Journal of Nutrition, Fasting and Health
Volume:5 Issue: 2, Spring 2017

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of fasting in Ramadan on visfatin, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and adiponectin level in human.
Thirty four men aged 24 to 55 years old were selected from those people who were willing to fast in Ramadan. The blood sample was obtained from each participant in fasting state at the beginning and the end of study to determine serum visfatin, adiponectin and TNF-α. Paired T test was used to identify differences between beginning and the end of the study in serum visfatin, adiponectin and TNF-α.
Results showed a significant decrease in Visfatin after study. There were no significant changes in adiponectin and TNF-α during Ramadan fasting.
It is concluded that fasting in Ramadan is beneficial to health and can ameliorate some inflammatory markers in fasting individuals.

Fasting during the month of Ramadan is obligatory for healthy Muslims after the age of puberty. This paper was aimed to compare the changes in hematological and biochemical parameters before and after Ramadan.
This prospective study was performed one week before and one week after the month of Ramadan in 2015. Eighty-nine subjects (51males and 38 females) with a mean age of 34.52±9.05 were enrolled in this study. Patients with systemic disorder, special drug using, and/or a history of previous surgery were excluded. Blood samples were taken from all participants before and after Ramadan to evaluate the effects of fasting on hematological-biochemical factors. Hematological and biochemical measurements were performed on the blood samples using a KX-21N cell counter (Kobe, Japan) and Hitachi 717 analyzer (Roche, Japan), respectively.
Hematocrit, red blood cell (RBC) and Mean Red Cell Volume (MCV) decreased after Ramadan fasting (P= 0.002, P= 0.030 and P= 0.005, respectively), however mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) increased (P=0.004, P=0.002, respectively). On the other hand, no changes were seen in hemoglobin, platelets and white blood cell (WBC) after Ramadan (P=0.900, P=0.923, P=0.282, P=0.300, respectively).
In this study, fasting led to decrease in uric acid, creatinine, selenium, sodium and potassium (P=0.00, P=0.015, P=0.021, 0.007 and 0.028, respectively), however, phosphor serum increased after fasting period (P=0.032). Moreover, no changes were seen in other biochemical parameters including fast blood sugar (FBS), urea, calcium, iron, zinc, and albumin (P= 0.54, P=0.300, P=0.054, P=0.372, P=0.170, and P=0.400, respectively).
This study on healthy subjects suggests that fasting could affect some hematological-biochemical parameters but not all of them. Also, these changes in hematological-biochemical parameters were within the normal range and Ramadan fasting seems to be safe for healthy subjects.

The effects of Ramadan observance and any associated dietary restriction upon oxidative stress are not well known. The topic has thus been examined in a brief systematic review of available literature concerning non-athletic but otherwise healthy subjects, patients with selected clinical conditions, and in athletes.
Ovid/Medline and Google searches were supplemented by a perusal of reference lists in papers thus identified.
Ramadan observance and associated dietary restrictions are generally associated with a decrease of body mass in non-athletic adults, and in patients with conditions such as obesity, metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus and hypertension. During Ramadan, measures of oxidative stress (particularly malondialdehyde and F2 isoprostanes) are consistently decreased, antioxidant status (particularly levels of peroxidases, uric acid and reduced glutathione) are enhanced and inflammatory reactions (particularly c-reactive protein, IL-6 and TNF-a) are decreased in association with decreases in body mass. Perhaps because of lower initial body weights and greater dietary control during Ramadan, changes of oxidant status are more variable in athletes; in 3 of 7 studies, Ramadan observance had little effect on oxidant status, and in 2 reports there was some deterioration. In 3 of 4 studies where athletes underwent short-term dieting, there was also no improvement of antioxidant status.
Ramadan observance and any associated dieting reduce oxidative stress in non-athletic individuals, apparently in association with decreases of body mass. In athletes, oxidant levels are generally unchanged during Ramadan, and if food intake is maintained they may even increase. More information is needed upon possible adverse health consequences, but chronic risks are probably small because any changes are limited to one month per year.

Osteoporosis is considered as one of the most common diseases that women face after their menopause and is caused by both genetic and environmental factors. Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) gene is one of the important genetic factors contributing in osteoporosis which has a direct and very important relationship with fasting. Fasting is one of the alternatives proved to reduce the DPP-4 level and activate the Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors and so, prevent osteoporosis. On the other hand, the circadian rhythm has a direct relationship with osteoporosis. This has been found by the biochemical markers, indicating that fasting at certain hours of the day, especially during those hours of the day which are recommended as part of the Muslim tradition, is very effective in reducing the effects of osteoporosis.

Annually, millions of Muslims all over the world observe the fasting rules based on its measures; this highlights the importance of studies in this field as a worthwhile model for intermittent fasting. It is obvious that changes in lifestyle over fasting have outstanding effects on physiological parameters. The current study was carried out to investigate the IOP and serum electrolytes as two important factors that are influenced by human lifestyle.
Eighty-nine fasting and healthy participants including men and women with mean age of 34.97 were included in our study based on the inclusion and exclusion parameters. During this project, Ramadan coincided with the summer (between June and July 2015). All participants were monitored by an expert examiner and blood samples were collected and IOP was measured by tonometer (Topcon, 1-75, Hasunuma-cho, Itabashi-KU, Tokyo, Japan 2014). The participants were examined one week before and one week after Ramadan.
There was a significant reduction in physiological IOP in healthy people after Ramadan. In line with this, the serum electrolytes were altered by fasting so that Na, K, Se experienced a significant decrease while serum phosphorous increased (P Prolonged intermittent fasting in Ramadan changed IOP and serum electrolytes in healthy people within a normal range.

The phrase " va man kan marizan " on the fasting of the holy month of Ramadan in the verse of 185 of the Quranic Surah, followed by the phrase "Yaridullah Bekem Alisar va Yerido bekom alosr", is undoubtedly a major task of medical scientific assemblies. To conduct comprehensive and evidence-based studies, firstly, should determine the course of fasting in patients, and, second, patients who may be able to fast, prepare for Ramadan, and support and monitor them during the fasting month of Ramadan. This important issue for diabetics is of particular importance due to epidemiological and demographic issues.

Fasting is one of Islamic Five Pillars and it is an Islamic obligations. Even though fasting during Ramadan month is an obligatory, if this obligatory has dangerous effects on the human health, it is forbidden. In On the other hand, atypical levels of thyroid hormones can create serious problems for human body and normal range of these hormones is indicative of good thyroid function. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of fasting during Ramadan on the thyroid hormones levels. With regards to studied results, it can be stated that fasting in Ramadan has not undesirable effects on thyroid hormones, but for people with thyroid diseases like hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism, who are intending to fast during Ramadan, it was recommended that before and during fasting, they consult with endocrinologist.It should be noted that this matter needs to have multiple researches, thus, it was recommended to conduct more study, in order to obtain the comprehensive outcomes.

Bread as the staple food of the most Muslims can be considered as a component with a remarkable effect on satiety and appetite during Ramadan fasting. This study concerns about recent advances in investigating the effect of different types of breads and enrichments on satiety and appetite.
There was a review of articles considering the effect of varieties bread types and the enriched ones on satiety and appetite and particularly during fasting in databases such as ISI, PubMed and Google Scholar.
Different bread types with lower glycemic index are recommended during Ramadan fasting particularly in sahur meal due to better glycemic control and satiety improvement. Fermentable diatey fibers such as arabinoxylans, β-glucan, fructans, and resistant starch can influence appetite through being fermented in the colon by saccharolytic bacteria and gastrointestinal tract releasing hormones changes. Consumption of wholemeal bread results in better moderation of satiety and hunger sensation. Barley, oat and rye breads demonstrate better improvement of satiety than white wheat bread due to higher fiber content, probiotic ingredients and steadier glycemia. Breads rich in proteins also result in delaying gastric emptying, steadier insulin levels and therefore, more satiety. Beta-glucans enrichment shows similar significant results on reduction of hunger and increase of satiety by exerting the effect on appetite and satiety regulating hormones such as insulin, ghrelin and PYY. Fiber enrichment and probiotics (FOS/inulin) could also be considered.
During Ramadan fasting, barley bread, oat bread and wholegrain wheat bread could be suggested as the preferred bread contained in the main meals for improvement of satiety and reduction of hunger sensation.