Do Ramadan fasting restrictions alter eating behaviours?

Abstract

During Ramadan month, Muslims should refrain from drinking, eating and smoking from dawn to sunset. Ramadan fasting can be considered as a kind of dietary restriction. Eating restriction is a risk factor for later development of eating disorders. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether Ramadan fasting changes the eating behaviours of young people, especially girls who are known as the most vulnerable group for eating disorders. Our sample consisted of 79 healthy volunteers from a high school (63 females; mean age = 16.29; 16 males; mean age = 16.31) who fasted during the Ramadan month. No statistically significant differences were found between the scores of EAT (Eating Attitude Test) and BITE (Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh) which were administered within the weeks before and after Ramadan. According to our results Ramadan fasting restrictions do not seem to change the eating behaviours of young girls and boys.

Ramadan fasting alters food patterns, dietary diversity and body weight among Ghanaian adolescents

“…Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar and healthy adolescent and adult Muslims refrain from eating or drinking from dawn to dusk for 29 or 30 days [ 1 ]. During Ramadan, Muslims fast for an average period of 12 h during the day with a common practice of consuming one large meal after dusk and a lighter meal before dawn [ 2 ].…”

A Prospective Study of the Physiological and Neurobehavioral Effects of Ramadan Fasting in Preteen and Teenage Boys

“…14 Knowledge about the effects of Ramadan fasting on the health of young children is poor, mainly because of a scarcity of scientific research in this area. 15,16 A few studies have investigated the effects of Ramadan fasting in children, although they have mainly focused on sports-specific outcomes. [17][18][19] Because children are actively growing, their nutritional requirements and energy expenditures are quite different from those of adults.…”

Fasting during ramadan: A religious factor as a possible trigger or exacerbator for eating disorders in adolescents

“…Limitations of the study would be a small sample size (63 female and 16 male), and only that 10th graders were evaluated. 11 A similar study from the same group evaluated the effect of Ramadan on eating behavior in obese women and again found that fasting did not seem to have an effect on eating attitudes. 12 It is important to state that we acknowledge and agree with the results of these two studies such that, clinically significant effects on eating behavior in the general population may not be observed solely as a result of Ramadan.…”

“…Test results before and after were not found to be statistically different and they concluded that observance of Ramadan did not seem to have impact on eating behavior of adolescents. Limitations of the study would be a small sample size (63 female and 16 male), and only that 10th graders were evaluated . A similar study from the same group evaluated the effect of Ramadan on eating behavior in obese women and again found that fasting did not seem to have an effect on eating attitudes .…”