refeeding
noun
re·feed·ing
(ˌ)rē-ˈfē-diŋ 
plural refeedings
medical
: the reintroduction of nutrition (as through a feeding tube or by oral feeding) into a severely malnourished individual (such as one affected with anorexia nervosa or chronic alcoholism) to restore weight
If too rapid a refeeding program follows such periods of starvation, providing protein and carbohydrate without cofactors such as thiamin and magnesium, serious metabolic and neurologic disturbances can follow.—
Sue Rodwell Williams
see also refeeding syndrome
Sue Rodwell Williams
refeed
verb, transitive + intransitive
refeed anorexic adolescents
Examples of refeeding in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The shelter said medical care can be intense as veterinarians must put the pups on a refeeding plan and gradually reintroduce food into their diets.
—Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 5 June 2025
There, doctors began what was once called refeeding but is now more commonly called nutritional rehabilitation, using an intravenous line that fed into her neck.
—Katie Engelhart, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2024
Because of the complex interplay between the physical and mental symptoms of starvation, the first steps to recovery for people with malnutrition are to eat more and to gain weight, a process called refeeding or renourishment, before working on the behavioral and cognitive aspects of the disease.
—Kate Siber, New York Times, 18 Oct. 2022
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Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 5 June 2025
There, doctors began what was once called refeeding but is now more commonly called nutritional rehabilitation, using an intravenous line that fed into her neck.
—Katie Engelhart, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2024
Because of the complex interplay between the physical and mental symptoms of starvation, the first steps to recovery for people with malnutrition are to eat more and to gain weight, a process called refeeding or renourishment, before working on the behavioral and cognitive aspects of the disease.
—Kate Siber, New York Times, 18 Oct. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Refeeding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/refeeding. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
refeeding
noun
re·feed·ing
(ˌ)rē-ˈfē-diŋ
: the reintroduction of nutrition (as through a feeding tube or by oral feeding) into a severely malnourished individual (as one affected with anorexia nervosa or chronic alcoholism) to restore weight see refeeding syndrome
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