Posts Tagged ‘ Ramadan ’

Guest post: Withholding food and water from children for 15 hours a day

Jun 11th, 2016 11:26 am | By

Originally a comment by Theo Bromine on Mubarak dehydration month.

I was wondering about the rules for kids, and found the following:

1. Children before the age of seven should be encouraged to fast (without fasting the full day) and to love these acts of worship. They can pretend what it is like to fast for an hour, for example.

2. After seven, it is recommended for the child to fast, but not necessarily for the full day nor everyday. The emphasis on fasting should be increased until the child reaches ten.

3. At ten, the child should be expected to fast.

Other sites quoted scholars saying that a child over 10 “should be made to fast and … Read the rest



Happy fast-defiance!

Jun 10th, 2016 11:04 am | By

Maryam has plans for this matter of forced fasting (and deyhdrating) in Ramadan:

24 JUNE 2016: FAST DEFYING PROTEST DURING RAMADAN

On 24 June, from 17:00-19:00 hours, we will be organising an “eat-in” at the Saudi and Iranian embassies in London in solidarity with those defying fasting rules during Ramadan.

This is hugely important given that there are many people across the globe who are arrested, beaten and fined for eating during the month; many others are pressured into fasting, including in Europe. Join us at the ‘eat-in’ if you can.

Alternately, you can upload photos of yourself eating during fasting times or holding signs with messages of solidarity using hashtag: #IWillNotFast #لن_اص= م #روزه خوارى #Ramadan until the= end

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Suck it up

Jun 9th, 2016 4:56 pm | By

In Pakistan and a number of other countries, it’s against the law to drink and eat in public (and “in public” means where anyone can see and report you, so I suspect it means at home too if you have windows). IBTimes reported last June:

The death toll from a weeklong heat wave in Karachi, Pakistan, has risen to 1,233, officials told the Associated Press Saturday. Some 65,000 people flooded the city’s hospitals to be treated for heat stroke, and about 1,900 patients were still receiving medical care as the country began to cool off.

Pakistan’s laws forbid people [to drink] and [eat] in public in daylight during Ramadan. As the heat wave has continued — and worsened —

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The hot month

Jun 9th, 2016 4:46 pm | By

I’ve heard from a couple of friends of Muslim background who say the dehydration issue is indeed a problem, and generally ignored.

Deutsche Welle reported a year ago:

More than 1,100 people have already died of dehydration in Pakistan’s scorching temperatures. The risk is made worse because devout Muslims don’t eat or drink anything between sunrise and sunset during Ramadan.

It’s hot in Pakistan. Over the last few days, it’s been as hot as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in the shade and thousands of people are being treated in hospitals. Most of the more than 1,100 casualties have been recorded in the port city of Karachi, Pakistani health authorities report. Military and civilian aid organizations have set

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If you are unable to stand up due to dizziness

Jul 13th, 2014 5:42 pm | By

Another NHS page on how to deal with the health risks of Ramadan; this one is much more forthright, so that’s good.

Some common health complications that can arise from fasting and how to prevent and deal with them.

The following advice has been provided following consultation with medical experts and Islamic scholars.

Um…they’re the Health Service; they shouldn’t be consulting religious “scholars” on health issues.

They start with heartburn. They have some suggestions for how to minimize it,

Then they tackle diabetes. They say people who take insulin regularly shouldn’t fast at all; it’s too risky.

People who have their diabetes under control using tablets should seek careful advice from their GP before starting a fast.

Regular self-monitoring of

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(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)



Starving and dehydration can be good for you!

Jul 13th, 2014 4:20 pm | By

The NHS has advice on Ramadan fasting and health.

Fasting during the month of Ramadan can be good for your health if it’s done correctly.

When the body is starved of food, it starts to burn fat so that it can make energy. This can lead to weight loss. However, if you fast for too long your body will eventually start breaking down muscle protein for energy, which is unhealthy.

Dr Razeen Mahroof, an anaesthetist from Oxford, says there’s a strong relationship between diet and health.

“Ramadan isn’t always thought of as being an opportunity to lose weight because the spiritual aspect is emphasised more generally than the health aspect,” he says. “However, it’s a great chance to get

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(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)



The sickness unto death

Jul 22nd, 2012 2:55 pm | By

More on the joys of Ramadan.

For most of Australia’s 496,000 Muslims, the start of Ramadan today is a holy  month of fasting by day and feasting by night. But for the estimated 22,000  Australian Muslims with diabetes, it can be a time of fluctuations in blood  sugar levels that can be dangerous, even deadly.

So they should just not do it.

But no one should do it – it’s not healthy for anyone. Fasting and bingeing is a really terrible way to eat. Predators in the wild have to do that because that’s how it is (and lots of them starve to death), but it’s not something to do as a religious offering.

”I’ve seen people die one

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(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)