#Minnesota Starvation Experiment

[preachersmanicdaughter]

Okay I'm definitely totally NOT obsessed with the Minnesota starvation experiment...at least I finally managed to make a collage or whatever this is supposed to be

[figula]

thinking about how when i was like 15/16, when i was completely in love w/ my own eating disorder with a kind of religious fervor, and like there was this huge push to categorise eds (particularly "anorexia") as like very separate from the lesser, more base desire to diet for like... spurious reasons? like the "diet gone wrong" narrative was absolutely reviled by everyone i knew during that time whereas now i think the difference between a diet + an ed is almost non-existent - it's often just a question of other people's perception

now i think all diets have gone wrong by dint of being a diet lmao

[notemily]

It's really eye opening especially in giving you a crash course in how diets fuck you up long term. Because these men were on a restricted calorie diet and it switched something on in their brain that told them to be constantly hungry and looking for food, and that stayed with them, even after they went back to their regular diets. Also they couldn't stop thinking about food while on the starvation diet, which tells you something about how much brainpower being on a restricted calorie diet will literally steal from you. What else could you be doing with your mind that you're not doing because all you can think about is food?

Needless to say, looking up recipes to help with my autoimmune issues is going FANTASTIC and totally NOT making me want to commit arson

[ratsbanes]

ty for the tag @anticidic ! decided to have a little life show and tell :]

comfort food: i eat the same foods every single day but i guess my comfort food would be strawberry pancakes. don't make them to often but theyre good

comfort movie: as a young child i exclusively watched frozen, but now the only movie I rewatch is a silent voice

comfort show: either the good place or my little pony. the good place reminds me of my sister and mlp is just good

fave colour and why: pink. had a whole gender crisis where i stopped liking it for a while, but eventually it became my favourite again. so much so that my hair is pink!

last piece of media you loved: obviously have my fixations (bsd, csm, sk8, more recently gravity falls again). but the last thing i really loved was either elevator hitch or greys anatomy

fun hobby that always makes you happy: idk if it counts as a hobby but i collect classic literature and do research projects on the authors. its fun to learn what they were doing. i have other hobbies like art and writing but those are sometimes frustrating. but the research is always fun. all (ok most, researching the minnesota starvation experiment probably wouldnt be fun) research is fun and you should do it

who do i tag? let's see: @cottonpuffmouse @jounosparticles @autistic-katara @sounds-gay-im-in @candysmiles373 @pookiedarlingtwitch

feel free not to do this if I tagged you and feel free to do this and tag me if i didn't tag you

[tayloralisonswift]

wild to see people talk about travis’ caloric intake as insane/impossible when like. that’s what my refeeding treatment with minnie maud required lmao. it really is not impossible (though it certainly felt that way when i began so i get it.)

tw specifics on ed recovery & calories!!! (no mention of my weight, especially when i was sick. i don’t do that shit.)

for those who don’t know, minnie maud (at least, that’s what we called it ten years ago) is a refeeding program for ppl with eating disorders where the person eats at least, but ideally much more than, 3,000 calories a day.

it’s inspired by the minnesota (hence ‘minnie’) starvation experiment, where men went through a starvation period and then started refeeding. their bodies were fucked up from the starving. and basically, researchers discovered that in recovering from this starvation, they needed to listen to their bodies which demanded a high caloric intake, higher than the “average” person, in order to make up for the starvation period. i ended up eating around the same number as travis for a good six months. (i didn’t stop eating after that or anything, i just quit counting.)

minnie maud forces you to listen to your body which you have been actively avoiding during the ed, and i credit it with why i can eat intuitively now. it has criticisms but worked for me. i gained a substantial amount of weight with it, but will refrain from posting numbers.

okay, this long post no one asked for is over!

[hackoftheyear]

We have the entirety of the internet and people regularly go online and say shit like “the Minnesota starvation experiment proves that weight loss is harmful” it tracks and that’s why it’s funny and also the theme of ways humanity will always be stupid and stubborn often to their own detriment in some way shape or form

[only-mostlydead]

Hello. Today is my 30th birthday, and I am in bed recovering from surgery. To entertain myself, I wrote up a list of 30 things I'm glad I learned before I turned 30, and now I'm sharing it with you. Take what resonates, leave what doesn't.

30 Things I'm Glad I Learned Before I Turned 30

You can decline to be weighed at the doctor's office. Seriously. Unless they're dosing meds or need to report it to your insurance for something, you can say no thanks. And if they have to weigh you, you can request that they don't tell you the number.

Fed is better than not fed. There are days when my stomach won't tolerate anything except cheese puffs, so I eat the damn cheese puffs, without judgment. Feed yourself the best you can, and know that this will look different every day

Eventually, people will always tell you who they really are. Believe them the first time (this one comes from my mom).

Not living up to family expectations is very often a good thing. Your life needs to make you happy. You are your own person with no obligation to be what they want you to be.

Having a creative hobby that you're not "good" at is important. For me, it's watercolors. I do them because they bring me joy, not because I'm trying to be good at them. That's not to say that I don't love what I paint - I do. But there's no pressure for it to be anything other than fun.

Your job doesn't have to be fulfilling - it can just be a fundraiser for the things in your life that do bring you fulfillment.

Mental health is every bit as important as physical health. Don't neglect either.

When you have nothing to be sorry for, say thank you instead. Thank you for listening instead of sorry I bothered you, thank you for helping me instead of sorry I needed help. I'm not always good at this one.

Throw away the clothing with holes. You deserve clothing that doesn't have holes.

Your clothes are meant to fit you, not the other way around. Your body is the thing that carries you through your life. Clothes that don't fit are just scraps of fabric who aren't meeting their performance goals.

Everything is figure out-able. This one also comes from my mom.

Laziness doesn't really exist; it's almost always a response to something else (burnout, low self-esteem, etc).

Being your most authentic self is scary. It's also 100% worth it. Life has gotten better every time I've been even a tiny bit more myself.

There is no timetable for when you should hit certain milestones. You are not behind. You are on your own time.

Femininity means whatever I want it to mean, not what society tells me it means. Everything I do is feminine because I say it is, and no one can tell me otherwise.

Your job doesn't care about you. If you disappeared from the face of the earth, they would replace you immediately. You should bring them the same energy. You're the only one who will look out for you.

Use your PTO. Every damn second of it. When I started my current job, I was told that no one used all of their time off. I do. Every year.

Dieting literally does not work. Scientifically. Reading up on the Minnesota Starvation Experiment, Famine Response, and why BMI is literally sexist, racist bullshit changed my life.

Doctors might be experts in their respective fields, but they are not experts in what it's like to live in your body. Whenever possible, find one who makes you an active participant in your care plan.

Wear whatever the hell you want. Life is too short to worry what other people will think.

Live theatre, good meals, and beautiful tattoos are always worth the money.

Anger isn't inherently bad. Most of the time, it's your signal that something is wrong. This is the most impactful thing my therapist ever taught me as an ex-vangelical who grew up hearing that anger was a sin.

Don't put down the things that bring others joy. If they're not hurting you, themself, or anyone else, why waste your energy?

You cannot miss out on the things that are meant for you. If you miss it, it wasn't meant for you, and you should probably be grateful you missed it.

If I'm too much, go find less.

You are always responsible for your actions. Diagnoses, negative life experiences, and the like might explain bad behavior, but it doesn't excuse it. You are responsible for you.

Your feelings are always valid, but they are not always correct.

Go outside. Every day if you can. Even if it's for 30 seconds. Go get some fresh air on your face and look at a tree. If you can't make it outside, open a window, even just for a minute. Your brain will thank you.

You can leave. Hate the fitness class? Leave. Party too loud? Leave. Doctor not listening? L e a v e. As the famous tumblr post goes, if it sucks, hit da bricks!

You need nothing days. Days where you intentionally do absolutely nothing and feel zero guilt for that. Sit in bed, binge a Netflix show, eat some snacks, and don't think about all the things you're not doing. Let yourself rest, dammit.

[preachersmanicdaughter]

The Minnesota Semi-Starvation Experiment

In 1944, a group of 36 healthy, male, conscientious objectors to World War II volunteered to be in this experiment conducted by physiologist Ancel Keys and his colleagues at the University of Minnesota. The study aimed to examine both the physical and psychological effects of semi-starvation, as well as inform and hopefully improve the process of refeeding and rehabilitating emaciated civilians. The study lasted a year. There was also a 12-week control period, a 24-week semi-starvation period, and finally, a 12-week rehabilitation period.

X

[fem-lit]

“Quite simply,” writes Seid, dieters “are reacting the way victims of semi-starvation react … semi-starvation, even if caused by self-imposed diets, produces startlingly similar effects on all human beings.”

The range of repulsive and pathetic behaviors exhibited by women touched by food diseases is portrayed as quintessentially feminine, proof positive of women’s irrationality (replacing the conviction of menstrual irrationality that had to be abandoned when women were needed for the full-time work force). In a classic study done at the University of Minnesota, thirty-six volunteers were placed on an extended low-calorie diet and “the psychological, behavioral and physical effects were carefully documented.” The subjects were young and healthy, showing “high levels of ego strength, emotional stability, and good intellectual ability.” They “began a six-month period … in which their food intake was reduced by half—a typical weight reduction technique for women.

“After losing approximately 25% of their original body weight, pervasive effects of semistarvation were seen.” The subjects “became increasingly preoccupied with food and eating, to the extent that they ruminated obsessively about meals and food, collected recipes and cookbooks, and showed abnormal food rituals, such as excessively slow eating and hoarding of food related objects.” Then, the majority “suffered some form of emotional disturbance as a result of semistarvation, including depression, hypochondriasis, hysteria, angry outbursts, and, in some cases, psychotic levels of disorganization.” Then, they “lost their ability to function in work and social contexts, due to apathy, reduced energy and alertness, social isolation, and decreased sexual interest.” Finally, “within weeks of reducing their food intake,” they “reported relentless hunger, as well as powerful urges to break dietary rules. Some succumbed to eating binges, followed by vomiting and feelings of self-reproach. Ravenous hunger persisted, even following large meals during refeeding.” Some of the subjects “found themselves eating continuously, while others engaged in uncontrollable cycles of gorging and vomiting.” The volunteers “became terrified of going outside the experiment environment where they would be tempted by the foods they had agreed not to eat … when they did succumb, they made hysterical, half-crazed confessions.” They became irritable, tense, fatigued, and full of vague complaints. “Like fugitives, [they] could not shed the feeling they were being shadowed by a sinister force.” For some, doctors eventually had to prescribe tranquilizers.

The subjects were a group of completely normal healthy college men.

— Naomi Wolf (1990) The Beauty Myth

[jinglejanglemornings]

okay wait i wanna talk about the minnesota starvation experiment but only in the sense that it’s soooi deeply biological like this is not some frivolous little habit of a teenage girl looking for attention this is on par with drug addiction in terms of the physical effects on the cognition but also recovery is such an active life consuming choice that is really a balancing act that relies partly on willpower partly on physical constraints and largely on systems and circumstances beyond your control and idk how you can call someone selfish (weak, stupid, lazy, what have you) for not being able to make that work like… we gotta really reaffirm that this is not your fault. restrictions does crazy things to your body and mind and no one asks for this! god i wish i could snap out of it and just be done but it’s so all consuming and i HATE it so much when people pare it down to just an issue of self love or self discipline or social conditioning or whateverrrr people are so fucking stupid about it do you get that this is a horrible fucking disease?? i’m so sick of beating myself up for relapsing over and over despite tons of help and treatment and beating myself up for not being able to keep it together while this is going on. this is so huge and of fucking course i want to get better but this is a disease that kills people and destroys people physically mentally emotionally and like sorry that it’s impacting my ability to do college but ive been sick since i was a kid and the damage is cumulative

[monster-ultra-yellow]

"my child is normal" your child just jacked off to the minnesota starvation experiment. several times.

[boneyybaloney]

Not my ex girlfriend going off at me about “starvation mode” and telling me I’m gonna pack all the weight back on 🙃

I educated her on the realities of adaptive thermogenesis and the Minnesota Starvation Experiment and she was too shocked to speak. It’s like I’ve had an eating disorder for 18 years and know a thing or two about nutrition or something….

[polothatmakesyoufat]

ok but now that I think of it Stuffing in a Don't Starve context would probably be seen as like divine intervention. those guys are STARVING and now they have some excess fat reserves for the winter

This ask unexpectedly made me think so this got pretty long, I'm sorry :') Enjoy my collection of thoughts.

First of all, I draw a line between stuffing and weight gain – although these two often go hand in hand, they are pretty distinct kinks. Stuffing doesn't always lead to wg, weight gain doesn't necessarily require stuffing, etc. (Also I'm not actually into stuffing, weirdly). So I usually think about them separately.

An opportunity for stuffing could absolutely be seen as a blessing BUT I find it more interesting to look at it as a necessity. The first thing that comes to my mind when I think about it is that you'd need a large amount of food available, which is probably rare. For that reason I can't really imagine a character stuffing themselves just to enjoy the feeling. It also fills you up for a significant amount of time but effectively leaves you out of commission – you can't run or fight with an overfilled stomach, you'd much rather lie down and not move. It probably isn't something you'd want to do just because, if you had to stay alert. So with that in mind I can imagine a couple of scenarios here.

1. A character has been starving for a long time and somehow finds food! A lot of it! I doubt they could control themselves. Bringing up my brief obsession with the Minnesota semi-starvation experiment, you almost can't get full after being so limited in your food intake. So it's very possible to just keep eating to the point of getting sick – and, going back to DS, that would mean wasting precious resources. But I doubt they could care (consider also the insanity effects).

2. Same thing minus being severely starved. A character finds a lot of food so to make the most of it they gather as much as they can carry and, if there's anything left, eat as much as they can fit in their stomach. They cannot afford to be wasteful. (To add to it, maybe the food is about to spoil? It all comes down to getting as much as possible from what's available).

3. Of course there is also the option where the survival goes exceptionally well and a character can stuff themselves just for the sake of it. But hey. Firstly, this is boring (to me.) and secondly, I SUCK at the game so my takeaway is that the characters must not be fit enough for survival to get to this point. (I refuse to get good.)

Weight gain is a much more long-term thing. I'm not sure how to interpret in-game time but let's believe the numbers and say it's 20 to 55 days between winters. How much weight can one realistically put on during this time? Not a lot, probably (unless we're involving some kind of magic). So for any substantial weight gain to occur a character needs to be well-adjusted in the Constant and have reliable, and excessive, food sources all year round. Another thing to point out is that extra weight obviously helps during winter but also slows you down and probably makes you more appealing for predators. So there's a compromise to be made here if a character is trying to gain on purpose.

For me, wg scenarios are reserved more to semi-canon nano-AUs, like my little evil threeway one. When you're safe(..?), don't have to chop trees/run around/hunt all day and have more than enough food, it makes sense to get fat. But out in the wild, I'm not so sure.

P. S. l'm not taking into account DST with multiple players because... I guess I'm more interested in the survival aspects of the survival game than in character dynamics. At least for now.

[factoidfactory]

Random Fact #6,514

1,000 calories a day for an adult constitutes as starvation.

The Minnesota Starvation Experiment subjected adult men who were volunteers to 1,560-calorie diets and the psychological effects were so profound that one volunteer cut three of his own fingers off and could not remember why.