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There are significant risks to such an experiment, and it's a shame that there isn't any record of what happened to him after the fact or his long term health.

There is a significant body of literature suggests that in addition to risks during starvation, there is significant harm and danger in trying to eat again [1]. The GI tract atrophies (much like when we don't use a muscle or a limb for a long time with a neurological disorder), and there are many metabolic complications in restarting to eat.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refeeding_syndrome




They mention "Some five years later, he had regained only 7 kilograms", so it seems they had a least one follow up and I assume if he were permanently harmed by this they would've mentioned it as a caution.


Although I agree with you, this is hardly a scientistic journal.


Of course not, but catastrophic results make exciting "news".


Rapid weight loss is known to cause gallstones. That's what happened to me and it was awful! It's not a minor issue. It can interrupt your day, cause you pain, and prevent you from working or sleeping for more than 10 hours if you don't eat the right foods.


I wonder if it's easier on people under constant medical supervision than it is for prisoners of war.




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