There is a knowledge gap concerning mental health changes across the Ramadan period. In a study of 284 young Israeli Muslim adults, we explored within-subject changes in global distress (GD), specific symptoms (depression, anxiety, stress), and quality of life (QoL) across five assessments spanning Ramadan fast. Using repeated-measures general linear modeling, significant effects were found for GD F(4) = 20.890, p < 0.001, demonstrating a two-stage reduction in scores: an initial decrease during the first week of Ramadan, followed by a further decrease post-Ramadan. Females consistently reported higher GD scores F(1) = 12.656, p < 0.001, though no significant time-point×sex interactions were found. However, during Ramadan, females exhibited a transient GD increase F(1) = 4.053, p = 0.046, which was not observed in males. Subscale analyses revealed significant reductions in Depression F(4) = 12.260, p < 0.001, Anxiety F(4) = 16.388, p < 0.001, and Stress F(4) = 20.583, p < 0.001. Improvements in Depression and Anxiety scores occurred during the first week of Ramadan. Post-Ramadan reductions in Anxiety and Stress scales were observed. Despite these symptom improvements, subjective quality of life declined during Ramadan, particularly among females, but recovered post-Ramadan. Participants reported increased social commitments during Ramadan, expressing a preference to reduce these pressures while maintaining the spiritual aspects of the fast. Our findings highlight that Ramadan fast is associated with short-term improvements in mental health symptoms, though the temporal pattern of change varies by sex. However, social obligations may have introduced a temporary trade-off, negatively impacting self-reported quality of life, especially for women. These insights may inform culturally sensitive interventions that maximize Ramadan’s mental health benefits while mitigating temporary quality of life declines.
Sindiani et al. (Thu,) studied this question.