goes for a bike ride following binges, since it’s easier.

Lamkin sees his doctor every couple of months for blood work to monitor the effects of binging.

“Everything is fine,” he says. “I would be more worried if I were an actual competitive eater that traveled around and did contests every weekend.”

These guys may not be concerned enough to retire from YouTube stardom, but ingesting obscene amounts of junk food once a week doesn’t seem like a good idea–even if your body is treated like a temple the remainder of the time.

“It’s quite a roller coaster to put your body on,” says Dr. Andrew Bates, M.D. and assistant professor of surgery in the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University. He explains the repeated cycle of binging and clean eating could make your system’s biochemical signaling go haywire. “Your body won’t know whether you’re in feast or famine mode,” he says.

Long-term, it’s not clear if this erratic eating pattern can have lasting damage.

“We don’t have the benefit of watching them for years and seeing what happens,” he says.

Bates believes obesity is the biggest threat to these guys. Even mukbang stars who don’t gain weight could develop issues often found in obese adults, like difficulty managing their sugar levels.

“It would be really hard to reverse that kind of behavior if you’re doing it one or two to three times a week,” he says.

But Gastroenterologist Dr. Samantha Nazareth, M.D., wonders if we shouldn’t think instead about the effects these videos have on viewers’ health.

“In a country with increasing amounts of obesity, this is not the correct message to send nor is this something to try at home,” she says.

Perry and Lamkin realize this is a young man’s game—but don’t expect either of them to quit as long as the dollars keep rolling in. The two won’t disclose how much they make each month, but it’s safe to assume the figures are significant, especially considering their high grocery bills. Perry spends up to $1,500 a month on food. One high-profile South Korean mukbang star reportedly rakes in $9,4000 a month, according to Reuters.

“I’ve worked hard at building this audience. I would never throw it away,” Perry asserts.

As long as mukbangs continue to drive views–and dollars– both guys are pretty set to continue their online feasts for now.

“I still have a few years left in me,” Lamkin believes. He says cutting back would be an option if blood tests revealed binging was having disastrous effects on his fat or cholesterol levels.

Perry is already brainstorming other possible YouTube shticks for the day he can no longer stomach mukbangs.

“Maybe I’ll document a weight loss journey,” he muses. He also toys with the idea of dedicating his channel to healthy recipes.

Although Perry isn’t quite clear on plan B, he is adamant about one thing: “I never see myself quitting YouTube.”

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