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EPIC record alert. ⚠️
Do you know how wide the average adult male's tongue is?
It's around 4.8 cm (1.9 in).
But did you know that there are people out there with tongues almost TWICE as wide?!
In fact, the first ever record holder for the world's widest tongue (male) was awarded in 2004. His name is Amandeep Heer, he's from the UK and his tongue is... 7.6 cm (3 in) wide!
That is the exact same width as a sticky note. 😝
But wait, it gets even better - just a year later, a new record holder was discovered!
Jay Sloot from Australia appeared on our TV show Guinness World Records, where his tongue was measured to be 0.3 cm longer than Amandeep’s. 🤪
It took 8 years for someone to break Jay’s amazing record...
Until one day, while browsing our Guinness World Records 2012 book in their local library, dad and daughter duo Byron and Emily Schlenker from USA came across Jay’s record.
That's when Byron started thinking: "My tongue is pretty wide; I wonder how wide it is?".
As soon as he got home, he rushed to measure it and he soon realized that his tongue was indeed wider than Jay’s!
Soon after, his tongue was accurately measured by a medical professional to be 8.3 cm (3.27 in) wide, and he became the official new record holder. 😜
And there is more... Byron’s broad tongue was seemingly not done growing.
The next year, it was measured again and found to be 8.57 cm (3.37 in). That’s as long as 4 £1 coins in a row...🪙🪙🪙🪙
Who knows how Byron's tongue managed to grow?
According to Emily, there is a simple explanation to it: “[It's because] he shows it so much! It’s a muscle, it stretches when you work it out, so since he sticks it out so much, he’s gotten a few millimetres bigger.”
🔎This is absolutely true: the tongue is a set of muscles which can be stretched through repeated exercise!
Following in her dad's footsteps, Emily was awarded the female version of the record, with her tongue measuring 7.33 cm (2.89 in) wide. 📏
Look at the fantastic father-daughter duo in... action! 👅👅
Talk about some tongue-tastic genes! 🤪
Emily was just 14 years old when she was awarded her record, proving that you can become a record breaker at any age.
Now, at the age of 22, she still has the world’s widest tongue (female), contrary to her dad who lost his in 2018, to 58-year-old Brian Thompson from USA.
In fact, Brian’s jaw-droppingly wide tongue measures 8.88 cm (3.49 in)...
Brian is just as ecstatic as his predecessor to hold a place in Guinness World Records history: “Possessing a world record is a marvelous thing. My tongue has been an amusement to my friends and family for years!”
Imagine sticking out your record-breaking tongue anytime you meet a new group of friends; you'd always be the life of the party!🥳
Another tongue-tastic record is the world’s longest tongue. This title belongs to Nick Stoeberl for the male category, measuring 10.1 cm (3.97 in), and Chanel Tapper for the female category, at 9.75 cm (3.8 in).
Nick's tongue is so long that it could hold five ring doughnuts! 🍩🍩🍩🍩🍩
Now it's your turn: challenge your friends to stick their tongues out and let's see who's got the longest!