Severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life
"Starving" redirects here. For the Hailee Steinfeld song, see Starving (song).
This article is about extreme malnutrition. For other uses, see Starvation (disambiguation).
Medical condition
Starvation
Starving Russian girl during the Russian famine of 1921–1922
Specialty
Critical care medicine
Symptoms
feeling weak or tired, lack of energy, loss of consciousness
Complications
Anemia, low blood sugar, dangerously low blood pressure, organ failure
Causes
Malnutrition
Diagnostic method
based on symptoms
Treatment
intensive care
Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage[1] and eventually, death. The term inanition[2] refers to the symptoms and effects of starvation. Starvation by outside forces is a crime according to international criminal law and may also be used as a means of torture or execution.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), hunger is the single gravest threat to the world's public health.[3][4] The WHO also states that malnutrition is by far the biggest contributor to child mortality, present in half of all cases.[3] Undernutrition is a contributory factor in the death of 3.1 million children under five every year.[5] Figures on actual starvation are difficult to come by, but according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, the less severe condition of undernourishment currently affects about 842 million people, or about one in eight (12.5%) people in the world population.[6]
The bloated stomach represents a form of malnutrition called kwashiorkor. The exact pathogenesis of kwashiorkor is not clear, as initially it was thought to relate to diets high in carbohydrates (e.g. maize) but low in protein.[7] While many patients have low albumin, this is thought to be a consequence of the condition. Possible causes such as aflatoxin poisoning, oxidative stress, immune dysregulation, and altered gut microbiota have been suggested.[8] Treatment can help mitigate symptoms such as the pictured weight loss and muscle wasting, however prevention is of utmost importance.[7]
Without any food, humans usually die in around 2 months.[9] There was a case when someone survived 382 days under medical supervision.[10] Lean people can usually survive with a loss of up to 18% of their body mass. Obese people can tolerate more, possibly over 20%. Females survive longer than males.[11][12]
^Stratton, Rebecca J.; Green, Ceri J.; Elia, Marinos (2003-01-01). Disease-related Malnutrition: An Evidence-based Approach to Treatment. CABI. ISBN 978-0-85199-648-6. When [food] intake is poor or absent for a long time (weeks), weight loss is associated with organ failure and death.
^"Definition of INANITION". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2021-10-26.
^ ab"The starvelings". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2023-02-14.
^"As more go hungry and malnutrition persists, achieving Zero Hunger by 2030 in doubt, UN report warns". www.who.int. Retrieved 2021-10-27.
^"Hunger Stats". World Food Programme.
^The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022 | FAO | Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 2022. doi:10.4060/cc0639en. hdl:10654/44801. ISBN 978-92-5-136499-4. S2CID 264474106. Retrieved 2023-02-14. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
^ ab"Kwashiorkor - Symptoms, Causes, Treatments - Better Medicine". Archived from the original on 2011-10-02. Retrieved 2011-06-26.
^"Protein-Energy Malnutrition | Nutrition Guide for Clinicians". PCRM's nutrition guide for clinicians. PCRM. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
^"Blaine emerges from his 44-day 'fast' | Television industry | the Guardian".
^"The True Story of a Man Who Survived Without Any Food for 382 Days". 27 February 2017.
^Lieberson, Alan D. (November 8, 2004). "How Long Can a Person Survive without Food?". Scientific American. Retrieved 2023-02-14.
^Burch, Kelly (September 3, 2021). "How many days a person can survive without food or water". Insider. Retrieved 2023-02-14.
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it to German soldiers and civilians. The plan entailed the genocide by starvation of millions of Soviet citizens following Operation Barbarossa, the 1941...
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undertaken ritualistically. Sallekhana is the practice of ritualized starvation following Jain practices. Romans who considered themselves dishonored...
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The working poor are working people whose incomes fall below a given poverty line due to low-income jobs and low familial household income. These are people...
restrictions on humanitarian aid, the population of the Gaza strip is facing starvation and famine. Airstrikes have destroyed food infrastructure, such as bakeries...
Hazzard (née Burfield; December 18, 1867 – June 24, 1938), nicknamed the "Starvation Doctor" was an American quack, swindler and convicted serial killer noted...
used as a means of execution, the prisoner is simply left to die from starvation or dehydration. This form of execution is distinct from being buried alive...
lateral buds. Plants look thin, pale and the condition is called general starvation. Symptoms of nitrogen deficiencies in plants is general chlorosis of the...
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