Women's fasting habits and dietary diversity during Ramadan in rural Bangladesh.

ABSTRACT: Little is known about fasting practices and dietary changes during Ramadan in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Although pregnant women are exempt from fasting, they may still fast. This is of interest as dietary habits during pregnancy may affect the development of the unborn child. In a community-based sample of young women in rural Sylhet division, Bangladesh, we described fasting practices and beliefs (n = 852). We also examined reported food group consumption and minimally adequate dietary diversity for women (MDD-W) by Ramadan occurrence (n = 1,895) and by fasting adherence (n = 558) using logistic regression with Hindu women as a seasonal control. During Ramadan in 2018, 78% of pregnant Muslim women fasted every day. Over 80% of Muslim women believe that they should fast durin

SUBMITTER: Seiermann AU 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8189200 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature