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⏳ The real limits of the human body

Average durations and documented records before the body gives out — air, water, food, sleep, cold, avalanche, bleeding. All durations are converted to hours to remain comparable.

★ The documented survival record without water (18 days, Andreas Mihavecz) far exceeds the average of 3 days in a temperate climate — thanks to licking condensation off his cell walls.
★ In 0 °C water, swimming becomes impossible in under 10 minutes — long before severe hypothermia sets in.
★ Under an avalanche, survival drops from 92% to 30% between minutes 15 and 35: this is the critical window where companion rescue makes all the difference.
★ The longest medically documented fast, 382 days (Angus Barbieri), is more than 10 times the average duration considered survivable.
★ Without CPR, brain damage starts within 4 minutes — less time than it takes to apply a tourniquet.
24 rows
Without food, with water (average) ≈
720 hours
Without water — cold climate ≈
120 hours
Without water — temperate climate (average) ≈
72 hours
Without sleep — first severe symptoms ≈
48 hours
Without water — desert / extreme heat ≈
24 hours
Immersion in 20 °C water ≈
4,5 hours
Extreme cold exposure without shelter, at -10 °C ≈
4 hours
Under avalanche — beyond 130 min
2,17 hours
Heat exposure — exertion in direct sun ≈
2 hours
Tourniquet applied
2 hours
Immersion in 15 °C water ≈
1,5 hours
Under avalanche — 90 min burial
1,5 hours
Immersion in 10 °C water ≈
0,75 hours
Under avalanche — 35 min burial
0,58 hours
Immersion in 5 °C water ≈
0,37 hours
Under avalanche — 15 min burial
0,25 hours
Immersion in 0 °C water ≈
0,17 hours
Cardiac arrest without CPR
0,07 hours
Without air — trained freediver ≈
0,05 hours
Without air — untrained ≈
0,02 hours
Without air — world record (static apnea) ≈
— hours
Without water — documented record (Andreas Mihavecz, 1979)
— hours
Without food — documented record (Angus Barbieri, 1965-66)
— hours
Without sleep — documented record (Randy Gardner, 1964)
— hours
Sources (8)

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