nhboy said:
"Jeddah, Asharq Al-Awsat- With the advent of the holy month of Ramadan, it provides interesting fodder to examine the great benefits of this month not only spiritually but also from a health perspective. Regretfully, for some people, Ramadan is a month of excess, consumption and waste.
In 1981, experts estimated that consumption during the month of Ramadan in Egypt, for example, amounts to approximately 20 percent of its annual consumption. This means that Egypt consumes one-fifth of its entire annual consumption in just one month, while the remaining four-fifth are consumed over the rest of the year. This fact applies to most Arab and Islamic countries."
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The Islamic method of "fasting" is a bit different than the type of "fast" which other faiths partake of.
Muslims consider their fast as refraining from food for a period of 12-hour intervals: from just before sunrise to just at the end of sunset. Then, anytime in between, Muslims are able to eat, drink beverages and partake of other prohibited activities that are not allowed during the fasting period of 12 hours.
During Ramadaan, this scenario is repeated daily for the month. Eat as much as you can before sunrise to make it until sunset then eat as much as you can to quell the hunger from the day.
This type of heavy-eating at the beginning of the day and then heavy-eating at the end of the day can certainly play havoc on the body - but that is what Islam considers to be their method of fasting.
In most other faiths, the method of "fasting" is to go without food completely for a full day, or longer as one is able, but the intent of why one is doing it has to be in line with sincere devotion and spiritual commitment to God and not out of obligation or because it is "expected of them".
Whether "fasting" is good for the body again depends on the individual's personal health to begin with. If there are health issues, a fast is not recommended.
No health issues: Ok but with common sense. Normally, the fasting period will allow a cleansing process to take place within the body's digestive system and is said to remove "toxins" from the body. However, it is doubtful that the Islamic method of "fasting" is recommended since the body indulges itself so much in the periods mentioned and the body has no chance of actual "cleansing" as would be the case of going without food for a straight 24 hours.
Interested to see opinions of others in the group.
