Fasting for three days can regenerate entire immune system, study finds

A person’s entire immune system can be rejuvenated by fasting for as little as three days as it triggers the body to start producing new white blood cells, a study suggests

Fasting for as little as three days can regenerate the entire immune system, even in the elderly, scientists have found in a breakthrough described as “remarkable”.

Although fasting diets have been criticised by nutritionists for being unhealthy, new research suggests starving the body kick-starts stem cells into producing new white blood cells, which fight off infection.

Scientists at the University of Southern California say the discovery could be particularly beneficial for people suffering from damaged immune systems, such as cancer patients on chemotherapy.

It could also help the elderly whose immune system becomes less effective as they age, making it harder for them to fight off even common diseases.

The researchers say fasting “flips a regenerative switch” which prompts stem cells to create brand new white blood cells, essentially regenerating the entire immune system.

“It gives the ‘OK’ for stem cells to go ahead and begin proliferating and rebuild the entire system,” said Prof Valter Longo, Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the University of California.

“And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting.

“Now, if you start with a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or ageing, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system.”

Mini Fasts: Safe or Silly?

Prolonged fasting forces the body to use stores of glucose and fat but also breaks down a significant portion of white blood cells.

During each cycle of fasting, this depletion of white blood cells induces changes that trigger stem cell-based regeneration of new immune system cells.

In trials humans were asked to regularly fast for between two and four days over a six-month period.

Scientists found that prolonged fasting also reduced the enzyme PKA, which is linked to ageing and a hormone which increases cancer risk and tumour growth.

“We could not predict that prolonged fasting would have such a remarkable effect in promoting stem cell-based regeneration of the hematopoietic system,” added Prof Longo.

“When you starve, the system tries to save energy, and one of the things it can do to save energy is to recycle a lot of the immune cells that are not needed, especially those that may be damaged,” Dr Longo said.

“What we started noticing in both our human work and animal work is that the white blood cell count goes down with prolonged fasting. Then when you re-feed, the blood cells come back. So we started thinking, well, where does it come from?”

Fasting for 72 hours also protected cancer patients against the toxic impact of chemotherapy.

“While chemotherapy saves lives, it causes significant collateral damage to the immune system. The results of this study suggest that fasting may mitigate some of the harmful effects of chemotherapy,” said co-author Tanya Dorff, assistant professor of clinical medicine at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and Hospital.

“More clinical studies are needed, and any such dietary intervention should be undertaken only under the guidance of a physician.”

“We are investigating the possibility that these effects are applicable to many different systems and organs, not just the immune system,” added Prof Longo.

However, some British experts were sceptical of the research.

Dr Graham Rook, emeritus professor of immunology at University College London, said the study sounded “improbable”.

Chris Mason, Professor of Regenerative Medicine at UCL, said: “There is some interesting data here. It sees that fasting reduces the number and size of cells and then re-feeding at 72 hours saw a rebound.

“That could be potentially useful because that is not such a long time that it would be terribly harmful to someone with cancer.

“But I think the most sensible way forward would be to synthesize this effect with drugs. I am not sure fasting is the best idea. People are better eating on a regular basis.”

Dr Longo added: “There is no evidence at all that fasting would be dangerous while there is strong evidence that it is beneficial.

“I have received emails from hundreds of cancer patients who have combined chemo with fasting, many with the assistance of the oncologists.

“Thus far the great majority have reported doing very well and only a few have reported some side effects including fainting and a temporary increase in liver markers. Clearly we need to finish the clinical trials, but it looks very promising.”

The telegraph

Islamic Guidelines on Pandemics & Epidemics

10 Islamic Guidelines on Pandemics and Epidemics by Mufti Faraz Adam

1. Quarantine

The Prophet encouraged quarantine:
“Do not put a sick one (animal) with a healthy one (animal)” (Sahih al-Bukhari)
“If you hear that a plague has hit a land, do not go to it; if it breaks out in a land where you are present, do not leave” (Bukhari)

2. Hygiene & Disinfecting

The Prophetic practice which Muslims are recommended to follow are full of hygienic practices:
a. Washing hands upon awakening
b. Performing ablution and washing five times a day for prayers.
c. Washing before/after eating
d. covering mouth when sneezing

3. Impermissibility to consume rodents, reptiles, insects and other potential carriers of disease

According to the Hanafi school, it is not permissible to consume rodents, reptiles, insects and other such creatures as they are from the Khaba’ith (filthy creatures)

4. Permissibility to cull infected creatures

It is permissible to cull infected creatures and animals to stop the spread of the outbreak.

5. Not sharing essential and hygiene items

Ibn Hajar advises against sharing items that are commonly used during an outbreak to prevent the spread of the outbreak. (Fath al-Bari)

6. Burying deceased immediately

Islam encourages immediate burial. One of the wisdoms of this is to contain any disease in the carrier from being passed on.

7. Researching for potential vaccines

The Prophet told us:
“There is a remedy for every malady, and when the remedy is applied to the disease it is cured with the permission of Allah, the Exalted and Glorious.” (Sahih Muslim)

  1. Correct belief

We believe in what the Prophet told us:
“Diseases are not intrinsically contagious.” (Sahih al-Bukhari)

One only becomes infected by the permission of Allah. However, all precaution is encouraged due to knowing that Allah permits transfer through contact and His practice is to transfer through contacting infected people generally.

9. Cure is from Allah

One’s belief and focus should solely be on Allah as the Prophet Ibrahim taught us:
“It is He has created me, and it is He Who guides me; And it is He Who feeds me and gives me to drink. And when I am ill, it is He who cures me. (Qur’an 26:78-82)

10. Constant dua

Make constant due to Allah for protection from this pandemic, as He alone is the ultimate saviour and refuge.

Common Health Issues During Hajj

RESPIRATORY TRACT INFECTION
People from all over the world bring with them all kinds of infections, and the unavoidable closeness of the hundreds of thousands of Hujjaj facilitates easy spread of those illnesses. Fatigue, and lack of sleep from the physically demanding regimen of Hajj rites as well as the over-enthusiastic exertions in salah and devotions, lower one’s immunity and resistance, thereby making one more vulnerable to disease. Acute respiratory infection is very common. Epidemics of flu-like illnesses are also very common.

The key point here is that nearly all-upper respiratory tract ijifections (URI) are viral. They will resolve spontaneously, and require no antibiotic treatment. Patients should seek care only if they experience symptoms consistent with complications of URI such as prolonged illness with purulent nasal secretion, fever, and facial pain; isolated sore throat with fever; shortening of breath; productive cough with fever or shortening of breath, or the subjective feeling of a severe illness. Try symptomatic measures to minimize the symptoms of sore throat or flu, as follows:

Drink lots of clear fluids (water, juice, Sprite).

Take acetaminophen or paracetamol to reduce pain and fever. For a cough try an over-the-counter cough suppressant. For sore throat: gargle with salt water; suck on ice cubes or lozenges; drink hot water with lemon and honey. Wash your hands often. Flu is spread through the air by coughing or sneezing. It may also spread by hand contact.

HEAT ILLNESSES
Not all types of heat illnesses are mentioned here to avoid confusion or unnecessary details. It should be made clear, however, that heat can present major challenges to persons making Hajj, and that they should take such illnesses seriously.

HEAT EXHAUSTION
Commonly caused by dehydration and loss of body salts. It is manifested by weakness, headache, dizziness, nausea, vomitting, and diarrhea. An increased body temperature and pulse rate may be present. The treatment of heat exhaustion is by resting, getting out of the heat/sun, sponging the body with water and fanning it, and aggressively replacing fluids and salts. If not taken seriously, this can progress to heat stroke. Patients diagnosed as suffering from heat exhaustion should be admitted to hospital where they are covered with large sheets of wet gauze and fans used to aid cooling. IV-fluid should be administered and a fluid balance chart kept monitoring urine output. Nearly all patients recover and are discharged within 24 hours. Patients must be transferred immediately to the nearest health care center.

HEATSTROKE
In this condition the body loses its ability to regulate temperature and the body temperature soars, often to above 106 degrees. Sweating may or may not be present. The hallmarks of heat stroke are physical collapse and mental deterioration ranging from confusion to coma. This is a medical emergency and must be treated aggressively with rapid cooling and IV-fluids if available. If not, death or permanent damage to the kidneys, heart, or liver may result. Emergency treatment can consist of cooling in whatever water is available or removing clothing and wetting/fanning the body. If able to drink, give the victim water, or oral rehydration formula.

All patients diagnosed as suffering from heat stroke should be cooled on the specially designed Makkah Body Cooling Unit (BCU). This achieves rapid reduction of the body temperature by evaporation from the warm skin; the skin temperature is kept at 30-32 C (84-90 F) to enhance vasodilatation and increase the heat flow.

PREVENTING HEAT ILLNESS
Even marginal dehydration interferes with the body’s ability to regulate temperature. It also makes a mild diarrheal illness more likely to become serious. In hot climates you should always consume enough water so that you must urinate every two to three hours. If your urine becomes dark yellow it means that you are getting dehydrated or that you are getting jaundiced! Here are some preventive measures that help you reduce the burden of heat:

* Don’t be exposed to direct sunlight but rather use an umbrella or other protective gadget

* Don’t leave your kids is unventilated vehicles

* Drink plenty of water, even if you are not thirsty (preferably Zam-zam water)

* Keep a close watch on children to be sure they do the same

Reduce physical activities by:

* Not walking for long periods. Rather ride any available vehicle

* Trying to avoid crowded places as much as you can and not rush when performing rites

* In case of weakness (e.g. chronically-ill patient) and if you can’t handle the crowd during stoning, it is permissible for you to go to Mina at the end of the night to stone the Jamra before the arrival of the crowd

* Taking enough time for rest and sleep as needed

Source: alinaam.co.za

The Effects of Reading the Qur’an

The Effects of Reading the Holy Qur’an on Muslim Students’ Heart Rate, Blood pressure and Perceived Stress Levels

The present study consisted of two studies which investigated the effects of reading the Holy Qur’an on Muslim psychology students’ blood pressure, heart rate and perceived stress levels. Perceived stress level is the degree to which situations in a person’s life are appraised as stressful.

The study was conducted because little research has examined the effects of reading the Holy Qur’an, and research that has been conducted is of low quality. For example, Vander Hoven (nd) a researcher from Netherlands hasn’t reported the findings from his research clearly. He briefly stated that “Muslims who can read Arabic and who read the Holy Qur’an regularly can protect themselves from psychological diseases”, but he gives no specific details of the evidence leading to this conclusion or the exact nature of the effects.

Also another researcher, Yucel Salih (2007) has reported contradictory findings from his research; therefore it is unclear exactly what was found. For example, the researcher stated that “there are statistical changes in body temperature and respiratory rate, but they are not significant enough to support the positive effects of prayer on physical well-being”. But in the summary the researcher stated that “the current study found statistically significant changes of physiological conditions, and the study supports the hypothesis that prayer does have positive effects on physiology”.

The sample consisted of 30 Muslim Psychology undergraduates from the University of Salford. There were 15 males and females. The sampling method used was convenience sampling. A two factor (2×2) repeated measures design was used.

In the first study participants’ took part in an experiment which was divided into two conditions. In one condition participants’ heart rate, blood pressure and perceived stress levels were measured before and after reading Surah Alam Nashrah and Surah Al Rahman from the Holy Qur’an. In the other condition participants heart rate, blood pressure, and perceived stress levels were measured before and after reading a non-religious material which was written in Arabic. The order of taking part in the two conditions was counter balanced. So half of the participants read took part in the non-religious material condition first and then the Surah condition. And the other half took part in the Surah condition first and then the non-religious material condition.

Data was analysed using two factor Anova and post hoc t-tests. It was found that participants’ heart rate, blood pressure, (systolic and diastolic) and perceived stress levels decreased after reading Surah Alam Nashrah Surah Al Rahman from the Holy Qur’an. In contrast no significant effects were seen from reading the non-religious Arabic material.

In the second study the researcher conducted semi-structured interviews to study participants’ subjective experience of reading the Qur’an. 10 Muslim psychology undergraduates were interviewed. A content analysis conducted on participants’ responses to questions found that the most mentioned benefit of reading the Qur’an was that it educates and guides the reader to living a good life. It reminds the reader of their faith and it relaxes them.

The researcher concluded that recitation of the Holy Qur’an appears to be psychologically and physiologically beneficial. It appears to reduce the readers perceived stress levels, heart rate and blood pressure. This effect cannot be found with the recitation of a non-religious material that is written in the same language as the Holy Qur’an.  

Reference
Abdullah, R., 2009. The Effects of Reading the Holy Qur’an on Muslim Students’ Heart rate, Blood Pressure and Perceived Stress Levels. Dissertation Abstract: University of Salford.