Study on the influence of fasting on memory and concentration

The aim of the study was to investigate fasting from a neurological and psychological perspective. To this end, 18 young Muslim people between the ages of nine and fifteen were selected.

They were divided into two groups, the younger ones (9-12 years) and the adolescents (13-15 years). The boys were examined by doctors before the fasting period, during the first and last week of Ramadan and after the fasting period. In addition, each participant's sleep patterns, diet and movements were recorded and noted so that the results could be analyzed in detail. At each clinic visit, they had to complete various tests involving memory and spatial reasoning tasks.

In the first week of fasting, only the smaller boys showed a loss of body fat, which was relatively small. However, protein intake was higher than usual and a high reduction in haemoglobin was observed towards the end of the Ramadan period. The participants suffered from a severe lack of sleep in the fourth week. Nevertheless, the participants' performance in the tests with active memory tasks became increasingly stronger and only the adolescents performed worse.