For healthy adults, there are not many restrictions on fasting for short intervals. However, staying too long without consuming food can be extremely dangerous. Typically, most people are able to survive without food for a few weeks, but as you know, inevitably not eating anything can lead to death.

That is why the story we are going to tell next is extraordinary, as it involves a man who survived for no less than 382 days - that is, more than 1 year! - without Eat. According to Kevin Loria of Business Insider, the case refers to the 26-year-old Scottish boy named Angus Barbieri, who decided to fast to lose weight in the mid-1960s.

Extreme regime

Before we tell Angus's story, it is important to point out that this talk of stopping eating suddenly was not something he decided to do on his own simply because he wanted to lose a few pounds. According to Kevin, the Scotsman was dangerously overweight and decided to seek help from specialists at Dundee University School of Medicine in Scotland.

The fat man did the diet with medical monitoring

According to medical records, Angus weighed more than 200 pounds and the goal was for him to drop to 80 pounds. So, at first, the experts suggested that he fast for a few days to kick start his diet. However, the days turned into weeks and, excited by the results, the chubby young man decided to stay without eating.

Angus was limited to consuming teas, coffee, and sparkling water, which are calorie-free, and occasionally put a drop of milk or a pinch of sugar in his drinks for a taste. While following the regimen, Angus spent most of his time at his home and went to regular medical appointments - even being hospitalized several times for the purpose of testing and remaining under observation.

Incredibly, the doctors proved from the tests that Angus was in fact following the fast religiously and found that even though he was extremely hypoglycemic, his body was reacting well. During the diet, experts prescribed vitamin supplements for the boy, including sodium and potassium, and after 382 days, Angus reached 80 pounds.

Back to normal

Interestingly, although the doctors who attended the Scot did not believe that he would maintain the weight, the truth is that five years after going through the fast, he had only recovered 8 pounds (out of 120 he lost weight!). About eating again, Angus said that after spending so much time without eating, he had forgotten the taste of the food.

Imagine staying so long if you eat!

And were you curious about what was the first thing he ate after spending more than a year without putting food in his mouth? It was a breakfast consisting of buttered toast, a boiled egg and a cup of black coffee and, he said, he really enjoyed the "feast" and felt stewed afterwards.

Interestingly enough, these crazy fasting-based regimes were relatively popular between the 1960s and 1970s, but were eventually replaced by healthier options because of the risks involved. So, according to Kevin, although the case of the Angus regime is the most extreme, he was not the only person in history to survive for long periods without eating.

Prolonged fasting periods can be very dangerous. Do not take any chances!

A study published in 1964 - on the advantages of prolonged fasting in the fight against obesity - found that one of the participants would have gone 117 days without food, while two others would have fasted for more than 200. One died during the period of food reintroduction. In addition, a guy named Dennis Galer Goodwin reportedly went on hunger strike for 385 days to prove his innocence in the event of rape, until forced to feed by means of a probe.

The fact is that while these extreme cases serve to demonstrate the amazing ability of the human body to survive from its own fat reserves (if they are abundant, of course), such an approach to weight loss is quite dangerous. After all, after consuming fat, the body begins to burn muscle mass, and this can result in a dramatic increase in the risk that the heart will stop working.