How long does the body take to decompose??

Answer 1

depends on the circumstances. There is a book called 'The Body Farm' well worth a read if you are interested. Its a true story about an actual body farm in America where they put dead bodies in many differrent situations to see the differences in decomposition.

The expert in the book pulled up a body in a cemerary and thought it had been there for about 5 days, because it was so fresh, but it turned out it had been there about 180 years. It was all down to conditions

Answer 2

The rate depends on the environment and the state of the body at the time of death. As a rule of thumb, a body exposed to open air will decay the same amount in one day as a body in water in one week and a body buried underground in one month. Heat speeds decay; cold slows it down. Rigor mortis (the stiffening of muscles) and livor mortis (pooling of blood) take place within 12 hours of death. Bacteria in the intestine multiply rapidly as soon as metabolism ceases. Many factors determine how long it takes the body to decompose from there. Is the body in sun or shade? Is it summer or winter? Are there carnivores or insects around? Almost immediately, blowflies can feed on an exposed body and lay eggs in it. Bodies buried deep in the ground are protected from flying insects and warm temperatures, so they tend to decay relatively slowly. A body in a typical casket burial can take decades to decay down to the skeleton if embalmed properly, or as little as a year if not. But such decay can happen in a week if the body is outside, if it is exposed to carnivores, or if it has open wounds. Conversely, bodies can last centuries in a very hot and dry environment, which dries out the body, or in a cold and wet setting, where body fat turns into a form of soap that acts as a protective covering.

Answer 3

From death, within 1 hour Hypostasis occurs, the first stage and sign of decomposition - where the blood settles to the lower regions of the body. Decomposition time span varies according to room conditions (e.g. air temperature, humidity, precipitation etc.) therefore we see remains of humans thousands of years old that were better-preserved in ice. In temperate conditions, the fleshy remains of corpses become skeletons after approximately 2 years or as little as a few weeks in tropical climates. From skeleton to nothing - I estimate approximately several hundred years on average in temperate conditions.

Answer 4

Depends upon the enviroment that it is decomposing in.
Basically the warmer the quicker
More air circulation the quicker

Answer 5

I watched a programme on this last night depending on humidity and conditions a body can be ok for 3 to 4 days.

Answer 6

this has actually changed. Our great-great-great grandparents decomposition took about a third to quater less time than it will take us because of all the preservatives in the food we eat. So, for you and I to return to the dust from whence we came will take up to five years.

Answer 7

Mine's taken a little over 50 years so far

Answer 8

about 3-5 days after death! depends upon the temperature.

Answer 9

I would suggest lime, I've heard it will get rid of the body quickly for you!

Answer 10

that depends on how they are buried, skeletons are still being pulled out of the ground 1000`s of years old