Some friends of his dared my b/f to go 24 hours without water or any liquids - including fruit, vegetables, etc - anything that has moisture basically.
My question is, what would happen to a healthy 28 year old, if he did this? Would it be an easy thing to do? What kind of physical effects could he expect?
I would guess he would get really tired, but what else?
Maybe a headache, but not much else.
Orthodox Jews of all ages fast completely every year for the 24 hours of Yom Kippur and they’ve been surviving this for thousands of years.
Well, I would guess he would get really really thirsty, as opposed to tired, but that seems obvious.
It depends largely on the temperature and humidity in your area. If he keeps cool, he’ll minimize moisture loss through perspiration. Keep an emergency water bottle nearby and don’t let him consume any salt or alcohol (both of which will dry him out faster) and I don’t see any major risk, especially if he spends the hour before his 24 starts drinking a few litres to get his fluid topped up.
People do survive brief periods dehydration. It’s dehydration combined with heatstroke that kills you. If he goes out in the sun on a hot day, he’s taking a chance.
Of course, he could turn out to have a previously undiagnosed congenital kidney problem which may be aggravated by dehydration, so you may end up looking for a new boyfriend sooner than expected.
I am said b/f, I don’t think this would be a challenge and I should be good to go.
One of my friends and I were discussing when lack of water would start effecting you? Are you fine for say 40 hours and then you get exponentially worse over the next 10 hours and die?
Just curious…
MtM
IAN a doctor, but I don’t think so you’ll go from ok to close-to-death. You’ll know if you need water. You’ll get blurry vision, clammy skin, dry mouth, pale skin, chills, etc. Then you might pass out. At this point, you should be taken to the hospital, where they just will pump some water into you and you should be all good. I would try to just stay inside all day. Even though you might not sweat when you go out, you are burning much more calories just walking or climbing stairs that you are sitting down watching TV, thus using more water in your body.
Good luck and tell us how it goes!
The day before the two major fast days (25 hours, no food or liquids at all), I make sure to get very hydrated - those are the only two days a year I drink the recommended eight cups of water, since I’m usually quite happy on two or three at the most. I don’t feel any particular effects of dehydration (I’m a female in my early twenties), and in fact tend not to get thirsty at all. By the end of the day, I tend to get very tired and lethargic, particularly on Yom Kippur, which is a fairly emotionally draining day, but I tend to attribute that to hunger rather than thirst.
IANAD, but if you take it easy, not excercizing or spending time in hot environments, it shouldn’t be any problem at all.
The time limit depends entirely on how much moisture you lose through perspiration, and that depends on the temperature, so there is no “40 hour” deal. Put simply, if it’s hotter, you dehydrate faster.
However, once you stop perspiring, you’re screwed, becuase your body has expended all it’s available water and yo’ve lost your ability to regulate your body temperature and heatstroke may be imminent, with the attendant seizures and brain damage.
If you relax in an air-conditioned building for 24 hours, I don’t expect this will prove to be much of a challenge. The tricky part is when you start to show off, like going for a jog in the sunshine, at which point you risk the sudden onset of heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke.
If you survive, I suggest you don’t immediately start chugging. Drinking too much water too quickly can lead to distension and cramps, none of which are pleasant. Imbibe slowly.