The Dangers of Starving Yourself and Why it Doesn't Work

Extreme weight loss methods are usually ineffective in the long term and can even be dangerous. Starvation causes physical and emotional changes and it doesn't work in the long run because it causes your metabolism to slow down, making it harder to lose weight.

For most people, losing weight isn’t easy, and while dropping a few pounds can be healthy in some situations, extreme weight loss methods (including crash dieting) are usually ineffective in the long term and can even be dangerous. If you starve yourself in order to lose weight, you will put both your mental and physical health at risk. 

Here’s what to know about serious calorie restriction and how it can affect your health.

You’ve probably heard that one important component of weight loss is a caloric deficit, meaning you burn more calories in a day than you take in. It’s not uncommon for people who are trying to lose weight to reduce the number of calories that they usually eat in order to reach a calorie deficit. However, some people will restrict themselves so much that they eat less than half of what they were eating before, essentially starving themselves.

Extreme calorie restriction can help you drop weight quickly, but it’s not an effective method if you want to keep weight off in the long run. Research shows that 95% of people who diet end up gaining the weight that they lost back within two years if the plan is not sustainable. 

When starving yourself fails, it isn’t because you didn’t try hard enough: It’s because your body needs food and the nutrients in it to function.

Seriously restricting your calories and food intake can sometimes lead to disordered eating. One dangerous eating disorder, anorexia, can arise when you starve yourself in order to achieve weight loss. You may become obsessed with restricting calories to the point that you’re unable to live a happy life. People with anorexia may engage in unhealthy habits in order to lose weight, including:

• Excessive dieting
• Using laxatives
• Exercising excessively
• Vomiting
• Binge eating and then purging afterward

People with anorexia often experience body dysmorphia, not seeing themselves as they really are. They believe that they will never be thin enough and will go to extreme measures to lose weight. This wreaks havoc on mental and physical health. 

Anorexia can cause a number of physical symptoms as your body enters starvation mode.

A famous study called the Minnesota Starvation Experiment took place between 1944 and 1945. During the study, experts observed the physical, mental, and social changes that participants went through during periods of extreme calorie restriction. For six months, the participants ate only 50% of the calories that they normally would. During this time, researchers noticed a variety of changes, including:

• Physical changes: Participants felt weak and tired, their metabolisms slowed down, and their hormone levels decreased. They had dry skin, lost hair, and felt cold a lot of the time. Their heart mass shrunk by 25%, and both blood pressure and heart rate decreased.
• Mental and emotional changes: Participants reported feelings of depression, anxiety, and irritability. They became obsessed with food and meal planning and showed a tendency to binge eat when they had the chance.
• Social changes: As a result of mental and physical changes, participants became withdrawn and felt that some of their relationships were strained. They lost interest in personal hygiene as well.

This study can help us better understand what happens when you starve yourself: especially the mental side effects like obsessive tendencies. It explains why some people continue to restrict food and calories even when they see the negative effects of starvation.

Besides being dangerous for your mental and physical health, using tactics like food restriction or seriously cutting back on calories doesn’t work. When you cut your calories in half, your body will start sending you extreme hunger signals. The human body is designed to avoid starvation. When you starve yourself, your body isn’t getting the fuel that it needs to survive, and it’s going to let you know. Besides hunger pains, you’re going to feel tired, dizzy, and probably irritable until you eat something.

When you starve yourself, your body also wants to preserve the energy that it has. To do so, your metabolism slows down so that you don’t burn off fat and calories as quickly. This is the opposite of what dieters are trying to achieve. At the same time, starvation causes an increase in the hunger hormone, ghrelin, and a decrease in the satiety hormone, leptin. These changes mean that you’re going to feel hungrier throughout the day and less satisfied and full when you do eat.

The more that you work to dramatically restrict calories to lose weight, the more your body is going to fight back in protest. As humans, we need food to survive. Depriving your body of what it needs is only going to make long-term weight loss more and more difficult. Instead, eating slightly fewer calories and incorporating a balanced diet is going to get you much further.

The best way to lose weight is to have a healthy plan in place that can set you up for success. Make sure you have a balanced diet, along with other healthy habits, like regular exercise and getting enough sleep. Getting enough rest and physical activity are key when it comes to maintaining your weight or safely losing weight.

Eating regularly throughout the day helps your body to burn calories and keeps you satisfied. This means you are less likely to snack on unhealthy foods. Eating breakfast is especially important since it gives your body nutrients and starts fueling your body for the rest of the day. Eating lots of fresh produce, like a variety of fruits and vegetables, will provide your body with a number of vitamins and minerals. These foods are naturally low in fat and calories and high in fiber (which is more filling than sugar), which can help you with your weight loss goals.

Ultimately, fad diets don’t work since they’re often highly restrictive and hard to follow for long periods of time. Other diets, like the Mediterranean Diet, can help you lose weight and improve your health without drastically restricting calories. Diets like this can be sustained long-term and can even taste delicious.