RAMADAN DIET RESTRICTIONS MODIFY THE CIRCADIAN TIME STRUCTURE IN HUMANS - A STUDY ON PLASMA GASTRIN, INSULIN, GLUCOSE, AND CALCIUM AND ON GASTRIC PH

The rule of Ramadan (1 month of food and water intakes restricted to n ight hours) is followed by the majority of the Moslem fraction of the human population, but the possible consequences of this long-lasting m odification of food intake schedule on public health have not yet been extensively documented. Therefore, a group of healthy control subject s and a group of healed duodenal ulcer patients were studied before (c ontrols), during (both groups), and after (both groups) the month of R amadan. The time-restricted food and water intakes were associated wit h variations of gastric pH, plasma gastrin, insulin, glucose, and calc ium documented on a circadian basis. All of the studied biological var iables, except insulin, underwent changes in their 24-h mean concentra tion (e.g. decrease in gastric pH, increase in plasma gastrin), some o f which were still present 1 month after the end of Ramadan. The circa dian patterns of all the studied variables were altered during the mon th of Ramadan. Some differences between the group of healthy control s ubjects and the group of healed duodenal ulcer patients may suggest a greater susceptibility of the latter to the modifications of feeding a nd sleeping schedule, which could possibly be a risk factor for the di sease.