Suman Khatun, a five year-old obese Indian girl who suffers from a suspected hormonal imbalance, is so insatiably hungry she is eating herself to death, doctors fear.

In just one week, she devours over 10 kilograms of rice, 24 eggs, six litres of milk and five kilos of potatoes.

Her hunger even leads her to sneak out and pester her neighbours for food in the village of Metiala in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Earning just £6 a week, her parents have reached their wits’ end with their daughter who weighs in at almost 12 stone, despite being only three and half feet tall.

“When she is not fed she cries, shouts, screams and has even thrown rocks at us” says Suman’s mother Belly Bibi, 33.

Crippled by their daughter’s appetite, Suman’s family has been unable to afford to travel to Calcutta for expert medical treatment.

Suman struggles to walk as she suffers from severe respiratory problems.

At 2, Suman weighed seven stone and her weight has increased by up to 15 kilos per year

“I believe that it is a clear case of a malfunctioning pituitary gland…but without diagnostic tools I can only treat the symptoms”.