Julia Caples from Wilkes-Barre, Pa. is no normal mother considering her preference for consuming around two liters of blood a month. The 45-year-old mother of two says she has been practicing this unorthodox tendency for more than 30 years.

The aptly named "Vampire Mom" says she "hunts" for her willing "donors" at occult gatherings throughout her area. Once recruited, Julia makes a small incision around the participant's neck using a ceremonial knife she designed herself, and then drinks their blood to keep her lively and young, Mirror.co.uk reported.

"When I feed off of a person and drink their blood I feel stronger and healthier. I know scientifically there's not a lot nutrition in blood, but maybe there's some value we haven't discovered yet," she explained.

"I feel more beautiful than any other time when I'm regularly drinking. I'm also extremely healthy with no major health problems, and I have an abundance of energy all the time. At times I've drunk half-­a-­gallon a month."

Besides the obvious health concerns involved with drinking authentic human blood, namely blood-borne illnesses like bacterial infection, hepatitis, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), what are some potential risks?

By drinking human blood, or the blood of a cow and sheep, we run the risk of introducing prions into our system. These infectious proteins, usually located in the brain or along the spinal cord, have been known to cause mad cow disease by stimulating an inflammatory response in the body.

And, despite Caples' claims of the energizing effects of drinking blood, there are no benefits.