The Victorian ‘Air Diet’ and Breatharian Practices

There are lots of different dieting fads these days, whether it be the Keto Diet, the Atkins Diet, or the Vegan Diet. There is one diet that originated in the Victorian Era though, that really takes the cake, no pun intended. Labeled the “Air Diet” and popular among young girls, typically pre-adolescents, the Air Diet was exactly what it sounded like. These girls were fabled to be able to survive without food or water due to their spiritual devotion.

These girls were seen as miracles from God and many became quickly famous. Many had devout followers who gave them offerings and many of the ‘fasting girls’ became rich this way. This was known as “Anorexia Mirabilis” instead of the modern day “Anorexia Nervosa” which is now seen as a mental health issue instead of a miracle. However miraculous these girls may have seemed though, most of them were proven to have been sneaking food.

Sarah Jacobs, ake the “Welsh Fasting Girl” was a rather famous case of fasting girl proved fraud. She claimed to not have eaten anything since she turned ten, and she quickly began gaining attention and gifts. When she turned twelve, her parents agreed for Jacobs to be observed by nurses from “Guy’s Hospital”. They were to give her food if she asked for it, but otherwise was just to be observed. By the second week of observation, Jacobs was obviously starving. She still did not ask for food, and the nurses did not give it to her. Her parents were told that she was dying and to send the nurses away so she could eat. They refused. They claimed they had seen her that way before with no real ill effects, and that she would bounce back. She died a few days later and her parents were charged with manslaughter.

The most famous ‘fasting girl’ however, was easily Mollie Fancher, aka the ‘Brooklyn Enigma’. At 16 Mollie Fancher had become famous for her ability to go without eating, but at age 18 she fell out of a carriage and was dragged along by the trolley. Shortly after, she lost her sense of sight, smell, touch, and taste. Despite this, she reportedly did many impossible things, such as differentiating between colors (despite being blind), being able to describe friends that she had never actually seen before, and reading sealed letters. It was also believed that she could predict the future, which happened when she went into a ‘trance’ which replaced sleeping. It was verified that she had gone 14 years without eating anything, although how true any of this is unknown. While Mollie Fancher had never been proven a fraud and many thought her real up until her death in 1916.

Mollie Fancher isn’t the only person to reportedly be able to go many years without eating with no proof of being fraudulent. The “air diet” is very similar to breatharian practices, a sub branch of Hinduism. This group believes that food and water is unnecessary to life and that you can instead live off of “Prana”, a vital substance to life in Hinduism. One of the main sources of Prana is the sun, and many who practice breatharianism have died of starvation and dehydration. There is one practitioner who has reportedly gone 70 years without eating, drinking, or using the restroom.

His name is Prahlad Jani, and he claims to have gone without eating since 1940. He says that Amba, or more commonly known as Durga or Kali, the Hindu warrior goddess sustains him by providing sustenance through a hole in the top of his mouth. Prahlad Jani has been a part of two different experiments at Sterlings Hospital in Ahmedabad, one in 2003 and one in 2010. He was kept in a sealed room with CTV cameras watching him at all times. In 2003, the study lasted ten days. Doctors report that urine appeared in his bladder, but the amount of it fluctuated and the doctors reported that Prahlad Jani never used the restroom in his time with them.

In 2010, Prahlad Jani was kept under careful, round the clock observation by 36 different researchers for 15 days. The Indian Government was hopeful that if his story proved true, they could figure out how he was different and apply the information to soldiers, victims of war and astronauts. Jani was only taken out of the sealed room for tests and exposure to sunlight. His only contact with water was bathing and gargling, with the amount of water being measured before and after use. After the 15 days were up, Jani was announced as being healthier than most men half his age and released.

The researchers reported that the two appetite hormones fluctuated while Jani was there and presented the theory that Jani’s body had evolved to adapt to starvation and dehydration. This was never proven however, and despite the wish for more experiments with Jani and his willingness, there has been nothing more to do with the subject.

These practices aren’t new. There were cases of Anorexia Mirabilis recorded as early the the 13th century. When a woman didn’t wish to marry, they would stop eating and pray to God to make them ugly. The malnutrition would cause hair to grow rapidly all across their bodies and get them out of their arranged marriages. Many would also attempt to suffer as Jesus Christ had done. In addition to starving, they would avoid sleep, take vows of virginity, sleep on beds of thorns and do other things meant to cause pain and suffering. Many of them refused to eat anything other than Eucharist, while a few would eat only Eucharist, pus from ulcers, scabs and lice.

It was claimed that these practices resulted in various miracles and that the women who practiced this were able to commune with God himself. This resulted in the death of hundreds, possibly thousands of women. While some of these incidents have not been explained, the likelihood that there was something supernatural involved is very low.

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Published by Tara Sanders

Tara Sanders is a 16 year old writer, co-leads the GSA, and is part of Musical Theatre and Drama. In the past, she has also been involved with Game Development and Speech and Debate. She likes reading, webcomics and anime.

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