Audrey Hepburn barely survived the German occupation during World War II, her son revealed recently. He says the actress only weighed 88 pounds after the war, People reports.
"The reason for her slenderness was because from the time she was 9 to 16, during World War II, she was extremely malnourished," Luca Dotti told People."The time she most needed nourishment, she didn't have enough food."
When the Germans invaded Holland between 1944 and 1945, it was called the Winter of Hunger, Dotti went on to explain. At the end of the war, Hepburn was 16 years old, stood at five feet, six inches tall, and weighed 88 pounds.
During the war, Hepburn survived on nettles, tulips, and endive, the Daily Mail reports. She also relied on water to make herself feel full.
Malnourishment during her crucial growth years left Hepburn with illnesses. She suffered from asthma, jaundice, acute anemia and edema due to lack of food.
After surviving the war, Dotti said she came away with an appreciation and passion for food, which is the focus of his new book, titled "Audrey at Home."
Dotti refers to the book as a "kitchen memoir," as previously reported by HNGN. The book features her son's favorite memories and his mother's favorite recipes like pasta and chocolate cake, the latter being something she carried with her ever since the war.
"The taste of chocolate for her was connected with liberation," Dotti told People. "It was the real taste of freedom."
