Starvation Study, interesting stuff!

Read this, and you'll feel really great about your caloric intake.... I thought for a minute they were describing me. :-x _________________________________________________________ From: http://www.techcentralstation.com/113004E.html In the 1940s when he realized that starvation "was going to be a huge problem" in war-torn countries, Keys led the first scientific studies of calorie restrictions, at the University of Minnesota. Their study was known as the Minnesota Starvation Study and the results were published in the legendary two-volume, Biology of Human Starvation.9 Decades later, it is still the definitive work on the subject. "I doubt another of its kind will ever be done," he said.2 Today, there are rights for human research subjects and it would be seen as too cruel and life-threatening. Young male volunteers, all carefully selected for being especially psychologically and socially well-adjusted, good-humored, motivated, active and healthy, were put on diets meant to mimic what starving Europeans were enduring, of about 1,600 calorie/day -- but whi*****luded lots of fresh vegetables, complex carbohydrates and lean meats. The calories were more than many weight loss diets prescribe and precisely what's considered "conservative" treatment for obesity today. What they were actually studying, of course, was dieting -- our bodies can't tell the difference if they're being starved voluntarily or involuntarily! Dr. Keys and colleagues then painstakingly chronicled how the men did during the 6 months of dieting and for up to a year afterwards, scientifically defining "the starvation syndrome." As the men lost weight, their physical endurance dropped by half, their strength about 10%, and their reflexes became sluggish -- with the men initially the most fit showing the greatest deterioration, according to Keys. The men's resting metabolic rates declined by 40%, their heart volume shrank about 20%, their pulses slowed and their body temperatures dropped. They complained of feeling cold, tired and hungry; having trouble concentrating; of impaired judgment and comprehension; dizzy spells; visual disturbances; ringing in their ears; tingling and numbing of their extremities; stomach aches, body aches and headaches; trouble sleeping; hair thinning; and their skin growing dry and thin. Their sexual function and testes size were reduced and they lost all interest in sex. They had every physical indication of accelerated aging. But the psychological changes that were brought on by dieting, even among these robust men with only moderate calorie restrictions, were profound. So much so that Keys called it "semistarvation neurosis." The men became nervous, anxious, apathetic, withdrawn, impatient, self-critical with distorted body images and even feeling overweight, moody, emotional and depressed. A few even mutilated themselves, one chopping off three fingers in stress. ­They lost their ambition and feelings of adequacy, and their cultural and academic interests narrowed. They neglected their appearance, became loners and their social and family relationships suffered. They lost their senses of humor, love and compassion. Instead, they became obsessed with food, thinking, talking and reading about it constantly; developed weird eating rituals; began hoarding things; consumed vast amounts of coffee and tea; and chewed gum incessantly (as many as 40 packages a day). Binge eating episodes also became a problem as some of the men were unable to continue to restrict their eating. Many of these traits are familiar with those who've spent their lives dieting. In fact, many of the symptoms once thought to be primary features of anorexia nervosa are actually symptoms of starvation and restrictive eating, said David M. Garner, PhD., director of River Centre Clinic in Sylvania, Ohio.1 Indeed, Keys' research indicates that the frenzied attack on fatness may have had the grave side effect of leading to increased incidences of eating disorders.4 The extreme physical and mental effects Keys observed led to his famous quote: "Starved people cannot be taught democracy. To talk about the will of the people when you aren't feeding them is perfect hogwash."9 Dangers of Yo-Yo Dieting The last part of the Minnesota Starvation Study revealed additional devastating effects. When the men were allowed to eat ad libitum again, they had insatiable appetites and ate voraciously, some eating 8,000 to 10,000 calories a day, yet never felt full. After five months most of the men were beginning to regain some normalization of their eating, but for some, dysfunctional eating continued. As they regained their weights, their metabolisms and energy increased. Three months after the dieting, though, none of the men had regained his former physical capacity, noted Keys. On average, the men regained to their original weights plus 10%. But the weight regain was largely as fat and their lean body mass recovered much more slowly. Their weights then plateaued despite being given unlimited food, before finally, about 9 months later, most were near their initial weights -- giving scientists one of the first demonstrations that each body has a natural set point.9 Followup research by Keys in the 1970s found that blood cholesterol levels rise after dieting, possibly accelerating heart disease, and subsequent research has found the risk of death due to cardiovascular disease is double among those who diet and regain, compared to people who just gain weight. Such risks appear even after adjusting for age, blood pressure, smoking, alcohol intake and body mass index.3 Dieting can be dangerous and Keys put no stock in diets. "Diet fads are for the birds, if you don't like birds," he said in a 1979 University of Minnesota Update. He also noted diets such as those promoted by Adele Davis, based on natural foods and fears about processed foods, are "just full of hogwash." There's "no great sense to them at all." While most diet fads don't do a great deal of harm, he said, "things as the Zen macrobiotic diet definitely are harmful," as are liquid high-protein diets.2

Wow, great article, thanks for sharing, no wonder I always felt like crap. Dianne

thank you for sharing this....lots of great info there...I will be making a copy to keep for remind me of my new eating habits and why it is essential for me to eat on a regular basis... also, will be passing along to several folks who have weight issues. thanks again, RAE

Your welcome--- it definitely scared me! -beth

Obviously I should add, with our surgeries--- we're living on our fat stores.... and eventually get to a more calorie intake--- but it's still interesting!! Here's more I just found: Starvation is classified into three categories based on caloric intake over time (Frisancho, 1981): 1. Acute - less than 600 calories/day for less than two weeks. 2. Semiacute starvation - less than 1100 calories/day for less than 30 days. 3. Moderate semistarvation - less than 1600 calories/day for as long as 24 weeks. Initial consequences of starvation are apathy, muscle weakness, and reduction of activity. Body weight loss is progressive. The body first extracts energy from carbohydrate stored in the liver and glycogen in muscles. Then the body burns fat to get needed energy for about two weeks. After that point both fat and protein are used. After 24 weeks there is a loss of physical work performance. Individuals with a daily diet intake of less than 2,000 calories per day have impaired physical work capacity.