Why do patients refuse to eat?

I thought this question was why do psych patients refuse to eat so I will answer both. Some patients refuse to eat because of the disease process they are going through, (influenza, viruses, end of life, etc), others may not eat because they are being stubborn, think 5 year old who is pouting.

A psych patient, on the other hand, may be in a state of psychosis, manic phase (think person on stimulants) state of catatonia; they may think their food is poisoned, they may be hallucinating bugs or other disgusting things on food.

Psych patients also have control over their eating, if not anything else. If court ordered, they have to take their medicine, but you can't force anyone to perform activities of daily living without possibly violating their rights. (Showering, brushing teeth).

Some people may get a feeding tube if they have a guardian to make decisions for them when they can't make their own, but generally, with psych patients, once they are stabilized on medications, they will start to eat.