HOW long can the Rev. Al Sharpton fast? Sharpton has lost 21 pounds – one for each day of self-starvation – and still has 59 days to go of his 90-day sentence for protesting the military’s use of Vieques for bombing practice. (He has not been fasting the entire time.)
There’s no telling how long he’ll be able to hold out on his daily diet, described by his lawyer, Sanford Rubenstein: water, a single cup of coffee and a vitamin drink prescribed by a prison doctor.
“He’s in danger,” said Dr. Elke Eckert of the University of Minnesota Medical School, who is working on a follow-up to the most important study of starvation ever done, the WWII-era “Biology of Human Starvation.”
“He may not be getting enough electrolytes – magnesium, phosphorus, potassium – and that can cause arrhythmia of the heart. He could get a heart attack and die suddenly.”
Sharpton was arrested with state Assemblyman Jose Rivera, Bronx Democratic Party chairman Roberto Ramirez, and City Councilman Adolfo Carrion Jr. for protesting the U.S. bombing of Vieques. Sharpton is serving a 90-day sentence; the others, 40 days.
If Sharpton continues the hunger strike past his colleagues’ June 29 release, his heart could begin to weaken and slow, his hair could fall out, his liver could fail and his mental processes could go awry.
After 79 days, he may do permanent damage, said a number of doctors and nutrition experts, including Dr. Donald Smith of the cardiovascular institute at Mt. Sinai Medical Center.
When he begins to eat again, his body may try to overcompensate. “Long term, he may find his eating habits totally screwed up,” Eckert said. “He may find himself overeating, craving carbohydrates. He may end up fatter than he was before.”
Here’s how Sharpton’s fast is affecting every part of his body:
Waistline: His current weight-loss rate of a pound a day will not continue. So far, he’s been losing mostly water. Men who are starving usually lose between 1 and 4 pounds a week.
Mind: Sharpton could become depressed, confused and irritable. Starving people often think of nothing but food. “He could become psychotic,” Eckert said. “That could come quite soon.”
Hair loss: Studies of anorexics have shown that starvation can cause hair loss.
Breath: Doctors report that anorexics often have terrible breath.
Heart: To conserve energy, the heart slows and becomes weaker; the heart rate can fall to just 35 beats per minute. And if Sharpton begins to eat too quickly when he ends his fast, his heart may fail.
Skin: People who are fasting can develop permanent goose bumps and sores. Sometimes they develop “lanugo,” the growth of soft, downy hair on the back and arms. It’s the body’s built-in protective mechanism to help people who are starving stay warm.
Muscles: As the body begins feeding off itself, muscles can atrophy.
Hypothermia: Sharpton’s temperature could sink to 96 degrees because of low blood pressure and loss of body fat.
Constipation: Although he’s ingesting very little, what there is must come out. Without any consumption of fiber, digestion slows and elimination becomes very, very difficult.
Gallstones: Smith’s recent study of people on extremely low-calorie diets found that in some cases, gallstones began to form after just six weeks.
Liver: Liver enzymes can become elevated. Over a few months, this could lead to liver failure, although Eckert said that it would be reversible if the fast were only two or three months long. But if Sharpton is given any medication, his liver may lack the power to metabolize it correctly and the effect could be dangerously exaggerated.
Legs: He will become weak and tired, and become unable to walk. It is likely that if Sharpton fell or could no longer move, prison officials would force-feed him intravenously.