Fact or Fiction....
By speedy1279
@speedy1279 (2665)
United States
November 6, 2007 6:38pm CST
Okay my mom was asking me some fact or fiction questions tonight on the phone and one of them I found interesting. So I wanted to share it with everyone. Lets see how many people get it right. First one with the correct answer will get best response. So here it goes:
Fact or Fiction:
A person will die from starvation sooner than from lack of sleep.
I will reveal the correct answer once a few people have responded.
4 people like this
10 responses
@terri0824 (4991)
• United States
7 Nov 07
Well, I am going to say lack of sleep, because first thought would be starvation. I know you can go at least several weeks without dying from not eating. So I think I am the first to respond!!!!! Do I have the right answer too?????
3 people like this
@vokey9472 (1486)
• United States
7 Nov 07
Fiction. From what I understand, a person can die within 10 days from a TOTAL lack of sleep. As long as the person is getting 30 minutes to 2 hours of sleep per day, it can take a few months for them to die.
Starvation on the other hand can take as few as two weeks and as many as 6 to kill you. It all depends on wether or not you are completely starving, a TOTAL lack of food and water or if it is just a lack of food. Apparently, as long as you are drinking water, you will live longer. You are most likely to go into kidney failure from the lack of water than from anything to do with the lack of food.
Personally, I am not sure which is true. Since I said lack of sleep, the answer is probabaly starvation. ;)
2 people like this
@speedy1279 (2665)
• United States
7 Nov 07
Yes you got it right! It is Fiction. As for it taking 10 days I am not positive on. Right now the world record holder for longest time with no sleep was 11 days and I believe he is still alive. But I do know as long as you stay hydrated you can go 4 to 5 weeks without eating before you die.
@speedy1279 (2665)
• United States
7 Nov 07
I am sorry but you got it wrong. But don't feel to bad. When my mom asked me I thought the same as you and got it wrong also. That is why I decided to share it with everyone else to see how everyone else guessed.
1 person likes this
@speedy1279 (2665)
• United States
7 Nov 07
Yes you are right. Good job. Thanks for sharing your guess with me.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
8 Nov 07
I think that is fiction and I will tell you why. I have seen pictures of those starving children in Africa and since gaining weight is a slow process, the opposite, the lack of food takes a while before the bones start showing. Whereas when one is kept awake for days, one starts hallucinating, and if he does not die from exhaustion, will die from falling off a cliff, walking into incoming traffic. Even being overtired will make one careless, as what happened to me. I also fell down the bottom rung of my basement steps.
@lalchetian (410)
• India
7 Nov 07
Its purely relative for whosoever it concerns both are quite close contenders!!!
1 person likes this
@blueunicorn (2401)
• United States
7 Nov 07
I think that is fiction. I know people can survive for several weeks with no food as long as they are properly hydrated. I don't think they can go for more than a few days without sleep, though. Very interesting. I can't wait to hear the real answer!
1 person likes this
@speedy1279 (2665)
• United States
7 Nov 07
You are correct. The answer is Fiction. See my comment on the first person to answer for more details.
1 person likes this
@speedy1279 (2665)
• United States
7 Nov 07
Actually you are wrong. Had you read the discussion and the responses I had already given the anwser. But thank you for responding anyways.
