This is what happens to the brain of a fasting person in Ramadan

What are the effects of fasting on the brain and what are its benefits for the nervous system, does fasting help sleep and why does the fasting person sleep a lot, then how is the study in Ramadan?

We will first address the effect of fasting on the brain, then move on to how it affects sleep in the month of Ramadan, address fasting and memory, and conclude with tips for studying in Ramadan.

What are the effects of fasting on the brain?

Neurosurgeon Dr. Rahul Jindal says that intermittent fasting is very beneficial for the brain, according to an article on the Health website .

Gendial said intermittent hunger clears the mind, awakens the senses, and improves brain function. In addition, it lowers blood sugar, reduces insulin levels, and helps lose weight by reducing total calories.

He added that not eating even for a day increases your brain's natural growth factors, which support neuronal survival and growth.

He said that fasting forces the body to burn its reserves of fat once or twice a week (in the case of fasting once or twice). The byproducts of this process - called ketones - keep your brain going during periods of fasting and starvation, improve cognition, develop connections between nerve cells, and ward off neurodegeneration (the decline in nerve cell function).

The benefits of fasting for the nervous system

A study published in 2017 and reported by Al Jazeera Net , found that the brain cells of lab rats that fast regularly may grow more than usual once they eat again.

The study indicated that a protein known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and in humans, may be involved in learning and memory.

Levels of this protein tend to decrease as a person gets older, especially if someone develops a disease that can affect cognitive functions such as Alzheimer's. However, levels of this protein increased in mice subjected to fasting as much as 50%.

Another study, published in the journal Neurology International, found that blood plasma levels of serotonin (a neurotransmitter that plays a role in mood), brain-derived neurotrophic factor "BDNF" - which we talked about earlier - and nerve growth factor. (nerve growth factor (NGF)) significantly increased during Ramadan, and this is associated with positive effects.

Does fasting help sleep?

In healthy people, who eat a healthy, balanced diet, fasting may help improve sleep quality.

It is known that overeating may lead to problems such as digestion difficulties, gastroesophageal reflux disease and colon problems, and these play a role in sleep disorders, so healthy fasting protects the body from them.

Here we mean healthy fasting, which includes eating in moderation, and not excessive sweets and caffeine, or staying up late.

Why does the fasting person sleep a lot?

Hamad Medical Corporation in Qatar says that the disruption of sleeping and waking times - in the month of Ramadan as a result of staying up late and waking up late for example - increases the chances of developing sleep problems, as these complications appear as a result of different sleeping and waking times, which leads to the suffering of many fasting people from symptoms of increased drowsiness, lethargy and headache irritable

The Foundation added that many people sleep frequently and irregularly during the day, due to the nature of the holy month, religious worship and social customs that motivate staying up late, waking up late in the day, and deviating from the normal pattern of sleep.

Some individuals resort to depriving themselves of sleep during the day because of their association with work schedules, and interrupted sleep affects a person with a degree of sleep deprivation or not enough sleep, or sleeping and waking up at undesirable times of the night or day.

The foundation said that this behavior increases the incidence of vital clock disorders, such as delayed sleep phase syndrome, and disruption of sleep times and waking up at night instead of during the day. Many individuals may meet most of their sleep hours during the day, but many of them complain of symptoms of lack of sleep due to the sudden change in the timing of sleeping and waking up, and the disturbance of the secretion of some hormones such as melatonin, where the peak of its secretion reaches at night during the period of sleep, and the level of this hormone decreases greatly during the day When awake, which helps the body maintain balance because it controls the body's natural clock, which is the sleep and wake cycles synchronized with day and night.

Does fasting strengthen memory?

Generally yes. According to a study conducted by researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King's College London , intermittent fasting is an effective way to improve long-term memory retention and generate new neurons. The study was conducted on mice.

The study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, found that a calorie-restricted diet by fasting every other day was an effective way to boost a gene that plays a central role in the production of new neurons born in the hippocampus, or neurogenesis.

Study in Ramadan

School principals in Qatar confirmed that good sleep is the student's weapon for fasting and studying without feeling tired and tired and the effects of fasting, in a report to the Qatari newspaper Al-Raya.

The principals pointed out that fasting works to enhance the psychological aspect of the student, strengthening his resolve, enhancing his abilities, making his mind active, and giving him important psychological values, such as perseverance and patience, all of which serve to strengthen the level of educational attainment among students.

-Administrators offered the following tips for studying while fasting:

-Organizing the hours of the day in accordance with the school schedule.

-Make sure to sleep early.

-Stay away from social media and satellite channels.

-Allocate time to study, whether after Fajr or Tarawih prayers.

-Do not leave the house for any reason and devote yourself to studying, and stay away from councils and waste time.

-Attend the school day without delay or absence.

-Eating healthy foods and avoiding stimulants and soft drinks, which cause thirst for the student and affect his fasting, and thus affect his studies and concentration during the school day.