The Impact of Fasting on Blood Pressure

06/06/2012| IslamWeb

Question:

I have a question regarding a drop in blood pressure: does it affect fasting? Please give me some details on the issue, and what are the cases of high blood pressure that could prevent a person from fasting?

Answer:

Assalaamu ‘Alaykum

Perhaps you meant to ask about the impact fasting has on blood pressure. Blood pressure should not prevent a person from fasting unless it is high enough to require medication to maintain its level and one cannot wait until he breaks his fast to take such medication. Normally, such high blood pressure (diastolic 140) is accompanied by the failure of vital organs, like the kidneys, the retina, the heart or the lungs, and thus one cannot wait until she breaks his fast to consume the medication. This is also the case when the blood pressure is very low. However, normal blood pressure does not prevent one from fasting.

Does being a person with an abnormal blood pressure necessarily mean that he cannot fast? The answer to this is no, because he can schedule his medicine to be consumed after she breaks the fast. She can take all the needed doses from sunset to dawn, before she starts to fast. However, she must only do so after consulting her physician, because circumstances differ from one patient to another, and it also depends on the type of medication one must take. All these matters are usually stated on the prescription.