Ramadan and chronic diseases: essential tips for healthy fasting
Fasting during the month of Ramadan represents a challenge for people with chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, pressure, etc., and opens the door to many questions regarding the ability of cancer patients to fast and the impact of this on their treatment journey or not. This comes as a result of the change that the month of fasting imposes on people’s daily habits regarding food and drink consumption, as well as their physical activity.
In an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, a cardiothoracic surgeon and editor-in-chief explains Your health siteDr. Amer Sheikhoni, The Effect of Fasting on People with Chronic Diseases, Especially Diabetes and Heart Disease.
Two beliefs prevail regarding the relationship of diabetics to the month of Ramadan. While some believe that it is necessary to avoid fasting, others believe that their disease does not affect or interfere with the performance of this religious obligation. As for Dr. Sheikhouni, he believes that most diabetics who have a “controlled sugar level” can fast, and that this may be more beneficial to their health than avoiding it. Sheikhouni points out that what is meant by a controlled sugar level is that it remains stable, and that its level in the blood is not subject to severe fluctuations, up or down. But, at the same time, it warns that there are certain cases with which it is recommended to break the fast.
When are diabetics advised not to fast?
- When the patient has type 1 diabetes (youthful diabetes), as in these cases it is difficult to control the sugar level.
- When he has type 2 diabetes, that is, uncontrolled.
- When he has controlled diabetes, but he has been exposed to a health problem, such as a runny nose or infections.
Sheikhouni also provides instructions that help diabetics prepare themselves for fasting, and he believes that every diabetic patient should consult his attending physician before Ramadan regarding the possibility of performing the obligation of fasting or not. The patient must also adhere to the appointments of medicines prescribed by the doctor, especially since their doses may differ during Ramadan from the normal days. In addition, a diabetic patient can fast for several days in the months of Rajab and Sha’ban, as a kind of preparation and test for his body, in preparation for the month of Ramadan.
Sheikhouni gives several tips for diabetics to make their fasting safe and sound.
Tips for safe and healthy fasting for diabetics
- Eat moderate amounts of food, especially when breaking the fast, because the possibility of high sugar becomes greater if the fasting person overeats during breaking the fast.
- Eat the pre-dawn meal, in addition to one or two snacks between iftar and suhoor. Small and frequent meals are better than just a large meal, in order to avoid a drop in blood sugar as a result of stopping eating, which usually occurs between noon and before sunset.
- Avoid drinks and sweets that abound in Ramadan, especially drinks that contain large amounts of sugar, such as juices, and those that contain large amounts of caffeine, such as coffee, tea, and energy drinks.
- Do not overeat dates, as many people have the wrong idea that dates are harmless and do not raise the level of sugar in the blood, because they contain “natural sugar”, but this is not accurate.
- Keep checking your glucose levels in the morning and two hours before and following Iftar, especially in the early days of Ramadan.
- In the event that a diabetic patient feels tired, especially in the event of a low sugar level, he must break his fast, in order to avoid serious health complications.
As for heart patients, fasting is considered a kind of “exercise for the heart”. The process of eating and digesting food is a kind of effort on the heart, while abstaining from eating during fasting is like a period of rest.
Who are heart patients who should not fast?
According to Sheikhoni, this category includes any patient whose condition is medically uncontrolled, such as patients with heart failure and patients with weak heart muscle who need permanent treatment and constant control, so fasting may cause them severe fatigue. Likewise, heart failure patients who usually suffer from shortness of breath, palpitations, fatigue, weakness, and sometimes they have swelling in the lower extremities and excess fluid in the lungs. The third category includes patients who have severe symptoms of heart failure.
However, some people with heart disease and high blood pressure can follow guidelines that make their fasting healthy and without risks. The first is not to overeat at breakfast, especially the one rich in fat because digesting large amounts of fatty food stresses the heart, avoiding drinking excess fluids, and avoiding liquorice.
