How Much Weight Can I Lose By Not Eating For a Month?

How much weight can you lose by not eating for a month? What Gotchas should I be aware of? Would you consider giving me a couple pointers? I am very grateful for your help. yours truly, Julie

Dear Julie,
Depending on your height and weight you could lose 15-25 pounds in a month by not eating.

The "gotchas" are, you are losing muscle weight, not just fat, and that doesn't just mean your biceps, it means your organs. People have died dieting because they lost too much of their heart tissue (remember Karen Carpenter? If not, look her up)
Fast weight loss also includes water loss, which is not desirable (what you really want to lose is FAT, right?) and can lead to dehydration complications.

By not eating you are starving yourself (people die like this) and depriving your body of all the nutrients you need to live--not just vitamins that you can take in pills, but carbohydrates that give your body energy, essential fatty acids that help keep your cells healthy, and protein that keeps your tissues and immune system going.

You will be one sickly person if you try not eating for a month, with hair falling out, possible bleeding gums, rashes, diarrhea, weak bones, and assorted other symptoms from multiple deficiencies.... my pointers are to take it slow.
Eat a bit less every day and move a bit more.... what is your hurry to lose weight? You can't expect it to come off more quickly than it came on. Try to establish some healthy eating habits for life and focus on being healthy instead of skinny.
The food guide pyramid website has some great and easy tools to use as guidelines at http://www.mypyramid.gov.

If you are seriously preoccupied with trying not to eat for a month, consider the fact that you might be suffering from some type of eating disorder and could use professional treatment. I urge you to seek a qualified mental health counselor in your area if this is the case.