Bears can survive for seven months without eating by burning only body fat
During winter, brown bears enter a remarkable state of torpor that allows them to survive for up to seven months without a single meal by efficiently converting stored body fat into energy.
Brown bears possess an extraordinary metabolic adaptation that allows them to slash their energy needs by 75 percent during hibernation. While in this state, they burn body fat at a rate of just 1.5 grams per hour to maintain vital functions without eating, drinking, or even disposing of waste. Their heart rate plummets from 55 to a mere 9 beats per minute, a physiological feat that rivals human induced hypothermia used in complex surgeries.
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