Tuesday, September 26, 2006

HEALTH GUIDELINES FOR RAMADAN

Awameh, a famous Syrian sweet that is increasingly demanded by Syrians during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, is sold in a shop in Damascus Monday, Sept. 25, 2006. During Ramadan Muslims abstain from food, drink and sex from dawn to dusk. (AP Photo/ Bassem Tellawi)


I love this article, every Ramadhan I have to read it over so I can balance out my Suhoor and Iftar. I’m sure many of you have probably read it already, it’s on many different sites on the net, Sunnipath and other Q&A sites also have it.

NOTE: You should read it especially if you get stomach problems after Suhoor/Iftar


HEALTH GUIDELINES FOR RAMADAN

This article provides useful advice on how to avoid some common problems encountered in Ramadhan. If followed, it would enable one to fast comfortably and enjoy fully the spiritual benefits of Ramadhan.

During the holy month of Ramadhan, our diet should not differ very much from our normal diet and should be as simple as possible. The diet should be such that we maintain our normal weight, neither losing nor gaining. However, if one is over-weight, Ramadhan is an ideal time to normalise one's weight.

In view of the long hours of fasting, we should consume slow digesting foods including fibre containing-foods rather than fast-digesting foods. Slow digesting foods last up to 8 hours, while fast-digesting foods last for only 3 to 4 hours.

Slow-digesting foods are foods that contain grains and seeds like barley, wheat, oats, millet, semolina, beans, lentils, wholemeal flour, unpolished rice, etc. (called complex carbohydrates).
Fast-burning foods are foods that contain sugar, white flour, etc. (called refined carbohydrates).
Fibre-containing foods are bran-containing foods, whole wheat, grains and seeds, vegetables like green beans, peas, sem (papry), marrow, mealies, spinach, and other herbs like methie, the leaves of beetroot (iron-rich), fruit with skin, dried fruit especially dried apricots, figs and prunes, almonds, etc.

The foods eaten should be well-balanced, containing foods from each food group, i.e. fruits, vegetables, meat/chicken/fish, bread/cereals and dairy products. Fried foods are unhealthy and should be limited. They cause indigestion, heart-burn, and weight problems.

AVOID

  • Fried and fatty foods.
  • Foods containing too much sugar.
  • Over-eating especially at sehri.
  • Too much tea at sehri. Tea makes you pass more urine taking with it valuable mineral salts that your body would need during the day.
  • Smoking cigarettes. If you cannot give up smoking, cut down gradually starting a few weeks before Ramadhan. Smoking is unhealthy and one should stop completely.

EAT
  • Complex carbohydrates at sehri so that the food lasts longer making you less hungry.
  • Haleem is an excellent source of protein and is a slow-burning food.
  • Dates are excellent source of sugar, fibre, carbohydrates, potassium and magnesium.
  • Almonds are rich in protein and fibre with less fat.
  • Bananas are a good source of potassium, magnesium and carbohydrates.
DRINK
  • As much water or fruit juices as possible between iftar and bedtime so that your body may adjust fluid levels in time.
CONSTIPATION
Constipation can cause piles (haemorroids), fissures (painful cracks in anal canal) and indigestion with a bloated feeling.

Causes: Too much refined foods, too little water and not enough fibre in the diet.

Remedy: Avoid excessive refined foods, increase water intake, use bran in baking, brown flour when making roti.

INDIGESTION AND WIND

Causes: Over-eating. Too much fried and fatty foods, spicy foods, and foods that produce wind e.g. eggs, cabbage, lentils, carbonated drinks like Cola also produce gas.

Remedy
: Do not over-eat, drink fruit juices or better still drink water. Avoid fried foods, add ajmor to wind-producing foods.

LETHARGY ('low blood pressure')

Excessive sweating, weakness, tiredness, lack of energy, dizziness, especially on getting up from sitting position, pale appearance and feeling faint are symptoms associated with "low blood pressure". This tends to occur towards the afternoon.

Causes: Too little fluid intake, decreased salt intake.

Remedy: Keep cool, increase fluid and salt intake.

Caution:
Low blood pressure should be confirmed by taking a blood pressure reading when symptoms are present. Persons with high blood pressure may need their medication adjusted during Ramadhan. They should consult their doctor.

HEADACHE

Causes: Caffeine and tobacco-withdrawal, doing too much in one day, lack of sleep, hunger usually occur as the day goes by and worsens at the end of the day. When associated with "low blood pressure", the headache can be quite severe and can also cause nausea before Iftar.

Remedy: Cut down caffeine and tobacco slowly starting a week or two before Ramadhan. Herbal and caffeine-free teas may be substituted. Reorganise your schedule during the Ramadan so as to have adequate sleep.

LOW BLOOD SUGAR

Weakness, dizziness, tiredness, poor concentration, perspiring easily, feeling shaky (tremor), unable to perform physical activities, headache, palpitations are symptoms of low blood sugar.

Causes in non-diabetics: Having too much sugar i.e. refined carbohydrates especially at suhur (sehri). The body produces too much insulin causing the blood glucose to drop.

Remedy: Eat something at sehri and limit sugar-containing foods and drinks.

Caution: Diabetics may need to adjust their medication in Ramadan, consult your doctor.

MUSCLE CRAMPS

Causes: Inadequate intake of calcium, magnesium and potassium foods.

Remedy: Eat foods rich in the above minerals e.g. vegetables, fruit, dairy products, meat and dates.

Caution: Those on high blood pressure medication and with kidney stone problems should consult their doctor.

PEPTIC ULCERS, HEART BURN, GASTRITIS AND HIATUS HERNIA

Increased acid levels in the empty stomach in Ramadhan aggravate the above conditions. It presents as a burning feeling in the stomach area under the ribs and can extend upto the throat. Spicy foods, coffee, and Cola drinks worsen these conditions.

Medications are available to control acid levels in the stomach. People with proven peptic ulcers and hiatus hernia should consult their doctor well before Ramadhan.

KIDNEY STONES

Kidney stones may occur in people who have less liquids to drink. Therefore, it is essential to drink extra liquids so as to prevent stone formation.

JOINT PAINS


Causes: During Ramadhan, when extra salah are performed the pressure on the knee joints increases. In the elderly and those with arthritis this may result in pain, stiffness, swelling and discomfort.

Remedy:
Lose weight so that the knees do not have to carry any extra load. Exercise the lower limbs before Ramadhan so that they can be prepared for the additional strain. Being physically fit allows greater fulfilment, thus enabling one to be able to perform salah with ease.


Dr. Farouk Haffejee Islamic Medical Association of South Africa - Durban

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

hey salam
well i have no life so im commenting =) ..lol..juss kiddin..
umm..a very informative post..i enjoyed it [ok ..to be honest i dint read ALL of it..ok..fine..NONE of it..juss teh beginning lines]..but i did get the message: DOTN EAT NON-HEALTHY STUFF!?lol
k take caree
salaam
luv yaa <3,
Naeema.K

Umm Haniah said...

aha, oh don't worry, if you don't get umm washroom problems..after ifta/suhoor your all good!

Umm Haniah said...

hey, does the audio work when you come on? It's Zain Bhikha's nasheed, Mountains of Makkah (voice only).

Anonymous said...

Slmz,
No, the audio ain't working.
Slmz

Anonymous said...

Salaamz,
Dese r very helpful indeed. Jazakillah. Rememebr me in ur duaas
Zainab(de french 1)

Umm Haniah said...

Anonymous- ah great...I'll have to find other codes... JazakAllahu Khair anyways :)

Zainab- wa eeyakum. And remember me in your prayers as well :)

Anonymous said...

Good luck finding it(the code or w/e)...I wish I could help but I have no clue as to how this works...sorry. By the way, I really like yur blogs and your sister's too. I like how she adds that dramatic flair to it. LOL ok slmz and hope you find what you are looking for.

Umm Haniah said...

Oh it's ok, I'll figure it out sooner or later inshaAllah.

And my sister...let's just say she's a very dramatic person. For example (She's going to kill me when she reads this) she has a habit of saying, "YOU'RE WASTING MY LIFE!!!" To which I would reply, "You're wasting my sanity." Aaand she just loves saying random things out of NO WHERE. Another example, out of no where she'd say "I want to go to Jamaica" or when my mum calls from outside, she'd say, "Oh by the way, we're (she and I) not going to be home later on, we're leaving it a bit to the airport."

My mum, "WHAT?! WHY?!?!? Going where?!?!?"

My sister, "Oh didn't we tell you, sumaiya has money left and we're buying a ticket to go to Jamaica!"

She's a strange person...





(now I'll just wait till she reads this and then she'll probably reveal something about me....how nice)

Anonymous said...

haha lol..so jkzz..
noo i cant hear the nasheed as well =(..
it wuz fine till yest. or day b4 ..
newayz..im outt
tc
-naeema

Umm Haniah said...

hmmm...

believeress said...

Hi. You're dead.

Btw..I would never reveal anything about you, and yes that includes you trying to talk to spiders, and doing funky moves around the house, and talking like a chipmunk at times, and--- oh oops. hehehe

Anonymous said...

salamz, I'm not going to apologize because I'm not sorry at all for my comment causing this revelation among sisters(Jamaica???n talking to spiders???) Now do me a favour, believeress, and don't kill your sis(yet)I'm enjoying her posts. LOL and if you do leave for Jamaica or wherever across the world, please keep posting. Alritey then, salamz n inshaallah you'll get that nasheed to work soon, Of Earth.(Zain is great, mashaallah)

Umm Haniah said...

wa alaykum salam

hehe yeah...spiders and chipmunks....

lol well I'm glad you like the blog, alhamdulillah to that. :D

believeress said...

Anonymous: Wa alaikumu salaam. Hahaha, I suppose I'll have to spare her now eh :p

Anonymous said...

salaamz, Of Earth, you're link is working alhamdulilah. Beautiful mashaallah!