“The Welsh Fasting Girl” Had Her Claims Put to the Test
Sarah Jacobs was a fasting girl who claimed to have not eaten anything in two years, from the ages of 10 to 12. Her case was widely publicized. Visitors came from all over to give Sarah gifts and monetary donations, because they believed she was miraculous. As time went on, doctors became skeptical of her claims. Her parents agreed to let doctors supervise Sarah at Guy’s Hospital in London. The nurses were not to deny Sarah food if she asked for it, but she never asked. They could see that she was dying of starvation. The doctors told her parents, and they still refused to force her to eat. They claimed that this was “normal”, and that they had seen these symptoms before, and that she was fine. But Sarah did, in fact, die of starvation. Her parents were convicted of manslaughter, and sentenced to hard labor.