A study on the impact of fast ing during Ramzan, taken up by the University of Mysore’s Department of Studies in Food Science and Nutrition, has shown a loss in body weight and fat. Some elderly even showed loss in muscle mass.
Sharing the details of the study at an interaction programme on Saturday with the volunteers, who were part the study, department chairperson Asna Urooj said loss in muscle mass was restricted only to those aged 50 and above, who lead a sedentary lifestyle. “Some of the younger participants of the study had showed an increase in muscle mass, while in many others it remained constant,” she said.
A total of 54 volunteers — 28 male and 26 female, aged between 21 and 65 — subjected themselves to pre-fasting blood test on May 4 and 6, and post-fasting blood test on June 8 and 10. The volunteers had observed fast for a total of 29 days, which entailed staying off food and water for about 13 and a half hours every day.
While the average weight loss among the participants was 2.5 kg, Dr. Urooj said the highest weight loss recorded during the study was 6 kg, while the lowest was 600 gm. The weight of one participant had even increased by a few hundred grams.
The study also sought to monitor the changes in various parameters of the volunteers, like lipid profile, blood glucose, anti-oxidants, liver, and renal function.
Lipid profile
Though the total cholesterol of the participants remained more or less the same during the fasting period, an increase was noticed in the HDL (good cholesterol) of most participants. Also, going northwards was triglycerides in a majority of the participants. However, there were a few exceptions like a woman in her twenties, who saw her triglycerides register a marked decline.
There was not much fluctuation in the blood urea, serum creatinine, total prot ein, and albumin values. “An increase was observed in antioxidant activity, which indicates detoxification in the body,” Dr. Urooj said .
Though the participants had gone without consuming any water for more than 13 hours in a day, the study did not indicate any changes in Intra Cellular or Extra Cellular water. “This could be due to the ability of the body to adapt to a mechanism to conserve water,” she said. No adverse effect was observed in kidney function and liver function due to fasting.
The data will be subjected to suitable statistical analysis compiled into a manuscript for publication in an international journal, besides presenting the same in various conferences.
