Ramadan is not the same as Ramadan fasting

To identify children exposed to Ramadan fasting in utero, Tith et al. use Arabic language. We agree with the authors that effect sizes in their study are biased to the null because not all Arabic-speaking women in Canada are Muslim. Nonfasting pregnant women among Muslim Arabs would further dilute t...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Seiermann, Andrea U. (Author) , Gabrysch, Sabine (Author)
Format: Article (Journal) Editorial
Language:English
Published: 08 April 2020
In: The journal of nutrition
Year: 2020, Volume: 150, Issue: 4, Pages: 968-968
ISSN:1541-6100
DOI:10.1093/jn/nxaa033
Online Access:Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxaa033
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Author Notes:Andrea U. Seiermann, Sabine Gabrysch
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Summary:To identify children exposed to Ramadan fasting in utero, Tith et al. use Arabic language. We agree with the authors that effect sizes in their study are biased to the null because not all Arabic-speaking women in Canada are Muslim. Nonfasting pregnant women among Muslim Arabs would further dilute the true effect of Ramadan fasting. Adherence to Ramadan fasting during pregnancy in Canada has not been studied, but adherence rates among Muslims in other Western high-income countries have been reported at ∼50% (3, 5, 6). However, complex lifestyle effects of Ramadan in both fasting and nonfasting Muslims cannot be separated from effects of daytime fasting during Ramadan in studies with unknown fasting adherence at the individual level. The effects found by Tith et al. can therefore be interpreted as effects of Ramadan, but not necessarily as effects of Ramadan fasting.
Item Description:Gesehen am 07.01.2020
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:1541-6100
DOI:10.1093/jn/nxaa033