Most of us already know most of this, but this is a nice overview of the medical facts about starvation.

Scientific American: How long can a person survive without food?

I found the survival without water to be interesting- 1 to 3 weeks. That's a lot longer than I would have expected. But this is for bedridden patients, not persons outdoors in a survival situation.

Speaking from the viewpoint of someone being in a vegetative state and having left a medical directive: I find it a bit disturbing that someone might continue to live that long.

My husband and I have both left simple instructions for the agreement of more than one doctor and only pain medications to be given as deemed needed, and for hydration ONLY.

I don't believe in prolonging life needlessly, but I also don't want the end to be any more torturous than can be helped.

Too bad our auto pilot functions don't recognize that the rest of the brain has "left the building." <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

not exactly consistant with the rule of 3s is it

What's the "rule of 3's"?

The rule of 3s goes something like...

3 hours without warmth
3 days without water
3 weeks without food

Exceed those limits and you might want to use that SAK to carve your tombstone..

I think I got that right but I'm sure someone can correct me if I'm a little off.

Seems reasonable, for a reasonably fit person in an outdoor survival situation. Perversely enough, the average super-sized american can probably survive a lot longer without food now-days.

LOL ... Sad but true. Hey there's my excuse for having dessert after dinner. I'll just tell the wife "but honey I just want to make sure that if I get stranded in the woods on my next camping trip that I will be able to survive without food long enough to make it home to my loving family." <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

Brian:

I thought it was 3 on a match from WW1.

1.) Strike the match and light your cigarette, they spot your position.

2.) Light the second mans cigarette, and they line up the sights.

3.) Light the third mans cigarette, and they shoot him.

Bountyhunter

Brian:

You realize that if she throws the dessert away, your marriage may be in trouble <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Bountyhunter <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

There was a part of a TV show reinacting the death by starvation of a man (traveling salesman?) in OR, I believe. He had told his wife or someone which route he was taking, but changed his mind at the last minute and took another road. I want to say it was Oct or Nov, & the road was closed almost immediately after he turned onto it. At some point, his truck slid off the road in the snow.

He had a bit of food with him, could eat snow, but basically, he just waited for someone to come and rescue him, despite knowing that no one knew where he was. I think they figured he died about Feb. It was a god-awful long time.

A ranger (?) had reported that he had traveled the road after closing, to make sure that no one was still there. But afterwards, I think he admitted that he had just "assumed" that no one was on the road.

If the program was accurate, he never did anything to help himself. He never started a fire or smoke signal (there had to have been some clear days, even in OR). It turned out that he slid off the road where the snow was the deepest, and never checked ahead or behind him, where the snow was lighter -- they said he should (might?) have been able to make it back to the junction of the main road, which was traveled.

He just sat there until he died, like he was afraid to get out of the truck and get his feet wet.

They knew what he had been doing (& not doing), because he spent most of his time writing letters to his wife, until the starvation affected his sight.

A kind of sicko footnote at the end of the segment: when they found him, his wallet had been stolen from his body.

Long distance traveling, but no food supplies.
Probably a working cigarette lighter, but he made no fire.
Three rear-view mirrors, but never tried to signal.
Not injured, but never tried to look up or down the road to see if there was ANYTHING.

The only thing we can say for him is that he didn't panic and run through the trees, tearing his clothing off and die of hypothermia. (That would have been quicker, though...)

Sue