The study included 201 women from Beirut in their
third trimester who fasted during the day for the entire month of Ramadan. The
results of the observation were compared to data from 201 pregnant women who
did not fast during this period. The number of preterm births i.e. babies born
before the age of 37 weeks was equal in both groups. Preterm delivery before 32
weeks was slightly more common in the women who fasted (3 preterm births as
compared to 1); however the difference was not statistically significant.
The average birth weight of babies in the group who
fasted was 3 kg. This was less than the average birth weight of babies in the
group who had not fasted during this period; the average weight of babies from
this group was 3.2 kg. The effects of this decrease in birth weight due to
fasting over prolonged periods have not been studied. The weight gain of the mothers during the
fasting period was an average of 1.6 kg in those who fasted as compared to 2.3
kg in those who did not fast.
The study is quite small to generalize the results
on larger populations. The duration of fasting during Ramadan varies between
countries; this factor should be taken into account while applying the results
of this study to other populations.
1. J Awwad, IM Usta, J Succar, KM Musallam, G Ghazeeri, AH Nassar. The
effect of maternal fasting during Ramadan on preterm delivery: a prospective
cohort study. BJOG 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2012.03438.x.