In WW2, when the Americans liberated the concentration camp "Saint-Cyprien", located in France. The American troops wanted to feed the newly freed Camp Prisoners because they have been starving. Without knowing what would happen if they would feed them heavy food, literally seconds after liberating them. The soldiers, thinking it was the right thing, started giving the Prisoners Apples, Sandwiches, and even Chocolates. Leading to a lot of Prisoners dying. After that incident, the Science team gave out an order to not feed the prisoners in the camps and to let the Medical Staff feed them first. It was mostly a slow input of light soup.

There’s a story on UKposts about a crew of Japanese sailors who shipwrecked on an island and went a few weeks without food. They were eventually rescued by an American ship and the captain was extremely strict with what the starving crew ate. Making sure they only ate small amounts of soup. Ship captains in the 1800’s clearly knew how to deal with starvation. And it goes to show how easily knowledge can be lost.

The fact that Jimmy talked about refeeding syndrome and had a bunch of medical experts on standby really shows the precautions he takes behind the scenes. He's really serious about doing these challenges and definitely should be taken inspiration for a lot of people.

I remember when I was a kid a holocaust survivor was telling us all these stories about his experience there, and the one that stuck with me the most for how so utterly devastating it is, is how when his small group was rescued at the end of the war they were given tins of food and rescue blankets. The only two options were a dryer biscuity type and a sausage and gravy type. He originally got the sausage one but his closest friend was far hungrier than him so he swapped it for the biscuit. They all hadn’t eaten in days- the shock to the system was so severe every person who ate the sausage died. He watched his only friend die AFTER they survived the holocaust… Edit: just saw there’s a pinned comment about this already lol whoops

Refeeding syndrome actually somewhat happened to my dad. He had a really bad case of the flu several years ago and could barely keep anything down. All he could have was broth for like a week and a half. Well he started to feel better. The rest of us wanted to get burgers. He obviously didn’t have one but wanted to have a bite (he wasn’t contagious anymore). He had one bite and within about fifteen minutes he was unresponsive. His eyes were wide open but he didn’t speak or respond when we were screaming at him. It was extremely terrifying. He was responsive with 10min and he refused to go to the hospital😖 thankfully he only got better after that but yeah don’t make any drastic changes!!

Slight correction: Pretty sure Gordan didn't know MrBeast was fasting until he literally started cooking for him. He probably would not have even started cooking if he knew. By the time he started, he definitely has the pride of a chef to have his target audience enjoy his food.

As a recovering ED patient, refeeding syndrome is NO JOKE. I went over 3 weeks once without anything solid (water and a single popsicle a day), only to break the fast at a band dinner celebrating the end of the season. Spent the next day hugging the toilet...

Looking back, I realized that slowly feeding someone soup after they were starving for a long period of time was displayed in the book The Hunger Games. When Katniss was woke up in that room after winning and being picked up in a hover car, she was fed small amounts of soup over time. Hats off to the author for their attention to detail.

This is probably my favourite food theory video to date. This information could save lives of people who fast, whether voluntarily or not. As someone who has unfortunately been in a position of not being able to acquire food, I really appreciate this information. There had been times in which I went a few days without food, only to try and stuff myself. I only ever felt sick, and knowing it's my body's natural response is a huge perspective change.

What was interesting is that during his Willy Wonka video you could tell his energy levels were low...but had no idea it was due to the challenge he was doing at the time. I figured it was from trying to put together the crazy factory.

honestly just goes to show how smart and careful jimmy really is with all of his challenges, and how far he prepares for them. I didn't even know refeeding syndrome was a thing at all.

I'll be honest, one thing Hunger Games taught me was that eating a lot after starving/eating very little wasn't a good thing, even if they didn't portray it perfectly or anything. Interesting to hear it elaborated on, tbh.

As someone who had an eating disorder this video is very accurate. My doctors had to work me up to what my actual diet plan was going to look like instead of hopping right in.

Mr Beast truly is the reverse Chris McLean, his challenges are reasonably safe and rewarding to every contestant, and he saves the real dangers for himself.

The fact that he endured 2 weeks without food is insane. At least he seemed okay after

As someone who struggles with anorexia, eating only around 900 calories a day, I knew as soon as you started this episode that you were going to talk about refeeding syndrome. I’ve never been forced into recovery to experience it myself but I’ve done plenty of research on it. It can be extremely dangerous and harm your body in so many ways. This is why many people trying to recover from eating disorders only go up about 100 calories or so per week. Him eating something extremely full of calories after being malnourished for so long is just a recipe for disaster. I’m glad you covered this as it’s not something most people know about. This will hopefully help people understand their bodies more.

I actually remember reading something about this stuff. A kid in the Donner party died after being rescued because he ate too much after, you know, the starvation thing. The kid didn’t understand and ate through a crap ton of the rations while the adults were sleeping and died from “overeating”

Never before has a Food/Film/Game theory made me so worried about someone else's heath or even mortality. Seriously, I actually got stressed hearing about how dangerous this challenge was.

Watching Matpat fire shots at Gordon Ramsay from a Mrbeast challenge is the funniest thing ever

This was referenced in rick and morty at the beginning of season 6 . My friends just thought rick was just being a jerk not letting morty have a sandwich and just made gross paste out of it while he actually got to bite into the sandwich. Rick was putting morty less at risk then himself. He truly does care for morty.

My grandmother told me this story: We're from the Philippines, and during the end of WWII during and at the exit of the Japanese occupation, the US military started to air drop supplies to the civilians including food. One of my grandmother's neighbors, a young boy, picked up a can of corned beef and ate it straight from opening the box of supplies. He dropped dead moments after. At the time my grandmother thought he died from choking to death, but later realized it must have been refeeding syndrome.

No joke when I saw Gordon trying to give Jimmy that food I was incredibly scared due to the fact that you can't just eat a huge sandwich after not eating for 2 weeks

I have digestive issues and routinely go 36-48 without eating for some relief. I am actually glad I found this because I am thinking it’s time to see my doctor.

Having the unfair advantage of being in the medical field I was one of the people who realized what the video was about during the open. You and your team never fail to amaze and entertain me and I'm glad you use your genius for informing and not for evil.

as a medical practitioner, I'm proud of Jimmy for having doctors helping him and ACTUALLY LISTENING to their advice... education is fundamental in everything health-related, so I'm all for doing these experiments with counseling from health professionals =D

I remember when learning about the Holocaust a huge problem was this exactly. They had been so starved and worked that when it was all finally over and they were rescued people were having to just eat small amounts of chocolate despite being absolutely starving.

one thing you can do if you don't eat for a long time is have a small soup or broth. its more watery so your immune system has a better time eating it.

I’m still in the beginning so I don’t know if you mention it, but Jimmy also has chrones (spelling) disease. That has to make it even harder I would assume, I know a few people close to me that have chrones and they have to be SO careful with everything they eat to avoid flare ups…

It’s great that Mat posted how harmful this actually is because I felt like kids might go and try it without thinking about things like refeeding and jimmy being constantly watched by doctors.

13:15 just a quick correction there. Jimmy did do it for the content, but he stated in the comments it was also because he has Crohns disease, which means he has a nasty amount of gut inflammation. He wanted to know if fasting would help with the inflammation.

Good on Jimmy for listening to the guys in lab coats. Seriously I cannot stress enough how important it is to listen to your doctor

I was vaguely familiar with this because when I was younger I recall hearing my mom saying not to feed stray cats/dogs too much all of a sudden (if they're clearly scrawny) otherwise "their stomachs would explode" & they'd die. It wasn't quite the correct reason but still true information on the outcome it could bring.

It’s absolutely insane it feels like he isn’t human sometimes

I honestly hope some people I used to know in eating disorder communities see this. They used to do binge meetups where they would fast for a week or more beforehand, then go to all-you-can-eat buffets and binge/purge. Realizing how deadly this was after the fact is scary, and I am honestly surprised at the amount of us that are still alive.

I’m currently going through a breakup and have been struggling to eat. For about a week now I’ve taken a couple bites of food 3 times a day. Definitely not full meals. I’ve lost at least 5 pounds and I feel awful. I’m getting sick from it. I hope all others going through whatever it is, be it an eating disorder or being unable to eat due to circumstances around you, I hope you get better. We’re all in this together

Very fascinating. I had researched the topic in great lenght last year before I did a lenghty fast myself, and I remember being shocked by how refeeding can be so deadly.

One could say, Gordan's food is to die for.

i love that jimmy is always so careful when undergoing challenges that even though the risk is pretty big, you never feel worried because you know he did more than his fair share of research with all of the professionals

I know this video is old but I wanted to express my sincere thanks to MatPat and his crew. I've recently been under surgery and couldn't eat properly for several days mainly eating jello and drinking water. After finally recovering (and not thinking) I ate a big ol burger with fries and nuggets. Hours later I find myself very very short of breath, light headed, and stomach I'll as heck. I was in pain the entire day. Long story short I remembered this specific video, cross checked my symptoms with my doctor and he confirmed I had succumb to Refeeding Syndrome. He told me what to do and so forth but I still have to thank MatPat cause this was the first thing that popped into my head.

3:54 David Blaine LARP’ing as a funko pop 😂

I just feel the need to say as someone diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa I appreciate you Mat for bringing light to the dangers and science of them

This was very informative. I struggle with depression and like many others, it greatly impacts my eating habits to the point where I barely eat anything for days or even weeks at a time, and then when I finally do eat, I'm full after only a few bites and I'll feel really sick if I push myself to eat anymore. Next time something like that happens I'll keep this video in mind, so thank you Matpat, you've helped me more than you know.

Food theory idea: how many cookies does Santa eat every year on average and if he were a normal human would he be able to handle all that sugar?

You make some of the most informative and entertaining videos on UKposts. Good work MatPat

This actually makes sense. I had VSG back in 2019, lost a ton of weight, REALLY fast, was on a completely liquid diet for the first month or so, and the doctors I was working with didn’t specify name drop “refeeding syndrome” or that I could literally die from the complications, but they DID give me a list of foods that I could start reintroducing into my diet and when I could start reintroducing them. I absolutely did notice complications, though. Nothing too severe. Mainly, I’d just throw everything back up, I’d get sweaty and my heart would race. I could pretty much only eat eggs, chicken and drink unsweetened tea and water, about a year after the surgery because my body couldn’t handle other foods yet. They didn’t mention the exact portion size, in relation to body weight, so perhaps that’s why. Luckily, my body has acclimated to most things, once again. It never got used to sodas again and they burn the heck out of my stomach, so I can’t even have them on cheat days, now.

The moment Gordon offered to make a sandwich filled me with dread and had me thinking back to the Band of Brothers episode "Why We Fight" when the soldiers were told they had to stop feeding the Holocaust survivors or they'd die as their digestion systems would be overwhelmed with heavy foods. I know Gordon's desire to feed MrBeast came from a place of compassion, but I was super stressed until MrBeast mentioned Refeeding Syndrome, acknowledging he was aware of the danger and spit out the food.

9:36 Gordon is wrong. He had someone not eat his Salmon before

I just wanna say, as someone with anorexia who’s been at risk of refeeding syndrome more than once; the fact that there are medical professionals in charge of TREATMENT of ED patients who’ve never even heard of this phenomenon is absolutely terrifying to me.

Oddly enough, I learned about refeeding syndrome from one of the Ultima games. You find a man in a cave that has been starving and begs you for food. If you give him too much he dies. Crazy the things you learn from games.

Food theory idea: does an apple a day really keep the doctor away?

MrBeast mentioning refeeding syndrome makes me really glad he had a doctor to monitor him for this. Also does anyone else agree Jimmy didn't fail the challenge then because he spit out the sandwhich?

I’ve gone a 5 days without food, lost like 13lbs. I couldn’t eat properly for like 3 weeks afterwards

When Jimmy said he can't have a lot of carbs after not eating, I freaked out because I had no idea about this. Luckily I never tried something as dangerous.

As someone who really has almost starved to death, it is painful. I dont wish that kind of pain on anyone. Its mind-haltingly painful, I couldnt move, think, or do pretty much anything by day 9. Only reason I'm still alive is because my friend found me passed out on my floor and called the ambulance. Depression is a disease that kills a lot of people in a lot more ways than just suicide, folks. Keep a good eye on your friends...

The first time I watched MrBeast's video I was extremely worried for him like I was literally biting my nails and wishing he was going to be okay. I don't want my favorite youtuber to die to entertain us. Wish you best luck Jimmy!

This should be interesting. Can’t wait to watch. Speaking of challenges, anyone want to see Matpat do a food theory on competitive eating? Maybe making a challenge that would literally be impossible.

As someone who used to water fast for the first 5 days of every month, this video is SOOO important! Thank you Mat Pat!

This is really informative. I usually dont watch this kinds of videos but I liked this one.

I remember watching an episode on a Netflix show about a resort people go to where they fast for 30 days or more. It's supposed to do wonders for your body. And yes they had doctors monitoring them. It might have been a medical facility but it's always interested me to look into it.

This was very informative. You always see on tv they feed a starving person and they scarf their food down.

As someone who's been in recovery from anorexia and bulimia for several years, I'm really glad you've talked about this. I spent several years eating less than 1000 calories a day and not keeping it down, with my only real intake of "nutrition" being sodas and shakes. I was hospitalized for refeeding syndrome several times, along with a few times for not being low on potassium and other vitamins until it damaged my heart. This stuff is really serious and I hope nobody attempts it...

This challenge made me respect Mrbeast even more, the dude is literally willing to do something this risky to entertain. Always good to see the amount of prepartion and precaution he took in order to stay safe for this challenge.

It’s so weird too because I went 2 days fasting which wasn’t even on purpose. I did finally try to eat but when I did i just felt horrible. It took me awhile to actually start eating normally again. I think it’s so cool how it works though.

I'm so glad Mr. beast takes his challenges so seriously, that he has his own well being on the front of his mind. Live to do another challenge, you could say.

I kind of feel like ice water splashed on my reality as someone with an ED and severe depression with this video. I’m going to have to save this to come back to because it may just save my life. Thanks for this, Matt. I didn’t realize how much I needed this to come across my subs today. Thank you.

I did those types “crash diets” all the time in the start of my ED, until I just started fasting most days. My physical and mental health took a real beating at that time. When I started just fasting my muscles got extremely weak. I kept falling all the time because I couldn’t keep myself up. I looked so sick. I exercised way too much, without eating anything. It went on for way too long. Even though that was more than a crash diet, I still get scared if people I know consider going on crash diets. It makes me nervous for them. I’m so glad I’m much better now. And it’s 199% true that you should eat extremely little when you start eating again. You just can’t handle it

I've actually had this happen to myself when I was a kid at one point. We had no real food in the house for almost 2 weeks and once I got a proper meal..well, it went poorly.

Thankfully, Jimmy is smart enough to know when to quit and to know what to avoid doing..... Mostly, but the underwater challenge he did also put him in danger and he didn't seem aware of the danger with that challenge. Essentially, he was enclosed underwater with only an air pipe feeding him oxygen. What he failed to realize was that the small amount of oxygen was not enough, he was entoxicating himself with his own CO2 produced while breathing due to the lack of air circulation. After many hours underwater, Jimmy was dazed and confused, and nobody realized that he could have lost consciousness underwater, although his friends were thankfully checking in on him. I'm concerned that Jimmy will harm himself with these extreme challenges, since he always seems to grow more ambitious with his challenges.

so weird to see how big jimmy has gotten on youtube over the years as someone from his state (north carolina) and had a mutual friend. i never knew him personally, but i’m really proud of him.

I'd love a food theory on what the ideal diet would be for different phases of being a contestant on Alone

As someone who used to have eating disorders, I immediately gasped when you mention taking a bite of a sandwich after not eating, and I got so scared you’d say that mister beast would just do that without easing back into it

12:20 we don't want Jimmy to join Techno yet.

On MrBeast's pinned comment on that video, he states that he had Crohn's Disease and decided to give it a break from food to reduce inflammation in his gut. So, if you thought this was supposed to be some challenge he made just for entertainment, it's not.

I heard he did this as a Crohn’s treatment and/or diet reset to help treat the Crohns… 🤷🏻‍♂️

So happy you brought up David Blane. Dude is a living legend. He's a magician and decided to take the breath-holding record from a lifelong professional diver.... and did just that.

thanks for bring up the refeeding syndrome as when i did an internship at an animal shelter i learn about this. there was a group of animals that had been brought in after they were highly neglected so they had multiple related isues but one was that because they had not eaten in a while they were real emaciated. i noticed that they didnt give them more to help them bulk up faster, i ask why and they brought this up. i found it at first abit scetchy as i didnt get it at first but they were the real vets. after awhile i forgot about it untill the video brought it up again. the dogs and the birds have probably already found an new place since i last was there.

Pancakes VS Waffles: Which one absorbs more syrup/honey/melted butter? Does the shape change the flavor at all? If so, is that because of psychology or just because the shape holds more flavor from the toppings? Do pancakes and waffles have different textures that lock in different amounts of flavor?

4:58 *382 DAYS!?!?!?!* **eyes start to burn and create a house fire**

10:54 this man is doctor

I was in a pretty bad accident when I was younger, spent about 3 weeks in ICU hooked up to a nutrients IV and could only drink water with a straw while stuck in bed. I still remember the first time I tried to eat solid food after that. It was a little microwave Kraft Dinner cup. I took one bite and immediately was hit with a wave of nausea to the point and nearly vomited right there in my hospital bed. I haven't really been able to eat plain KD since then :/

I really wish that Mat Pat can do a video with Dr. Mike. The amount of knowledge and entertainment in that episode would be INSANE.

Jimmy is simply a legend. God Bless Him and His Team ❤

I was genuinely screaming at my phone when I heard Ramsey tell him to take a bite.

I'm sure Gordon knew about everything and was simply there to put on the pressure. He didn't seem too phased about hearing the words "refeeding syndrome", so I think it really was just a coordinated stunt. Remember, Mr. Beast and Chef Ramsey are entertainers and have to sign LOTS of legal agreements for a stunt like this due to liability. Things can't just happen when lives could be at risk.

To anyone out there struggling with an ED, please know that just because Mr Beast went 14 days without any food doesn’t mean you have to or should. You and your struggles are valid and please seek help. But also please take the second part into account. Refeeding syndrome is serious and a problem a lot of people who struggle with an ED should know about.

Due to some anxiety I went two weeks without eating as well, just drinking (I can’t remember exactly what I drank) and can confirm I didn’t feel hungry once and lost 20 pounds.

As nicocado always said “It’s just water wait”

5:30 Nikocado Avocado, start taking notes

Glad to hear that weight loss is slower after the first week or so. I was planning to start dieting and working out next week, so not knowing that weight loss slows down would have been discouraging.

I was doing a juice fasting last summer, the goal was 7 days, but I made it to the 5th and wanted to break the fasting, I knew that I had to introduce solids gradually, but I was like “meh” and I don’t remember what I ate, I think it was toasted bread with hummus. Mind you, on the 5th day, your stomach shrinks, and you are super flat (I mean in my case) and wit my 1st bite, I felt every.. bit.. of that bite going down my throat into my shrunken stomach, like it didn’t have space for it, it was actually painful for awhile, and that’s on a 5day juice fast, imagine Jimmy on the 14th day eating anything solid..

I actually had to be on a liquid diet for 30 days. don't recommend it, obviously. but it wasn't a choice, I went through surgeries all my life for various reasons. but this one was for my mouth, and what ended up happening was the doctors had to seal my mouth shut with wires and this plastic at the front. it was also hard to breath because of all that. But going through it, I lost 40lbs in that month (115-70ibs), I couldn't stand when I had to pee cause I would get dizzy and feel like fainting, I got really irritated and started to get angry, losing memories would happen too, days started to feel longer, some days I didn't even have energy or motivation to even lift an arm I didn't have to worry about the slow introduction to food again, because during the recovery process I would have a month of liquid food, then a month of soft food, and then slow intro to solid foods in the 3rd month since it was my mouth that was recovering. I didn't really worry about the amount of weight I was losing though since its proven that if you lose a bunch of weight by cutting a drastic amount of calories that your body will naturally fall back into old eating habits (that's why its not recommended to drastically change your calorie intake and start by lose 1-2lbs a week). I did play basketball in the middle of the liquid diet month, all I remember is going down on one knee trying to catch my breath 5 times and then running back on defense, my friends still ask how I did it. I honestly don't know. fun facts about this situation is that the day before the surgery was thanksgiving, and if you know anything about surgeries you can't eat for 6 hrs before the surgery, so my family was having thanksgiving dinner while I was starving in my room. I did get a more appreciation for food, not because of the taste of it, but the energy and nutrients it provides. worse part of all... we found out they messed up a week or two into the liquid diet phase. but that's a whole other thing. honestly having youtubers like Mr. beast and matpat that have the curiosity and drive to test and/or inform us about things like these topics is amazing. just seeing jimmy go through the same symptoms and then explained by matpat was amazing, keep up the good work.

I am certain that Gordon was informed of the situation and was playing it up. He didn't appear to be at all confused about the refeeding syndrome when it mentioned. So, while he was playing the part, Mr Beast was safe because they all understood the situation. Gordon and his friends would have, likely, all tried to stop him if he just started trying to eat that sandwich.

I was kind of mad when Gordon's face was very "oh whatever" when Jimmy was explaining that it can be dangerous for him to have an influx of carbs after not eating for 2 weeks

I knew of this. I’ve seen countless incidents with lost pets who didn’t eat for days on end. If they were given a normal amount of food following there… adventure… there’s a high possibility of death.

This must be the only time Gordon Ramsay is okay with someone spitting out his food

1:45 Do not try this at home. People without money for food: Gonna pretend I didn't hear that.

Thank you for making this video. One correction though, when he starts to feel good after a week, its because of a boost in norepinephrine, most people report an almost euphoric feeling. As someone who fasts regularly I often see people join the fasting groups on reddit etc.. and say they are gunna fast for 30 days as a first fast. They usually have no idea about electrolytes and refeeding syndrome which puts them at a high risk of hurting themselves. You need to get educated about fasting dangers in order to do it safely.

This video is a year old, how is nobody talking about how MatPat got left and right mixed up at the end 💀💀💀

I have a been on the recovery of an eating disorder from childhood and whenever I tried to self recover I would eat too much and become physically sick, it wasn't until talking to a proper doctor/therapist that what I was doing in an attempt to recover was just as detrimental as the disorder itself

6:39 *OOOOOOH* so *THAT’S* what Nikocado Avocado was on about!