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The
Spiritual and Health Benefits of Ramadan Fasting
By
Shahid
Athar, M.D.
Muslims all over the world will start this month with fasting from
dawn to dusk daily for 30 days as ordained in Quran.
"O
you who believe fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to
those before you so that you can learn Taqwa" (Quran 2:183)
The
Arabic word Taqwa is translated in many ways including God
consciousness, God fearing, piety, and self restraining. Thus we are
asked to fast daily for one month from dawn to dusk and avoid food,
water, sex and vulgar talk during that period.
But
why do we need to fast? It is our experience that temptations and
ways of the world tend to spoil our purity and austerity. Thus we
indulge in food all of the time, snacking and nibbling the whole
day, heading to obesity. We drink too much coffee, or tea, or
carbonated drinks. Some sexaholics can not stay away from sex unless
they do it at least once or more a day. When we argue, we leave our
decency aside and resort to vulgar talk and even physical fighting.
Now
when one is fasting, he or she cannot do all of that. When he looks
at the mouth watering food, he cannot even taste it and he has to
give up snacking and nibbling as well as smoking cigarettes if he
does. No constant coffee, tea or Coke drinking either. Sexual
passions have to be curtailed and when he is provoked to fight, he
says " I am fasting that I cannot respond to your
provocation". To achieve God consciousness or God nearness, a
better word, we are advised to do additional prayer and read the
Quran.
Medical
benefits of Ramadan Muslims do not fast because of medical benefits
which are of a secondary nature. Fasting has been used by patients
for weight management, to rest the digestive tract and for lowering
lipids. There are many adverse effects of total fasting as well as
of crash diets. Islamic fasting is different from such diet plans
because in Ramadan fasting, there is no malnutrition or inadequate
calorie intake. The calorie intake of Muslims during Ramadan is at
or slightly below the nutritional requirement guidelines. In
addition, the fasting in Ramadan is voluntarily taken and is not a
prescribed imposition from the physician.
Ramadan
is a month of self-regulation and self training, with the hope that
this training will last beyond the end of Ramadan. If the lessons
learned during Ramadan, whether in terms of dietary intake or
righteousness, are carried on after Ramadan, there effects will be
long lasting. Moreover, the type of food taken during Ramadan does
not have any selective criteria of crash diets such as those which
are protein only or fruit only type diets. Everything that is
permissible is taken in moderate quantities.
The
difference between Ramadan and total fasting is the timing of the
food; during Ramadan, we basically miss lunch and take an early
breakfast and do not eat until dusk. Abstinence from water for 8 to
10 hours is not necessarily bad for health and in fact, it causes
concentration of all fluids within the body, producing slight
dehydration. The body has its own water conservation mechanism; in
fact, it has been shown that slight dehydration and water
conservation, at least in plant life, improve their longevity.
The
physiological effect of fasting includes lowering of blood sugar,
lowering of cholesterol and lowering of the systolic blood pressure.
In fact, Ramadan fasting would be an ideal recommendation for the
treatment of mild to moderate, stable, non-insulin diabetes,
obesity, and essential hypertension. In 1994 the first International
Congress on "Health and Ramadan", held in Casablanca,
entered 50 extensive studies on the medical ethics of fasting. While
improvement in many medical conditions was noted; however, in no way
did fasting worsen any patients' health or their baseline medical
condition. On the other hand, patients who are suffering from sever
diseases, whether type I diabetes or coronary artery disease, kidney
stones, etc., are exempt from fasting and should not be allowed to
fast.
There
are psychological effects of fasting as well. There is a peace and
tranquility for those who fast during the month of Ramadan. Personal
hostility is at a minimum, and the crime rate decreases. Muslims
take advice from the Prophet who said, "If one slanders you or
aggresses against you, say I am fasting." This psychological
improvement could be related to better stabilization of blood
glucose during fasting as hypoglycemia after eating, aggravates
behavior changes. There is a beneficial effect of extra prayer at
night. This not only helps with better utilization of food but also
helps in energy output. There are 10 extra calories output for each
unit of the prayer. Again, we do not do prayers for exercise, but a
mild movement of the joints with extra calorie utilization is a
better form of exercise. Similarly, recitation of the Quran not only
produces a tranquility of heart and mind, but improves the memory.
One
of the odd nights in the last 10 days of Ramadan is called the night
of power when angels descend down, and take the prayer of worship to
God for acceptance.
Fasting
is a special act of worship which is only between humans and God
since no one else knows for sure if this person is actually fasting.
Thus God says in hadith qudsi that "Fasting is for Me and I
only will reward it". In another hadith, the Prophet Mohammad
(peace be upon him) has said "If one does not give up
falsehoods in words and actions, God has no need of him giving up
food and drink".
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