If you don't eat, will a person die? How many days can you fast without harm to your health? Consequences of long-term abstinence
There are many cases when people had to survive, maybe starve for some time, but there are also those who starve on purpose. Well, I can say that fasting can be different, ranging from therapeutic to forced. A person himself is constantly moves, is engaged in any activity, and even if he passively rests in front of the TV screen, he still spends energy, which is primarily taken from food and sleep. What will happen if a person stops eating altogether?
In many places and many people believe that it will be enough for a person to live literally a week without food, and someone is sure that only 3 or even 4 days will be enough for him. I can immediately say that all human bodies are different, some fatter, and some thinner, for some, food is absorbed faster, and for others it takes a long time, and we also shouldn’t forget about human metabolism, metabolism in other words.
Let's consider what exactly happens in our long-suffering body during long-term complete fasting, when no food enters the body: no proteins, no fats, no carbohydrates, but only water in unlimited quantities. Sometimes water is not supplied either, if we are talking about the so-called dry fasting. This means that the body must, for a fortunately limited time, meet its internal needs for energy sources using its own internal reserves. Simply because there is nowhere else to get them from.
Today, three main substrates are known to maintain ongoing metabolic processes in our body under normal conditions. These are sugar in the form of glucose, fats in the form of fatty acids and so-called ketone bodies.
Some organs are capable of using all three types of fuel to ensure their vital functions. However, for example, nerve cells can only work on glucose, and if there is a lack of it, they die and, as is known, are not restored. That is why some constant blood sugar level is always maintained in all possible ways. And this is all in the first days.
After three to four days, the feeling of hunger begins to subside.
At the same time, glucose reserves in the body are depleted.
The body accepts the fact of hunger as a given and begins to use any remaining sources of energy: fat, and then muscle tissue. There is a sharp weight loss.
At this stage, the body produces ketones, large amounts of which are harmful to the body.
According to Sharman Russell, who wrote a book on fasting, the biggest threat in the early stages of fasting is low blood pressure. The person may lose consciousness and hit their head, which can lead to death.
However, death can occur already at this stage if the hunger strike is dry.
Second week
An exhausted body begins to consume tissue from vital organs such as the heart and liver.
3-4 week
After two weeks of fasting, symptoms worsen and health begins to deteriorate rapidly.
There is muscle atrophy, general weakening, and difficulties in the musculoskeletal system.
The heart rate slows down (bradycardia), the fasting person freezes. The effects of thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency begin to appear.
In a fasting person, vomit consists of gastric juice, problems with vision and consciousness appear.
More than 6 weeks
At this stage, there is a direct threat to the life of the starving person. Problems with brain activity appear; most of the time the person is unconscious and does not react to others.
After the body has depleted all its reserves of vitamins and minerals, the starving person becomes ill with jaundice and scurvy.
Some people experience deafness and blindness at this stage.
After six weeks of fasting, people die from heart failure or excess toxins in the body.
And so I’ll sum it up. A person is capable of starving and at the same time living for at least 5-6 weeks, and then the person dies of exhaustion.
How long a person can manage without food depends on a huge number of reasons. It is clear that many people fast for a certain time, some even go on hunger strikes, and some, by coincidence of events, are left without food (people who disappeared in the snowy mountains or were buried in earthquakes).
Doctors say that a healthy person can survive without food for up to 2 months, but he must definitely drink. Because a person dies from dehydration in approximately 5-7 days. How long can a certain person go without eating? depends on his weight, state of health, climate and his willpower.
There are many cases in history when people went without food for a long time and felt great, but at the same time some people died of hunger in a shorter period of time. Of course, strong people in good physical shape can survive without food for longer, but the body must have fat reserves. The body always stores energy in the form of fat, carbohydrates and proteins. First of all, during hunger, the body begins to consume carbohydrates, then fats (which is why obese people can go longer without food), and only lastly proteins. And when the body depletes its protein reserves, it begins to wither.
Also, an important factor for survival is metabolism, due to which food is converted into energy. People with a slow metabolism have a better chance of surviving without food. When the body does not receive enough food, the metabolism slows down in order to economically spend energy only on the most important processes and maintain the normal functioning of the body.
Surprisingly, one of the most important reasons is climate. The bad news is that not only cool weather, but also heat significantly reduces the time a person can live without food. In a temperate climate, it is possible to live even longer without food.
In 1984, a group of volunteers led by Heinrich Ryzhavsky and candidate of medical sciences Valery Gurvich made 15 days“emergency” kayak trip on the Belosnezhnaya River. They set out on their journey in the absence of food and did not eat anything except water. They had to work with oars for 6-8 hours a day. All participants successfully passed this test, although the oldest of them was 57 years old. A year earlier, another group of enthusiasts made a similar two-week “hungry” raft trip across the Caspian Sea.
As is clear, many people adhere to fasts for several weeks, and many prisoners organize hunger strikes. At the age of 70, one inhabitant of India named Gandhi fasted in the direction 21 days. People involved in the disaster also had to live without food for a long time until rescuers found them
During the Great Russian War, in July 1942, four Soviet sailors were stranded in a boat far from shore in the Black Sea with no water or food supplies. On the 3rd day of their voyage, they began to try sea water. In the Black Sea, the water is 2 times less salty than in the World Ocean. However, the sailors were able to get used to its use only on the fifth day. Everyone now drank up to 2 flasks of it a day. So they, it would seem, got out of the water situation. But they could not solve the problem of providing food. One of them died of starvation on the 19th day, the second - on the 24th, the third - on the 30th day. The last of this four is captain of the medical service P.I. Eresko - on the 36th day of fasting, in a state of darkened consciousness, was picked up by a Soviet military vessel. Behind 36 days After wandering at sea without eating, he lost 22 kg in weight, which was 32% of his initial weight.
In 1962, Soviet physicist V. Leshkovtsev made an experiment on himself. He was hungry for direction 45 days. During this period of time, he drank only water, without receiving a single crumb of food. The experimenter's body passed the test perfectly. According to the “researcher,” after 3-5 days the feeling of acute hunger disappears.
Another case of long forced fasting. In the winter of 1963, a personal plane crashed in a mountainous desert area in Canada. Its crew consisted of two people: 42-year-old pilot Ralph Florez and 21-year-old student Helena Klaben. The landing of the plane was successful, but getting to the nearest populated area across hundreds of kilometers of snowy desert was absolutely impossible. All that was left was to wait for help, wait and fight against the bone-piercing cold and hunger. There was some food supply on the plane, but after a week it ran out, and after 20 days this couple ate their last “food” - 2 tubes of toothpaste. Melted snow became their only food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. “In the following weeks,” Helen Klaben later explained, “we lived on the water. We had it in 3 types: cool, hot and boiled. Alternation helped brighten up the monotony of the menu of the only “snow dish”. Miss Klaben, who was a “pretty fatty” at the time of the disaster, lost 12 kg in weight after the languid ordeal. Ralph Florez lost 16 kg. They were saved on March 25, 1963, through 49 days after the crash.
In January 1960, a self-propelled barge with 4 Soviet servicemen (A. Ziganshin, F. Poplavsky, A. Kryuchkovsky, I. Fedotov) was carried into the Pacific Ocean by a storm. On the 2nd day, the barge ran out of fuel and the radio broke down. After 37 days, the very small supply of food ran out. It was replaced by the fried leather of the harmonica and boots. The daily norm of fresh water was initially 5, and then only 3 sips per person. But this amount turned out to be enough to withstand 49 days until the moment of salvation.
In March 1984 55 days 52-year-old Paulus Normantas had to live alone on an uninhabited peninsula of the Aral Sea because his boat sailed away. The food supply was: half a loaf of bread, 15 g of tea, 22 lumps of sugar and 6 onions. Fortunately, spring floods bring a lot of fresh water to the sea, which is lighter than salt water and floats on the surface. That's why he didn't have any thirst. The food included eggs of seagulls, turtles and even fish (thanks to hunting with an underwater gun), and young herbs. When the water in the sea warmed up to +16°C in May, Normantas swam over a distance of 20 km in 4 days, resting on 16 intermediate islands, and safely reached the shore in the absence of outside help.
The fact that a person can go for a very long time without food is also evidenced by the case of a “hunger strike” recorded more than 1920 in the Irish city of Cork. A group of 11 imprisoned Irish patriots, led by the mayor of Cork, Lord Terence MacSwiney, decided to starve themselves as a symbol of protest against English rule in their country. Day after day, newspapers carried announcements from the prison, and on the 20th day they began to claim that the prisoners were dying, that the priest had already been sent for, and relatives of the prisoners gathered at the gate of the prison. Such messages were transmitted on the 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th and 70th days. In fact, the first prisoner (McSweeney) died on the 74th day, the second on the 88th day, the other nine people on Day 94 gave up hunger, recovered evenly and remained alive.
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Many people sooner or later think about the question, if you don’t eat for a week, what will happen? The materials in this publication will help you dot the i’s.
A week is not a long time
Based on the experience of people who practice fasting in order to cleanse the body, we can say with certainty that weekly fasting is a relatively common diet. Of course, before you dare to take such a step, you need to be examined by your attending physician.
Some people who periodically practice similar experiments on the body dare to abstain from food for a period of a month to 40 days; it is at this indicator that the critical mark has frozen, which cannot be crossed, based on the physiological needs of the body. Long-term fasting is carried out under the supervision of specialists. But a person can do without liquid for no more than 5 days. If you drink water correctly while abstaining from food, you can
The water diet is an effective way to lose weight and cleanse the body.
It has been scientifically proven that it allows a person not only to get rid of excess weight, but also normalizes intestinal function, helps improve skin condition, and also relieves headaches. Nutritionists note that eating fatty, spicy and salty foods often affects the condition of facial skin. No matter what your goal is, fasting for weight loss or cleansing, you should familiarize yourself with how to properly drink water.
Effect on the body
Remember that the liquid you use must be purified. This is when the body will benefit from the process. So, let’s find out, if you don’t eat for a week, what will happen to your body? In fact, there won't be anything bad. Clean water will help the body cleanse itself of accumulated toxins, and the fasting person will feel incredible lightness. Leading a normal lifestyle, people often mistake the feeling of thirst for the body’s signal of hunger. But this is a deceptive feeling.
If you drink a glass of water half an hour before meals, your stomach will become full and will no longer be able to take in the usual amount of food. And if you drink a glass of liquid 2 hours after eating, then this procedure can be equivalent to a regular snack. Consequently, water can satisfy the feeling of hunger for some time. However, this does not mean that a fast for weight loss should include an unlimited amount of liquid.
Which scheme should I choose?
There are two options for calculating the volume of liquid based on the parameters of a person’s weight. To find out the required daily dose in milliliters, you must multiply your own weight with the number 40. For example, if your current weight is 93 kg, then you should drink 3.72 liters of water per day.
According to the second scheme, the current weight is divided by the number 20. So, with the same initial weight of 93 kilograms, based on the simple calculations of the second scheme, it is necessary to consume 4.65 liters of liquid per day. It is worth noting that a proper fast is the one that is least likely to harm the body. If we consume more than 3 liters of water per day, then it is necessary to choose the lowest values of indicators. Therefore, in this case, a person should focus on the calculations of the first scheme.
When is the best time to start experimenting?
If you have never done this before, it is better to start trying in the summer. It is in the summer that the human body most urgently needs water and removes it perfectly. Also during this period the internal organs are not particularly stressed.
Combine abstaining from food with exercise
We learned about what processes happen in the body if you don't eat for a week. What will happen if someone losing weight does at least the simplest set of physical exercises in the morning? A fast on water will only enhance its effect, because any physical activity makes blood circulate better through the vessels, and cells are also saturated with oxygen.
What can you add to water?
If you really want to feel the taste sensations, add half a slice of lemon to the water. As a last resort, add a teaspoon of honey to the glass. Artesian water is the most beneficial for the body. You need to choose it based on your area of residence. It is partially recommended to drink still mineral water, and be sure to take multivitamins. Do not drink liquid from the refrigerator; it should be at room temperature.
Results of a week's fasting
What results can you achieve if you don't eat for a week? What happens when the body refuses to accept fasting conditions? We will find out about this right now. According to testimonials from experimenters, it is possible to lose weight by an average of 5 kilograms per week. Sometimes people experience a slight feeling of nausea, and the 3rd day is considered the most difficult, after which the body seems to forget about food itself.
If you decide on such a radical method as a hunger strike, you may not be able to stand it for a week. Listen to your body, and if you feel really unbearable, eat a sour apple. This especially applies to those who were unable to cross the threshold of the third day of the water diet. Drink warm chamomile or mint tea. Such drinks will act as a laxative.
Never start a week-long fast unless you have made a firm decision to do so. In case something goes wrong, you feel or any other similar symptoms, gradually come out of the fast. Even if you survived 5 days without food, this is already a big victory. Below we provide tips for people who can tolerate fasting relatively easily:
- Drink the liquid slowly, in small sips. You can't drink the whole glass in one gulp.
- It is not recommended to drink more than 2 glasses of water at one time; this can stretch the stomach and worsen the feeling of hunger.
- If you don’t drink the daily amount calculated according to the formulas we provided at the beginning of fasting, it’s okay. Increase the amount of water gradually over the following days.
- Know that if a person takes more than 3 liters of liquid per day, a powerful leaching of organic substances and salts occurs in the body. Therefore, in any case, taking multivitamins is necessary.
- It is considered dead; it does not contain any useful compounds or trace elements. Liquid from the tap, passed through a regular filter, is also not particularly enriched with microelements. If you do not want fasting to harm your body, listen to our advice and drink artesian or mineral still water.
What contraindications exist?
As we have already said, you cannot “sit down” on a course of weekly fasting without permission without consulting a doctor. There are a number of diseases in which this method of losing weight and cleansing the body is contraindicated. Due to the fact that increased water content in the body can lead to edema and increased blood pressure, this method is contraindicated for people with hypertension.
This method is strictly not recommended for pregnant and lactating women. The mother must be aware that she will not be able to give her baby the vitamins and microelements necessary for full growth, and all attempts to try on the previous clothing size must be left for the period when lactation ends. This method is also contraindicated for people with kidney and urinary tract problems.
Sleep, nutrition, breathing - all these are completely natural things that are simply necessary for the normal functioning of the human body. But sometimes it becomes interesting: how long can a person not sleep or, for example, not eat? After all, the body’s capabilities have their own limits.
How long can a person stay awake?
To begin with, it is worth noting that normal healthy sleep is very important not only for the human psyche, but also for the normal functioning of the entire body. At night, the work of all organs slows down, thus restoring. In addition, sleep is a period of work of the subconscious, when everything seen, heard and thought during the day is somehow classified. The subconscious is actively looking for answers to questions, drawing some conclusions from the information received, etc.
But how long can a person stay awake? To begin with, it is worth noting that even if an individual does not sleep for more than two days, the state of his body cannot be called normal, since all organ systems, including the brain, are literally working to the limit.
The first record was set by Tony Wright in 1965, who managed to survive without sleep for 11 days. Of course, this was done deliberately, out of a desire to get into the Guinness Book of Records. Fortunately, a few years later the committee excluded the category of this peculiar “insomnia” from the list of records, not without reason claiming that such experiments were too dangerous for life. Of course, history knows many interesting facts. For example, Maureen Weston lasted 18.5 days without sleep without taking any medications. There is also evidence of some special people who, as a result of injury, either stopped sleeping altogether, or at least their brain does not rest as usual. There is even a genetic disease - familial insomnia syndrome, when people simply But these are exceptions. Such feats are beyond the power of an ordinary, average person.
Several days without sleep can lead to irreversible changes in the body or even death. For example, on the second day there is an increase in the level of hormones in the blood. Around this time, neural connections in the cerebral cortex slowly begin to break down. Of course, the person does not notice this. The only symptom is lethargy, a feeling of intoxication, and increased mental activity. Starting from 4-5 days, the brain slowly deteriorates and is almost impossible to restore.
As a rule, at this time a person begins to fall into the so-called fast, superficial state. It can last only a few seconds, but this time is enough for the body to somehow maintain vital functions. But REM sleep is dangerous for the individual. The fact is that it is uncontrollable - the person does not even suspect that he fell asleep for a second. What if you are driving a car at this time? In short, lack of sleep is a very dangerous condition.
How long can a person go without eating or drinking?
Nutrition is another important part of our existence. Scientists believe that a normal, average person can live without food for an average of two months (sometimes this figure reaches 8), but only if he drinks enough liquid.
As for drinking, the body can exist without fluid intake for no more than 5-7 days. After this, the most severe stage of dehydration occurs, leading to death. Death from hunger and thirst is a very difficult, painful and painful process.
How long can a person not breathe?
Another interesting question. Now you know how long a person can go without sleeping or eating. But how long can the body last without air? Of course, we cannot consciously interrupt breathing for any time - after 2-3 minutes the respiratory reflex comes into force. Therefore, conditions in which there is no air are considered here. If insomnia, starvation, dehydration can last for months, then minutes count. On average, a person can be without oxygen for no more than 5 minutes. Then the acute stage begins, after which the nerve tissues change irreversibly. Even if you bring a person back “from the other world,” part of his brain will already be damaged.