The Effects of Ramadan Fasting on the Spirometric Data of Healthy Adult Males

Abstract

The few studies carried out on the effects of Ramadan fasting (RF) on spirometric values present contradictory conclusions. This study aimed at assessing whether RF affects healthy adults’ spirometric values. Twenty-nine nonsmoking healthy males (M ± standard error of mean [SEM] of age: 27 ± 1 years) who fasted during Ramadan (June 29-July 28, 2014) volunteered to the study. Three periods (before-Ramadan [June 23-25], mid-Ramadan [July 14-16] and after-Ramadan [August 11-14]) were selected for spirometry measurements that were consistently performed 5.5 to 3.5 hours (between 15:00 and 17:00 hours) before fasting break. Assessment sessions comprised following: weight (kg), forced vital capacity (FVC), first second expiratory volume (FEV1), FEV1/FVC, peak expiratory flow (PEF), maximal mid expiratory flow (MMEF), and forced expiratory flow rate at the x% of FVC to be exhaled (FEFx%). Spirometric data were expressed in percentages of reference values. Results were analyzed by applying repeated measures analysis of variance. The M ± SEM of weight (before-R: 81.6 ± 2.8 kg, mid-R: 80.8 ± 2.9 kg, after-R: 81.2 ± 2.9 kg), FEV1 (before-R: 99 ± 2%, mid-R: 98 ± 2%, after-R: 98 ± 2%), FVC (before-R: 103 ± 2%, mid-R: 101 ± 2%, after-R: 101 ± 2%), PEF (before-R: 112 ± 3%, mid-R: 113 ± 2%, after-R: 114 ± 3%), MMEF (before-R: 83 ± 3%, mid-R: 83 ± 3%, after-R: 82 ± 3%), FEF25% (before-R: 90 ± 5%, mid-R: 89 ± 6%, after-R: 87 ± 6%), FEF50% (before-R: 94 ± 4%, mid-R: 91 ± 4%, after-R: 93 ± 3%), and FEF75% (before-R: 108 ± 3%, mid-R: 111 ± 2%, after-R:111 ± 3%) were not significantly influenced by RF. To conclude, RF did not bring about any significant changes in the spirometric values of nonsmoking healthy adult males.

The Effects of Ramadan-Fasting (RF) on Inflammatory and Hematological Indices of Stable Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Male Patients: A Pilot Study

“…It was much more efficient to apply for a sample random sampling study, as done by Sarraf-Zadegan et al (2000) ( Table 1S ). Second, the noninclusion of a control-group of nonfasting patients could be considered a limitation because the interior validity of the results from this study and the variations in the data assessed cannot be attributed exclusively to RF ( Latiri et al, 2017 ). In this regard, it has to be underlined that attaining nonfasting groups in Muslim countries is problematic, due to religious principles.…”

“…This study results partly confirm these of Zouari et al (2018) who concluded that RF did not bring about any significant changes in the spirometric data of stable COPD male patients, including the MMEF. The above issue was discussed in two previous studies including healthy or COPD adults ( Latiri et al, 2017 ; Zouari et al., 2018 ).…”

“…Discussion concerning the season and the duration of RF, the timing of achieved tests and the number of sessions carried out were addressed in previous papers ( Latiri et al, 2017 ; Zouari et al., 2018 ). Discussion about the spirometric measurements is available in the Supplementary Data section.…”

“…The spirometric data [FVC; FEV 1 ; maximal mid-expiratory flow (MMEF), peak expiratory flow (PEF), FEV 1 /FVC] were expressed in percentages of local reference values ( Ben Saad et al, 2013 ). The FVC maneuver was described elsewhere ( Latiri et al, 2017 ; Zouari et al, 2018 ). The BD test was detailed elsewhere ( Ben Saad, Prefaut, Tabka, Zbidi, & Hayot, 2008 ; Pellegrino et al, 2005 ; Zouari et al, 2018 ).…”

<p>Exercise Training and Fasting: Current Insights</p>

“…A systematic review of 35 studies 48 reported that Ramadan fasting produced a fairly small but significant weight loss (−1.24 kg; 95% confidence interval:)-1.60, -0.88 kg() in both sexes, with most of the weight loss then restored within a few weeks after Ramadan. 49 However, others failed to observe significant changes in body weight during Ramadan, 49 while some even described weight gain during this period 49 (Table 5); these inconsistencies may be due to varied eating routines, socioeconomic status, differences in the number of fasting hours, ethnicity, gender, and the health status and the medical history of participants. 37,48,50…”