Is competitive eating a healthy sport for America?

A newly popular sport could be bringing down an already unhealthy America.

Competitive eating gained more media attention this summer, with 50,000 people showing up to the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island in New York, and even more people tuned into ESPN to watch the competition.

Joey Chestnut, 23, ate 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes to take the title. Chestnut trains for these events by eating mass quantities of the food he is about to be challenged with, such as hot dogs, hot wings, cheesecake and more. He drink massive amounts of water to make the food sink to the bottom of his stomach so he can get the maximum amount in. At 6 foot 1 inches and 220 pounds, Chestnut runs to keep the weight off. But according to "Competitive Eating: How Safe is it?" by Richard Sine, dieticians worry about the health risks associated with this behavior as well as the image to the public in a country that is already obese, is publicizing gluttony at its finest a good idea?

The binge eating associated with competitive eating can cause stomach perforations in people with undiagnosed ulcers, says Shanthi Sitaraman, MD, PhD, a gastroenterologist at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. In addition, because of the immense amounts of water the competitors consumer, they are at risk for water intoxication, a deadly syndrome that results from dilution of electrolytes in the blood.

Dr. David Metz has been studying competitive eaters and found that they have a special ability to expand their stomach and stomach muscles.

So couch potatoes beware if you're looking for a new sport to try, competitive eating is not a sport that anyone can do, nor is it one that will keep you healthy. As far as summer sports go, health experts seem to believe Americans should stick to the classics, baseball, volleyball, swimming and the norm.