Medical experts recommend balanced diet during Ramazan

Stress far-reaching adverse impact of deep-fried, unhealthy food consumption

KARACHI:

As the fasting month begins, medical experts and dieticians recommend a balanced diet during sehr and iftar to stay healthy during Ramazan. A lot of people who fast develop digestive issues due to the changes in timing of daily meals and over-consumption of deep-fried food.

According to medical experts, the choice of foods at sehr is very important because it has to act like fuel to keep our bodies energised throughout the day.

This Ramazan, the weather is not likely to be very hot and dry; therefore, people don’t need to load themselves with water and other beverages. Also, they should not consume food at sehar and iftar which may lead to dehydration during daytime.

Medical experts advise consumption of yogurt, cucumber, tomato and watermelon during sehr which are high in water content and do not burden the stomach. It is also useful to eat fruits, especially dates, apples and bananas, in sehri because they contain fiber, vitamin C, magnesium and other nutrients. Besides that, the natural sugar content in these fruits provides energy to our bodies and prevents dehydration.

Gastroenterologists recommend that the simplest and best way to prevent dehydration is to drink adequate amount of water during sehr. They say that everybody has to decide for himself how much water should be sufficient.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 26^th, 2023.