Health | The positive effects of Ramadan on your mental health
| Fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam, during which Muslims are encouraged to abstain from food and drink between dusk and dawn.| Before you fast, it is always a good idea to check in with your doctor to determine whether or not you should. If you are unable to fast, you can pay the fidyah instead, where you give a poor and hungry person the amount of money equivalent to the cost of two meals a day. How fasting and being charitable helps your mental health Fasting is not only about abstaining from food. You also avoid harmful speech such as talking ignorantly or indecently, and also shun negative actions such as arguing or fighting. By doing so, we can focus on developing good behaviours and increasing the number of good deeds we do. Throughout Ramadan, there is an emphasis on charity and thinking of those in need in order to find ways to unify our community. During this month, we start to think of how we can give back and how to connect with our family and those ar...