You can typically survive around 1–2 months without food if you still have access to water, but serious health damage starts much sooner, and exact limits vary a lot by person and situation. Going completely without both food and water is usually fatal within about 3–7 days.

Key timeframes

  • Many medical sources estimate:
    • Up to about 3 weeks without food is common in documented cases, with water available.
* Some monitored cases and famine/hunger strike reports suggest survival **up to 45–70 days** in extreme, supervised situations, not something safely repeatable.
  • Without water:
    • Most people die in roughly 3–5 days , sometimes up to about a week in cool, low‑activity conditions.

These are not goals or challenges; they are medical emergencies where people often suffer organ damage, infections, and long‑term weakness even if they live.

What affects how long you last

How long someone can survive without food depends on several factors :

  • Body fat and muscle reserves (more stored energy can extend survival somewhat).
  • Hydration status (having enough water is the single biggest factor).
  • Overall health and medications (heart, kidneys, liver, diabetes, etc.).
  • Environment (heat, cold, and physical exertion burn energy and fluid faster).
  • Rest vs. activity (staying still helps you last longer than moving around).

Even with “good” conditions, starvation causes muscle loss, immune suppression, weakness, dizziness, and heart‑rhythm problems long before death.

What happens to your body

When you stop eating, the body moves through stages:

  1. First 24 hours
    • Uses stored glucose and liver glycogen for energy.
  2. Days 2–3
    • Switches to burning fat; you enter ketosis , feel fatigued, light‑headed, and very hungry.
  1. Beyond several days
    • Body begins breaking down muscle and organ tissue for fuel; immune system and wound healing weaken.
  1. Severe starvation
    • Heart, kidneys, and liver can fail; risk of infections, dangerous arrhythmias, and eventually death.

Even if someone survives long starvation, reintroducing food too fast can trigger refeeding syndrome , a potentially fatal electrolyte crash that must be handled in a hospital.

Important safety note

If this question is coming from:

  • Thinking about extreme dieting, prolonged fasting, or “challenge” videos – those can cause permanent damage or death even if they don’t hit the absolute survival limit.
  • Worry about yourself or someone who can’t or won’t eat – that is a medical emergency; contacting a doctor, emergency service, or local health helpline as soon as possible is critical.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here. TL;DR: With water, many people may survive roughly a few weeks up to 1–2 months without food, but with rapidly worsening health; without water, survival is usually only a few days , and any intentional starvation is extremely dangerous.