Fasting and ramadan according to quran
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There is no "adverse emergency mode" that kicks in.
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Hi progressive 1993,
Yes there is. The body will take its own reflexive measures in adapting to the new conditions.
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6-72 hours after eating
Now, whether you like it or not, you will enter into a state of ketosis should you go without food for six hours or more; this represents the first significant metabolic phase shift as you enter into starvation. At this point, all your glycogen stores will have been exhausted, and your body has no choice but to start hitting the fatty acids for energy. During lipolysis, fatty acids are directly broken down to produce ketone bodies.
Now all this is fine and well except for one very important thing your brain cannot use fatty acids directly as its fuel source. These fats are large and cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. So, for the first 24 to 48 hours without food, your brain will continue to use the remaining glucose stores as fuel, while the rest of the body goes into the ketosis cycle.
Trouble is, the glucose isn't enough; the brain requires about 120 g of glucose per day (the same amount of sugar found in three cans of soda!). At this rate, the brain would starve and die in about three days ? but clearly it does not. This is because your body has evolved a backup plan.
It's at this critical stage when the ketone bodies become all the more critical. Because they're short-chain derivatives of fatty acids, they function as tiny powerpacks that can cross the blood-brain barrier and in turn be used by the brain as an alternative metabolic fuel. Your brain will get about 30% of its energy from ketone bodies on day three, but by day four it will jump to 70%. Moreover, your brain's glucose requirement will drop from 120 g per day to 30 g once the body enters into this phase.
Fascinatingly, humans may be the only species who have brains that don't require the ongoing ingestion of glucose to function. Most animals are forced to break down skeletal muscles at a higher rate. The going theory is that, because we humans are so greatly dependent on our intelligence to survive, we have evolved the capacity to stay cognitively sharp while in the midst of prolonged starvation, thus allowing us to search for food.
Source http//io9.com/5941883/how-your-body-fights-to-keep-you-alive-when-youre-starving
You can wonder what happens to your brain capacity with these new reduced requirements. The body will adapt so that the ability to hunt for prey is enhanced given the circumstances.
And like I said, this is the survival mode that kicks in.
Be well
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Salaam MoF Godsubmitter and everyone,
I agree - the survival mode kicks in, but why do you assume that it is necessarily a bad thing? It is the toughest survival test for the weak and sick body cells. Only the healthiest and youngest cells are able to survive. Also, during the process of burning fat the body produces water, so it is not entirely 'dry' fast, but this type of water is the purest - with no 'extras' that we get from the tap or bottled water.Also, as MoF rigtly mentioned, the senses are sharpened, and also, arguably, the memory is sharpened too, which might remind our ancestors mode of 'remember where the food was'. Also, keep in mind that Quran says that the fasting was prescrbibed to the people before as well. In fact, when we look at many societies, some sort of fasting in one form or the other was present. in the societies with better developed food supplies these fasts were often as a part of religious and spiritual practice. In some others, they were due to some seasonal shortages. Also, there is a reason why in some christian ortodox traditions fasting was taking place in March, at least in Europe. In moderate climate, March was in the rural areas the time of food shortages after the fierce winters, time of hunger before the first, fresh food produce could sprout out in April. Until now in my language we have word for this period 'before-the-new', which is basically connotated with hunger. It would be interesting to also analyze the word 'prescribed' in that verse about fasting and see whether it refers to a kind of 'prescription' that was taken from 'the sky' or a kind of natural occurence. Could I ask you MoF to verify that for me, as my Arabic is not on such a level? Much obliged..
But I definitely agree that the monthly fasting spree followed by night feasts as in case of mainstream Muslim tradition is excessive. My guess is that either 1-2 days every other week or 10 days (I mean fasting from sunrise to sunset, which in Europe is around 12-16 hr) in a row may be just fine. Also, from my own experience, fasting usually contracts my stomac so during the evening supper I am not able to eat more than I could during a proper lunch on a normal day, so if fasting is applied with common sense, it doesnt make you overstuffed. Self control is part of this exercise so overcompensating with feasts overnight defeats the whole purpose.
There is no "adverse emergency mode" that kicks in.
exactly, the 'emergency mode' if you call it so is there to ensure survival, which by definition is a positive process
Thank you so much for this informative answer and I am looking very much forward to your interesting findings about dry fast etc...
Thank you Godsubmitter, glad it is interesting for you and will try to briefly put it down now
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We tend to perceive fasting as a ritual that was prescribed by God in Islam, Christianity and Judaism, but we cannot agree how many days it should last, when it should start and end and importantly, in which month it should actually take place.
While we could agree that each society that upheld fasting was doing it according to their own religious, geographical and climatic considerations, I got into thinking why would Quran specifically recommend fasting in the month of heat (Ramadhan), following the witnessing of a phase of the moon (we will come back later to what phase would make some deeper sense)? Why even bother with this? If self control and attaining closeness to Allah are the only reasons for fasting, couldn't we do it anytime, anyday? There must be something more to that...
Just like understanding the prohibition of eating pork have some physical, genetical and health considerations, I thought that maybe fasting might have more than just self control in mind. I strted to search more on fasting, beyond the mainstream religious prescriptions.
I discovered that so called dry fasting= fasting without food and drinks is increasingly used in alternative medicine as a potent way to boost immunological system, rid the organism of sick cells and detox. One Russian drFilanov is currently organising retreats with dry fasting as a treatment for many ailments.
More on that
http//www.curezone.org/forums/am.asp?i=1913883
'Originally Posted by Dr. Filonov
Dehydration causes competition between healthy cells and pathological organisms for water. It is a real survival-of-the-fittest scenario. Inflammation cannot survive without water. A wet environment is ideal for the proliferation of pathological bacteria, viruses and worms ? water shortage is as devastating as fire for them. All dead or dying tissues will be expelled from the body. A water fast does the same thing but takes much longer to accomplish the goal.What is inflammation? Tissues are swollen with water where infection is having a party. Pathological bacteria and microbes love wet terrain. Dry fasting eliminates inflammation the same way a swamp gets rid of mosquitoes and other insects when it dries up. Microbes are annihilated immediately. The shortage of water is a cleansing drought that is disastrous to the body?s enemies. It is pernicious for pathological bacteria.'
'Something that may not be very well known is that when we fast our body creates water primarily as a byproduct of the fat we are burning. Hydrogen released from the metabolized fat combines with oxygen from air and creates h2o and according to Dr. Filonov, this water is exceedingly, exceedingly pure. I believe i read in Filonov's book that we create about 1 or 1.2 liter of this "metabolic" water each day while fasting.'
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Now that we established fasting is good not only for our soul and mind, but also for purifying our body, what is this hassle about the month, days and starting phase of the moon?
How about if we leave judeo-christians traditions aside and explore what other spiritual traditions have a say on it?
It turns out that in the traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism fasting is also connected with the phases of the moon. Specifically, full moon is considered as the most suitable time for fasting
http//www.budsas.org/ebud/whatbudbeliev/217.htm'Buddhists all over the world have a high regard for full moon days. They also observe certain religious disciplines such as fasting and praying on full moon days. '
'It is believed that the moon, like the other planets, exerts a considerable degree of influence on human beings. It has been observed that people suffering from mental ailments invariably have their passions and emotional feelings affected during full moon days. The word 'lunatic' derived from the word 'lunar' (or moon) is most significant and indicates very clearly the influence of the moon on human life. Some people, suffering from various forms of illness invariably find their sickness aggravated during such periods. Researchers have found that certain phases of the moon not only affect humans and animals, but also influence plant life and other elements. Low-tides and high-tides are a direct result of the overpowering influence of the moon.'
'Our human body consists of about seventy percent liquid. It is accepted by physicians that our bodily fluids flow more freely at the time of full moon. People suffering from asthma, bronchitis and even certain skin diseases, find their ailments aggravated under the influence of the moon.'And also
http//www.rosicrucian.com/oph/opheng03.htm'INFLUENCE OF THE MOON IN HEALING
There is a cosmic force that culminates at the New Moon and another at the time when the Moon is full. Everything that is started from the time of the New Moon until the full increases in intensity and finally culminates when the Moon is full. That period marks the flowing out of the life that comes from the Sun and is reflected to us by way of the Moon. This force is a great aid in building up the body and keeping it in a healthy condition. From the Full Moon to the time of the New Moon this great light force becomes darker and darker and everything that has come to a focus begins to fade and gradually dies.
Knowing that the Moon has these two influences according to whether it is increasing or decreasing, we find that in applying treatment notice must be taken of them. All treatments, like drugs, may be divided into two general classes stimulants and sedatives. The first class has a distinctly better effect and is more easily applied during the increase of the Moon, and the other is found much more effectual if used during the Moon's decrease.
The general rule is From the time of the New Moon to that of the Full Moon stimulants produce the greatest effect and sedatives are weakest. Decrease the dose of stimulants and increase that of sedatives. (I think he/she meant from the full moon decrese stimulants and increase sedatives)'
Therefore, according to this line of thought, full moon marks the start of the time where the sedatives are the most effective, which finishes around the time the moon takes the crescent shape. It takes around 10 days for the full moon to achieve the crescent phase. In this time all the body liquids come back to the equilibrium. As we might confidently say, the practice of fasting could be treated as a 'sedative' not only to control our urges but also to balance out an increased activity of the body due to the raising body liquids.
Of course, there are very few scientific experiments made on this topic, however we should not discount the wisdom of the former people, especially those who seemed more connected to the nature than us nowadays. the previous link also notes this
'The hundreds of observations made showed a remarkable fact, namely that all the animals and plants operated on a 28-day cycle. Metabolism which was found to have dropped at the time of the new moon was twenty percent higher at the time of the phase of the full moon. This difference is described as a striking variation.
Once a nurse in Florida told a doctor that she noticed a lot more bleeding occurred when the moon is full. Like all doctors who are skeptical about such beliefs, he laughed at this statement. '
Now, why does it make sense to do the fasting in the month of heat (ramadhan?). I have at least few alternative explanations
- In most geographical locations the hottest month is also the most likely to have clear sky and no clouds - giving the observers more chance to witness full moon with his/her own eyes.
- According to some buddhist traditions, fasting was performed at the transition between the seasons, thus in the time of solstices and equinoxes - to purify the body at the start of each new period.
- My friend suggested that from biological point of view, the physical processes are acceleration in the higher temperature, thus it might render detoxication faster and more effective, but again, we would welcome some determined scientists willing to do some empirical research on this.
So to sum up, according to my current understanding, fasting is prescribed by God not only for our spiritual but also physical and physiological benefit and such benefit of fasting is the best from the full moon on. As for the number of days, I tend to stick to 10 days, however to me there is a reason God didnt specify the number. Maybe He wanted us to reflect on what number of days works for us, given the verse saying that the deen should not be hard on anyone. For me 10 days might not be hard, if for someone it is, they should find out their own right number, perhaps 3 or 2? What is important is finding and following each owns rhythm? Maybe this is why those verses are so ambivalent?
I am really curious what you think about this point of view, and I look forward to any feedback or extra comments, links and resources that might make the matter of fasting more understandable.
Peace
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I did not necessarily say that fasting was a bad thing. Only that continuous fasting would yield adverse health effects for no positive gain. When the dry fasting exceeds a few days it would begin taking its toll on the body, particularly if the subject is an athlete where it is hard to sustain it already as it is, but obviously it is going to cost anyone to be fasting for an extensive period as during the marathon fasts.
I am off bodybuilding for now, but through experience a long fast would be disastrous for the integrity since this hobby is depending highly on nutrition. One would not be hurt by a few days of fasting, but in the long run it is hard for the body to absorb enough nutrition from the consumed food even if you measure it carefully leading to a breakdown of muscle tissue.
Conclusively it can be said that spontaneous fasts of 1-2 days can probably spur the immune system and kickstart the metabolism and improve efficiency.
A few days of fasting can help reduce the desire for sugars which is the enemy number one for any human when speaking of consumables, and legal stuff.
Be well
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Hello,
I think much of that is superstition, but that the moon causes effects on living organisms and other matter is true. If it affects the flow in the body may be because its gravity affects it (gravity which some people deny here on the forum).
There are certain strange things with full moon scenarios. One is that it often feels colder when it is full moon during night, particularly noticeable in the winter. Could be an imagination though.
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I did not necessarily say that fasting was a bad thing. Only that continuous fasting would yield adverse health effects for no positive gain. When the dry fasting exceeds a few days it would begin taking its toll on the body, particularly if the subject is an athlete where it is hard to sustain it already as it is, but obviously it is going to cost anyone to be fasting for an extensive period as during the marathon fasts.
I am off bodybuilding for now, but through experience a long fast would be disastrous for the integrity since this hobby is depending highly on nutrition. One would not be hurt by a few days of fasting, but in the long run it is hard for the body to absorb enough nutrition from the consumed food even if you measure it carefully leading to a breakdown of muscle tissue.
Conclusively it can be said that spontaneous fasts of 1-2 days can probably spur the immune system and kickstart the metabolism and improve efficiency.
A few days of fasting can help reduce the desire for sugars which is the enemy number one for any human when speaking of consumables, and legal stuff.
Be well
Peace MoF, I agree with your post fully, again referring to my latest post I think God left the number of days intentionally open to be decided by individuals based on the climate they live in, profession they do and any other to ensure it is not too hard. I think it makes sense for the althete to do no more than 1-2 days while someone with more sedative work in office it wouldn't hurt to do more? Again, it is an individual decision and I see no point in prescribing a specific number of days (or a day) to all,
be well
M. -
Hello,
I think much of that is superstition, but that the moon causes effects on living organisms and other matter is true. If it affects the flow in the body may be because its gravity affects it (gravity which some people deny here on the forum).
There are certain strange things with full moon scenarios. One is that it often feels colder when it is full moon during night, particularly noticeable in the winter. Could be an imagination though.
I only brought this up to show that judeo-christian traditions do not hold monopoly for some truths in regards to the fasting and some of its practices. Leaving gravity aside, it is confirmed that moon affects living beings, however there is no much scientific research on further matters (fasting effectiveness during full moon versus other, stimulating and sedative effects of moon phases etc) so we can't say whether they are 'superstitions' or 'undiscovered truths'. We should have open mind, ponder and explore with humility what other cultures may have to say on such matters.
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Hi progressive 1993,
Yes there is. The body will take its own reflexive measures in adapting to the new conditions.
not even that. Intermittent fasting is good for us. During fasting, human growth hormone increases and blood sugar levels stabilize.
please read more on intermittent fasting and the science behind it. All of this starvation mode stuff is not scientific and has been perpetuated by fitness magazines.
My point was there is no so called starvation mode. All you really do is you burn fat and you preserve muscle.
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Peace
AYYAME MADUDAT (FASTING) = Determined days = 3 - 9 days determined by him who observes fast.
AYYAME MADUDAT (HAJJ) = Determined days for remembering Allah = 3 - 9 days determined by him who performs hajj.
Thanks
I like your translation, but I've checked almost all the translations of that aya (Openburhan. com) and they all translate fasting DURING "that" month... (not IN IT)...
Peace
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Progressive1993,
If the body cannot keep up with nutrition supply then it will naturally begin to break down muscle tissue. Lasting stunted eating makes it hard for the body to regulate the metabolism and absorb nutrients from food as you fill it to the limit in the night.
"Starvation mode" is not a fitness propaganda. It is the biological reaction for the body to adapt so that you stay alive during a crisis. The person in the article I posted wrote about the biological reaction during a halt in food consumption.
And my point was that there is scientific backup that the body will enter starvation mode after a certain time and it will have trouble adapting to stunted eating. Otherwise many people would not have trouble fasting without pathological indications. Already as early as beyond six hours there are adverse effects on performance, however since Homo Sapiens is an animal it will have biological features such as restlessness to sit idle to elicit forth the desire to seek out food.
I said short fasts are good, but longer ones are going to reverse that.
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Peace Godsubmitter
but I've checked almost all the translations of that aya (Openburhan. com) and they all translate fasting DURING "that" month... (not IN IT)...
(218517)
falyaum'hu
then he should fast in it, RSLT ? prefixed result particle
IMPV ? prefixed imperative particle lm
V ? 3rd person masculine singular imperfect verb, jussive mood
PRON ? 3rd person masculine singular object pronoun -
(218517)
falyaum'hu
then he should fast in it,Peace hafeez kazi
Pronoun "hu" does not mean "in it" but "he or it". So the translation becomes "so he should fast it". So how one can fast "al-shahar" - traditionally translated as the month?
May Allah help us understanding His book.
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Peace Novice
First of all no language can be translated word to word in other languages
Literally if you translate then you are right because you cannot fast the month. Since the Quran was revealed IN the month of Ramadhan, the logical conclusion should be to fast IN the month of Ramadhan. If there would have been FIHI in the verse it would have an explicit command.
Thanks
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Peace hafeez kazi
Pronoun "hu" does not mean "in it" but "he or it". So the translation becomes "so he should fast it". So how one can fast "al-shahar" - traditionally translated as the month?
May Allah help us understanding His book.
I asked the same question here
http//free-minds.org/forum/index.php?topic=9188.msg334061#msg334061 -
wait if quran tells us to abstain from eating and drinking, can we smoke cigarettes etc?
By mainstream Muslims it is considered a gray area leaning towards no. Mukroo or whatever.
