WikiIslam

Islamic Fasting and Health: Difference between revisions

Page Discussion

Islamic Fasting and Health (view source)

Revision as of 15:53, 21 May 2025

4,574 bytes removed ,  21 May
Removed 3 sections which have been rightly criticised. Later studies debunk the pregnancy study. Yemen trafficking is a thing only there and unrelated to fasting according to the study itself. Liver toxicity is big leap from paracetemol which would break fast anyway and the study mentions a prolonged period of malnutrition..
[checked revision][checked revision]
No edit summary
(Removed 3 sections which have been rightly criticised. Later studies debunk the pregnancy study. Yemen trafficking is a thing only there and unrelated to fasting according to the study itself. Liver toxicity is big leap from paracetemol which would break fast anyway and the study mentions a prolonged period of malnutrition..)
 
(4 intermediate revisions by one other user not shown)
Line 15: Line 15:
*Breaking the fast at sunset and again eating and drinking to prepare for the day ahead.
*Breaking the fast at sunset and again eating and drinking to prepare for the day ahead.


Some Muslims claim eating a small amount of [[food]] is the correct Islamic way however we cannot function for the whole day by eating only a small amount of food at the time of dawn. This would affect our performance even more during the day.
Some Muslims claim eating a small amount of food is the correct Islamic way however we cannot function for the whole day by eating only a small amount of food at the time of dawn. This would affect our performance even more during the day.


==Effects on Health==
==Effects on Health==
Line 47: Line 47:
===Tachycardia, Severe Headaches, Dizziness, Nausea, Vomiting and Circulatory Collapse===
===Tachycardia, Severe Headaches, Dizziness, Nausea, Vomiting and Circulatory Collapse===


The following study was carried out on [[Turkey|Turkish]] Muslims in [[Germany]] who were involved in heavy and manual work. 'Moderate to severe health disturbances' including severe dehydration were found in such laborers during Ramadan:
The following study was carried out on Turkish Muslims in Germany who were involved in heavy and manual work. 'Moderate to severe health disturbances' including severe dehydration were found in such laborers during Ramadan:


{{Quote||
{{Quote||
Line 95: Line 95:


In a certain study, the nutritional status of lactating women was affected by Ramadan fasting. All of the nutrient intakes (except vitamins A, E and C) decreased during Ramadan. The study said that it would seem prudent to excuse lactating women from fasting during Ramadan.<ref>"The effect of Ramadan on maternal nutrition and composition of breast milk." Pg. 278-283, vol. 48 - Nutrition and Dietetics; Food Engineering, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey</ref>
In a certain study, the nutritional status of lactating women was affected by Ramadan fasting. All of the nutrient intakes (except vitamins A, E and C) decreased during Ramadan. The study said that it would seem prudent to excuse lactating women from fasting during Ramadan.<ref>"The effect of Ramadan on maternal nutrition and composition of breast milk." Pg. 278-283, vol. 48 - Nutrition and Dietetics; Food Engineering, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey</ref>
===Pregnancies===
{{Quote||A new study by scientists in the United States has revealed that pregnant Muslim women who fast during Ramadan are likely to have smaller babies who will be more prone to learning disabilities in adulthood.
The researchers also found that the women were 10 per cent less likely to give birth to a boy if they had fasted during Ramadan. The trend was clearest if the fasting was done early in the women’s pregnancy, and during the summer months, when long hours of daylight called for them to go longer without food.<BR>. . .<BR>
The study, which used census data from the US, Iraq and Uganda, also discovered long-term effects on the adult’s health and his or her future economic success.
"We generally find the largest effects on adults when Ramadan falls early in pregnancy," the Independent quoted Douglas Almond, of Columbia University, and Bhashkar Mazumder, of the Federal Research Bank of Chicago, the authors of the research, as saying.
"Rates of adult disability are roughly 20 per cent higher, with specific mental disabilities showing substantially larger effects. Importantly, we detect no corresponding outcome differences when the same design is applied to non-Muslims," they added.<ref>[http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Ramadan-fast-not-recommended-during-pregnancy/articleshow/6090400.cms Ramadan fast not recommended during pregnancy] - The Times of India, Jun 25, 2010</ref>}}


===Binge eating, headaches and increase in gastric acidity===
===Binge eating, headaches and increase in gastric acidity===
Line 119: Line 108:
Dr. Muhammad Alabdooni, a Muslim and the chairman of the Dutch Moroccan Physicians Association, also maintains there is no scientific proof that Islamic fasting is physiologically beneficial.<ref>[http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/fasting-during-ramadan-good-your-health Is fasting during Ramadan good for your health?] - Radio Netherlands Worldwide</ref>
Dr. Muhammad Alabdooni, a Muslim and the chairman of the Dutch Moroccan Physicians Association, also maintains there is no scientific proof that Islamic fasting is physiologically beneficial.<ref>[http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/fasting-during-ramadan-good-your-health Is fasting during Ramadan good for your health?] - Radio Netherlands Worldwide</ref>


===Increases the toxicity of commonly used medication===
Fasting has been found to significantly change drug metabolism and deplete crucial chemicals in the liver needed to detoxify medication.
Paracetemol (also called acetaminophen) is one of the most commonly used drugs to treat day to day pain such as headaches or gastrointestinal pain, this is the very same pain that is likely to be encountered by a fasting individual. Therefore, a significant risk arises when someone who has been fasting takes this common medication (among many others).
As the Journal of Internal Medicine Reports:
{{Quote||Paracetamol-related hepatotoxicity is now the most common cause of the potentially devastating clinical syndrome of acute liver failure in many western countries. In patients who develop liver damage following moderate paracetamol overdose in the order of 5–10 g daily, recent fasting and nutritional impairment have been identified as key precipitants.
In keeping with experience in the modest paracetamol overdose setting [6], it is likely that fasting occurring on a background of longstanding diminished caloric intake and severe malnutrition played an important role in the development of paracetamol-induced liver damage at recommended dosage of 4 g daily in this patient. Fasting and malnutrition result in reduction of hepatic levels of glutathione, required for inactivation of N-acetyl-p-benzoquinonimine, the toxic metabolite of paracetamol [6]. A 16-h period of fasting is sufficient to substantially deplete hepatic glutathione stores in mice [11]. <ref name=ParaODFast">[http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1046/j.1365-2796.2003.01097.x/full Paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity at recommended dosage] - The Journal of Internal Medicine, Janurary 24, 2003</ref>}}


==Social Effects==
==Social Effects==
Line 134: Line 113:
===Irritability===
===Irritability===


The following study in [[Morocco]] found that irritability increased during Ramadan:
The following study in Morocco found that irritability increased during Ramadan:


{{Quote||
{{Quote||
Line 162: Line 141:


{{Quote||The Passports Department in Makkah arrested over 1,800 persons suspected of pickpocketing and stealing from pilgrims and visitors during the [2011] Umrah and Ramadan seasons ... Hussein stated that the advancement in technology, particularly facial recognition, reduced crimes tremendously in previous years.<ref>[http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article499367.ece 1,800 nabbed for thefts in Ramadan] - Arab News, September 9, 2011</ref>}}
{{Quote||The Passports Department in Makkah arrested over 1,800 persons suspected of pickpocketing and stealing from pilgrims and visitors during the [2011] Umrah and Ramadan seasons ... Hussein stated that the advancement in technology, particularly facial recognition, reduced crimes tremendously in previous years.<ref>[http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article499367.ece 1,800 nabbed for thefts in Ramadan] - Arab News, September 9, 2011</ref>}}
====Child Trafficking====
{{Quote||With the advent of Ramadan in just a few days, child trafficking, a trade that sometimes goes unpunished in Yemen, is expected to increase as food prices rise and parents struggle to provide for their children.
"I think during Ramadan prices rise and there is a lapse of security along the borders," Coordinator of Child Parliament Om Khalthoum said.
Almost 1,500 Yemeni children were saved by child protection centers from exploitation, abuse and deprivation that come at the hands of their traffickers or smugglers, according to Naseem Ur-Rahman of UNICEF. Yemeni children, primarily boys, are trafficked into Saudi Arabia for exploitation as beggars, street vendors and unskilled laborers.
While there are no statistics that determine how many children are trafficked on an annual basis, authorities do know that during the month of Ramadan the numbers rise. "One of the main problems is that there is a lack of reliable data," Ur-Rahman said.<ref>Salma Ismail - [http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.yementimes.com%2FDefaultDET.aspx%3Fi%3D1287%26p%3Dlocal%26a%3D1&date=2011-04-04 <!-- http://www.yementimes.com/DefaultDET.aspx?i=1287&p=local&a=1 -->Yemen child trafficking to increase in Ramadan] - Yemen Times, August 20, 2009</ref>}}


===Emergency Services===
===Emergency Services===
Line 181: Line 150:
{{Quote||2=The results are shown in Table 1. This demonstrates a '''significant rise in the number of Muslims attending during Ramadan''' compared to non-Muslims, with the proportion of Muslims rising from 3.63% of total attendances in the periods before and after Ramadan to 5.11% during Ramadan (P=0.0024). '''The rise in non accident-related attendances among Muslims was also significant''' when compared to non-Muslims (P=0.027) [...]<ref>[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1294766/ The effect of the fast of Ramadan on accident and emergency attendances] (J R Soc Med. 1994 September; 87(9): 517–518.)</ref>}}
{{Quote||2=The results are shown in Table 1. This demonstrates a '''significant rise in the number of Muslims attending during Ramadan''' compared to non-Muslims, with the proportion of Muslims rising from 3.63% of total attendances in the periods before and after Ramadan to 5.11% during Ramadan (P=0.0024). '''The rise in non accident-related attendances among Muslims was also significant''' when compared to non-Muslims (P=0.027) [...]<ref>[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1294766/ The effect of the fast of Ramadan on accident and emergency attendances] (J R Soc Med. 1994 September; 87(9): 517–518.)</ref>}}


An increase in road traffic accidents in the [[United Arab Emirates]] during Ramadan was reported.<ref>Bener, A., Absood, G. H., Achan, N. V., & Sankaran-Kutty, M. (1992). Road traffic injuries in Al-Ain City, United Arab Emirates. The Journal of the Royal Society of Health, 112, 273-276.</ref> Taking this into consideration, you would expect Emergency Services in Muslim majority nations to work twice as hard during this period. Unfortunately, this is not the case.
An increase in road traffic accidents in the United Arab Emirates during Ramadan was reported.<ref>Bener, A., Absood, G. H., Achan, N. V., & Sankaran-Kutty, M. (1992). Road traffic injuries in Al-Ain City, United Arab Emirates. The Journal of the Royal Society of Health, 112, 273-276.</ref> Taking this into consideration, you would expect Emergency Services in Muslim majority nations to work twice as hard during this period. Unfortunately, this is not the case.


====Disruption of Services====
====Disruption of Services====
Lightyears
Editors, em-bypass-2, Reviewers, rollback, Administrators
2,979

edits

Retrieved from "http://wikiislamica.net/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/130399...138989"