600 calories a day?

If you're only allowed to eat 600 calories a day, how do you stop yourself from feeling sick/ and dizzy?

I have a friend who eats that little on a constant. She is always sick with something, has chronic headaches, is always cold, can't get out of bed, can't focus etc.

It is just the effects of starvation. No way around it.

Unless a doctor told you to eat 600 calories a day I would eat more.

600 is just plain wrong unless a doctor has a very specific reason for giving you that number. Minimum default is about 1200, never go below that without very tight monitoring by someone whose license is on the line.

Koolz - I was on 700-800 with a peak day every week for months. One key thing was taking vitamins and making sure I got plenty of water (like 100 oz a day). Are you being medically supervised? If yes, let them know as you might need more calories or a different micro nutrition ratio. I also made sure that my food was well balanced with a 35-40 carb, 20-30 fat, and 35-40 protein.

BTW, I was medically supervised with my program.

Also being a teen and doing this, sounds worrying.

I know of someone who refused to eat more than 650 kcal a day. She died at age 18.

Please be careful.

600 calories per day is absurd unless you are the size of a toddler and very, very sedentary.
Your body needs food to function, the exact amount of which depends upon your size and lifestyle, but should never dip below 1,000. And 1,000 is even too low.
Remember such an extreme weight-loss regiment can result in hypoglycemia, hair loss, amenorrhea, constipation, low blood pressure, poor cognitive functioning, weakness, and chronic fatigue.
Just in case you are rationalizing it will all be worth it so long as you lose weight, I will add that restricting caloric intake to such a degree would result in a slowed metabolism which would make weight-loss impossible to maintain.
If you are indeed desperate to lose weight, please consult your doctor and get his/her advice on a proper diet and exercise plan.

My parents tell me to only eat 600 cals a day, I can't really eat more(well I can) but I will just get yelled at.

I'm only doing this(600 cals) because my parents yell at me when I eat more. But, I see what you mean.

Sorry to hear :/ that does not sound too good.

Thanks. No, I am not being medically supervised.

Oh okay, I see. I'm only on 600 calories a day, because my parents get mad/ yell when I eat more.

Ok then, this is not cool. First, talk to someone at school if you can. Second, if you have any choices in your food intake, try to make them be as nutritiously sound as possible - get the vitamins in you and as much protein as possible. Third, if they are only monitoring volume of food and not actually measuring/recording calories, then try to include calorie dense foods like nuts and peanut butter - small amount of those can add up to higher calories (if not allergic). While I don't typically advocate liquid calories, in this case, try to get juice or protein drinks in you.

Finally, like I said in the first place, this is not cool and you need to reach out to someone you trust in your area - school, church, boys/girls club, your doctor (a free clinic if there is one in your area). I don't know your whole story, a medical doctor would be the best one to provide advice as well as encouragement to your parents as to the appropriate way to meet your nutrition needs.

Even if they are recording your calorie intake, you need to make every one of those calories count towards your health until you can get the situation changed.

Please try to do as little as possible, to save energy, besides getting help. Reach out to someone - I'd say even calling 911 would be warranted.

That is abuse. Contact authorities.

I agree with venusss. This is abuse.

What do you think of the idea of contacting authorities?

That's child abuse / neglect, right out of the text book. YOU MUST REPORT. Heck write that sentence, just as you typed it here, on a notecard. Walk into your school counselors office, and put it on their desk.

Your life is in danger. And not by a little.

I agree with the others that it's a neglectful situation from your parents. No matter what the reason is, no one should be consume such low amount of calories especially without medical supervision. The fact that they allow you to eat so little is unhealthy and will negatively affect your body. Please seek help.

I'm hoping you have taken the advice and told someone (other than us). Really important that you tell someone before you damage your health

Regardless of why your parents are doing this, there is no sound nutritional reasoning behind this. If it is because they want you to lose some weight that sad fact is that the quicker you lose it then it will go back on even faster. Losing weight like this will also wreak havoc on you metabolic rate and make it even harder in the future. If your parents went to see a nutritionist they might understand things much better

I apologize for assuming your motive had to do with body-image issues. From what I've read of this thread, your parents are being rather abusive. They are literally starving you. I hope you will seek help. 1-800-422-4453 is the number for the national child abuse hotline, if you need.

I feel for you! My parents get on my case for eating, too. It's rough! *hugs*

In my situation, I'm 28 and I'm stuck living at home with my twins because I'm going through a divorce. I'm not trying to lose weight, but every time I step into that kitchen and start making something, someone walks in and asks which of my children it's for... as if I'm not allowed to eat, or something. I'm paying almost 75% of their monthly mortgage, so it's not like they can justify it by saying I live here for free.

Are your parents trying to force you to lose weight by limiting your food intake? If so, that isn't a healthy formula for weight loss. Like one of the previous replies said, 600 calories a day is not healthy for a teenager -- or anyone -- unless it was recommended by a doctor or nutritionist... and even then, I'd question their reasoning for imposing such harsh restrictions. Most people add exercise and cut just 100-300 calories from the daily recommended intake for your individual height/weight.

If your parents came up with this plan on their own, I would recommend asking them to take you to see a nutritionist. There have been times when I only ate 600 calories daily myself, and I felt miserable, so I can only imagine that you probably don't feel well either. Also, the prefrontal cortex of the brain doesn't stop developing until around 25 years age, so I can't imagine that living in a state of starvation is going to do you any good at all. In addition, starving to lose weight isn't an effective way to keep weight off. The body senses when it's starving, and it will cling to any fat you begin to eat once the starvation ends. It's not good for a person's metabolism, since the body will go into "survival mode", expecting to starve again soon.

Again, I'm not sure if this has to do with weight loss, or something else. Either way, I don't think it's good, and I imagine you don't feel well physically with such little to fuel yourself.

Sending good juju your way! I hope you feel better soon. *hugs*



EDIT: Sorry I missed the second page of replies. My gosh... your parents should be ashamed for making you live like that. I'm so sorry! Sending extra good juju your way! My ex had parents like that, and their reason for limiting their children's food intake was ridiculous. They felt they were doing right by their children by making sure they didn't "get fat". All of their children grew up with major body issues, among other things. Your parents may or may not realize what they're doing is wrong, and basically abusive. I'm so sorry you're going through this. Please get someone involved who can get you help, and maybe help your parents too. It's so easy to judge them and call them abusive, but they may not understand that they're setting you up for a lifetime of poor health. If your parents are otherwise good and loving people, you may want to mention that to a counselor at school, so you can get help as a family without anyone getting in "trouble". If there are other things going on at home that put your health and safety at danger, please don't hesitate to call 911, your local DCFS office, or The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) to get help. You're in my thoughts.