Abstract:
Muslims must refrain from eating, drinking and sexual relations from sunrise to sunset during the holy month of Ramadan. Our objective in this study is to investigate whether Ramadan fasting has any effect on Body mass index (BMI), blood Glucose and serum lipids concentrations in women patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. Sixty six subjects from 03 regions located in the west of Algeria participated in this study. All participating patients were studied a week before Ramadan and the third week of Ramadan fasting. No statistically significant fluctuations were noted in BMI EITHER DURING Ramadan or in non-fasting day. The Glucose and HDL cholesterol levels were significantly (p<0.05) higher in the blood or serum of fasting subjects compared to before Ramadan. This statistically significant increase in HDL-cholesterol explain clearly the beneficial effect of Ramadan fasting on diabetics serum lipids. Moreover, serum total cholesterol levels decreased significantly (p<0.05) during the third week of Ramadan than non fasting day.
