Effects of Ramadan fasting on serum lipid profiles on 2 hyperlipidemic groups with or without diet pattern

The effects of Ramadan fasting, with low fat and low calorie diet, on blood lipid and lipoprotein levels were studied. Results revealed reduction of plasma lipid levels and anthropometric parameters in the hyperlipidemic cases. To find out whether such reductions were due to nutritional diet or Ramadan fasting, we conducted a study to evaluate effects of Ramadan fasting on 2 separate hyperlipidemic groups with or without nutritional diet regimen. This study was carried out at Madani Heart Hospital, Tabriz, Iran, during the year 1998. Thirty-eight hyperlipidemic healthy men voluntarily enrolled into 2 groups, group I, 22 men on low fat and low calorie diet and group II, 16 men without any special diet interference. The blood lipid profile tests were measured 4 times [3 weeks before, first week, last week and one month after Ramadan]. To evaluate nutritional composition, 12 times in non-successive days, 24 hour nutrition recalls were obtained from all individuals during the study. Analysis of data revealed that only triglyceride in both groups reduced in the beginning of Ramadan compared to 3 weeks before. During Ramadan, with a reduction of 300 Kcal/day in comparison to before Ramadan, no changes were seen concerning anthropometric parameters and serum lipids levels. It seems that the effect of Ramadan fasting on serum lipid levels may be closely related to the nutritional diet. For reduction of plasma lipid levels, it would be necessary to omit at least one term meal or reduce energy by 500 Kcal or more per day

Effects of low fat and low calorie diet on plasma lipid levels in the fasting month of Ramadan

In Ramadan, which is one month of the Hijra year, Muslims change their eating habits from 3 times to 2 times daily. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of fasting with low fat and low calorie diet on anthropometric parameters and plasma lipid profiles in hyperlipidemic men during the month of Ramadan. This study was carried out at the Madani Heart Hospital, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran during the year of 1997. Twenty-eight hyperlipidemic healthy men in a fasting group and 10 healthy men with top normal lipid levels in a non-fasting group were voluntarily enrolled for study. They were encouraged to use low fat and low calorie diet. The study started 20 days before and lasted one month after Ramadan. Laboratory tests including plasma total cholesterol, cholesterol-low density lipoprotein, cholesterol-high density lipoprotein and triglyceride were measured 4 times; 20 days before Ramadan, first day of Ramadan, on the last day of Ramadan and 30 days after Ramadan. Data analysis in fasting group revealed a significant reduction in energy intake and nutrient materials during Ramadan month [P<0.05] and plasma total cholesterol, cholesterol-low density lipoprotein and triglyceride levels decreasing towards the end of Ramadan [P<0.01]. In the non-fasting group, there were no significant changes in the above-mentioned parameters. It seems that Islamic fasting in Ramadan with low fat and low calorie diet leads to plasma lipids reduction in hyperlipidemic men

Effects of nibbling and gorging on lipid profiles, blood glucose and insulin levels in healthy subjects

Although there is some evidence indicative of some beneficial effects of an increased meal frequency on the lipid profiles, the results published are controversial. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effects of feeding frequency on blood lipids, glucose and insulin. The subjects of this study were 15 healthy non-smoker males aged 27.2 +/- 6.4 years. All subjects were placed on 2 identical diets in which they consumed the same food either as 3 meals at 7-hours intervals [gorging diet] or as 9 snacks at 2 hours intervals [nibbling diet]. Each diet was of 2 week's duration and was separated from each other by a period of 3 weeks. At the end of both diets, the plasma was obtained from fasting blood samples and its lipid levels were determined. The study was carried out in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran between 30 October 1998 and 19 December 1998. The nibbling diet was associated with an increased level of glucose [p<0.01] and a decreased level of insulin [p<0.05]. The plasma levels of total cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, and lipoprotein [a] were found to be lower in the end of nibbling diet compared with the gorging diet, however, only for the last parameter this reduction was significant [p<0.02]. The nibbling diet resulted in an insignificant increase in the high-density lipoprotein concentration. Taking into account, the difficulty in following the nibbling diet with a fear of weight gain, there would be no advantages in recommending the nibbling dietary pattern for normal free-living subjects, although its metabolic benefits in obese people could be the subject for further studies