Energy required for doing work is obtained from food. Cells and tissues damaged in working are repaired by it. It is very much needed for the growth and development of the body. In short, food is very essential for the proper functioning of the body.
Now the question arises how long can we survive without food? There are some animals which can store food in their bodies and live on it for a long time. It has been observed that the smaller and the more active is the animal, more rapidly it consumes its stored food. Warm blooded animals use up their stores of food in the body more quickly. A dog can survive without food for 20 days at the most. However, the bug is such a wonderful creature that it can survive without food for one full year.
But man cannot store food in his stomach. If he misses one meal, his condition is bad. Food is required to maintain the flow of blood. All the constituents of blood are obtained from food. The moment, the blood lacks nutritional materials, a signal, via blood, goes to the hunger centre of the brain and we start feeling hungry.
There are few examples of persons who survived for a very long time without food. Angus Warviern of Scotland survived without taking any food for 382 days i.e. from June 1965 to July 1966. During this period, he took only coffee, tea, water and soda water. One south African woman survived for 102 days on water and soda water only. Stefan Taylor of New Zealand remained alive for 40 days in 1970 on a daily intake of one tumbler of water only. These are some uncommon examples. Such people are endowed with exceptional power. Common man can at the most survive without food for a week.
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