Starvation natural history, complications and prognosis

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

• Immune deficiency may occur.
• Vitamin deficiency is also a common result of starvation, often resulting in anemia, beriberi, pellagra, and scurvy. These diseases collectively may cause diarrhea, skin rashes, edema, and heart failure. Individuals are often irritable, fatigued, and lethargic as a result.

In humans, prolonged starvation (in excess of 1-2 months) causes permanent organ damage and, eventually, death.

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