Sleep and Wellbeing during Ramadan

The holy month of Ramadan is a very important and significant time in the Islamic calendar, with Muslims taking part globally each year during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. 

In this blog I speak to my colleague, Hannah Shore, Head of Sleep Science at Mattress Online, about my own experiences of sleep, health and wellbeing during Ramadan - and share my tips on how I manage self-care when navigating periods of fasting - to maintain a healthy diet, look after my skin and balance stress levels to support my sleep quality throughout the month.

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How do you approach sleep and health during Ramadan?

Work from home

I have always spoken openly to my manager about how Ramadan can affect my energy and concentration levels and working from home allows me to create a calmer and cosier environment. This also helps avoid people eating and drinking around you, which might bother some people. 

The WFH routine keeps my mind in a relaxed state so I can easily unwind and have a nap after work without having to travel home, get changed and separate my mind from being in the office. I feel like this really allows me to optimise the amount and quality of sleep I achieve.

Hannah comments;

"Working from home is a great way to help to reduce stress. If we’re decreasing the amount of sleep we have and travelling to work; then lack of sleep can reduce concentration levels and decrease reaction time. If working from home isn’t an option for you, you should explore public transport or even car sharing."

Stay hydrated

Over the years I have learnt that hydration is so important and can really impact your health, energy and sleep - it’s important to keep up with your hydration in Ramadan even though there is less time in the day to drink water. I try to drink at least 3 litres of water each day, separating the intake evenly so as to not overwhelm my body. Staying hydrated avoids things like headaches, sore throats and muscle cramps and it can also help regulate your body temperature. Helping you fall asleep easier and experience a deeper, more restful sleep. You can help increase your level of hydration through food too, by eating fruits such as watermelon.

Stress less

During Ramadan I let my manager know that I may be low on energy with hints of brain fog most days - this alleviates stress and they have always understood and put my worries at ease - it also means I don’t need to stress when I am slower than usual at getting work completed.

I also manage stress in Ramadan by praying, as this helps ground me and release any worries. I have also found craft activities such as crochet and colouring books in the evening can help me unwind, and make it easier to fall asleep.

Hannah comments;

"When we are stressed our body produces cortisol which is a wake promoting hormone, this is preparing the fight or flight system in our bodies. Lack of sleep can often increase cortisol levels - leading to further lack of sleep. 

"When cortisol is present our sleep hormones such as melatonin cannot be produced. Aroob’s ways of handling her work stresses throughout Ramadan clearly reduce the amount of stress she is feeling and therefore reduces the level of cortisol in her body. 

"Another good way of doing this is to ensure you have a good winddown routine to help you switch off from the day. If you find something that can help to calm your mind and body then this is something you can use whenever you are trying to get to sleep. Winddown routines are different for everyone so find something that works for you - whether that is praying, reading or some breathing exercises."

Exercise

As someone who tries to regularly go to the gym, I keep up with it as much as I can during Ramadan. I scale back my usual routine so as not to overwork myself - I find 30 to 60 minutes of light cardio boosts my mood and works my body enough for me to have a relaxing sleep at night, whilst my body recharges from the exercise.

How does your diet support maintaining good sleep during Ramadan?

During the first week of Ramadan, I can sometimes feel food deprived, which leads to unhealthy cravings. This might mean I order takeouts and indulge in carb and sugar heavy food. Going down this road feels unavoidable as it happens every year despite my previous years of enlightenment.

This first week is full of highs and lows and very often leads to acid reflux, heartburn and lots of uncomfortableness. Unsurprisingly, this affects the amount of and quality of sleep I receive as I am awake feeling full and bloated.

I find the worst food to eat in Ramadan is anything that is fried, heavily cheesy, greasy or high in salt which is of course dehydrating. While some treats are fine in moderation, I find I sleep much better in Ramadan when I avoid eating this type of food.

For me, the best food to eat in Ramadan to ensure a good night's sleep is definitely something lightweight, such as a salad packed with protein, homemade chicken wraps, couscous, soup and grilled chicken with mashed potatoes and vegetables. These dinners feature a balance of nutrients and as long as portion sizes are moderately sized, they do not upset my stomach and disrupt my sleeping schedule.

As a self-confessed picky eater, I avoid some of the best food that my family enjoys and claim it helps them get through the day with lots of energy and still have a restful night's sleep. This includes eating watermelon for hydration, oats and dates for slow release energy and yogurt for high protein and to calm their stomachs.

Hannah comments;

"We have two ‘hunger hormones’ which are produced in our bodies, Ghrelin which when produced makes us feel hungry, and Leptin which when produced suppresses our appetite. As our bodies thrive on routine, these hormones are produced in line with our circadian rhythm, meaning leptin is normally produced whilst we are sleeping throughout the night and ghrelin throughout the day when our body needs sustenance for energy. 

"Throughout Ramadan however, our bodies are working slightly out of sync with the production of these hormones. This means that when we eat throughout the night our bodies aren’t ready to digest the food as efficiently. Aroob’s choices when it comes to the type of food she eats throughout Ramadan are perfect. They are simple foods which the body can digest easily, the complex foods, such as the cheese and the fried food, can be a struggle for a body to digest, meaning it may sit there a while longer and cause issues such as heartburn and stomach aches.  

"Allowing time for food to be digested before you then try and sleep is another great tip. When our body is digesting food our core body temperature is slightly elevated - when we need to sleep our core body temperature needs to drop to get access to the good quality sleep we need. So if you are trying to sleep directly after eating then you may struggle, eating foods that can be digested easily and allowing a short time for them to be digested can help you fall - and stay - asleep."

What is your experience of the impact on your skin during Ramadan?

During my adolescent years, Ramadan took place in the summer months when school took a pause and all I did was sleep, help around the house and learn the importance of praying with encouragement from my parents. 

While the summer days were hot and long, I didn’t notice any negative effects of Ramadan on my skin - of course this could be largely attributed to the amount of sleep I was getting mixed with the wonderful elasticity and strength of young skin. 

Another contributing factor could be that when you pray, which is five times a day, you have to perform wudu which is the act of washing your face, hands, arms and feet to prepare for prayer. This meant I was regularly washing my face and immediately moisturising afterwards which is bound to have had a positive impact.

Entering into young adulthood, Ramadan began starting earlier and earlier in the year. This meant I was attending lectures and seminars whilst fasting and even wrote my dissertation during this period. As you can imagine, fasting from sunrise to sunset whilst attending university wasn’t easy and caused a huge amount of stress and lack of sleep. 

As students often do, I had a lot of overnight essay sessions trying to get work done which would deprive me of sleep. Trying to work during the day felt tough while fasting and being tired from lectures. While I was still keeping my skin hydrated and following a skincare routine, it seemed pointless as my skin was dry, irritated and I was constantly breaking out. This went away after Ramadan which leads me to attribute it to getting less than the recommended hours of sleep, being dehydrated and handling stress.

Now I understand how much the roles of sleep and hydration play in keeping your skin healthy during Ramadan. Each day I ensure I get my regular 3 litres of water in. I don’t rush this intake, instead I space it out in a way that works for me.

I work from home to ensure I can be comfortable and relaxed, and then as soon as the work day is over I have a relaxing nap before waking up to cook for Iftar. After dinner I go for a walk to allow my dinner time to settle and digest and I then follow my skincare routine to pack in extra hydration to my skin. 

I finish my water intake for the day and have an early night to account for getting up early in the morning to have breakfast before sunrise. Mastering this routine has been so valuable for my skin, mental health and general health over Ramadan. I do believe sleep can have a huge impact on your skin during Ramadan and it is very important to get enough rest. For me, getting enough and extra sleep (when possible) helps to avoid extra stress and keep my body and skin operating as though it is a normal month.

Top tips for better skin during Ramadan:

• Drink lots of water
• Moisturise and use sun protection
• Work from home to reduce stress levels
• Have a nap after work and before dinner to decrease stress

Hannah comments;

"The amount of sleep you have can directly affect skin’s appearance, the words we hate to hear are ‘you look tired’ - so we all know the signs of ‘looking tired’ but what is actually happening? Sleeping is a time when our body can repair itself, our skin is one big organ that is constantly growing and repairing - and a lack of sleep would mean this doesn't happen as much as it needs to.

"Hydration factors should also be considered, a lack of sleep can affect hydration, leading to reduced elasticity and increased pH of the skin. Sleep reduction has also shown to increase stress levels, rising levels of cortisol in our systems which can further affect sleep but also affect how our body functions, for example certain glands can produce more oil when under stress, leading to oily skin and the potential for increased breakouts.

"Aroob combats all of this in the best way possible throughout Ramadan, which is focusing on the importance of sleep. Alongside this her skincare and hydration routine creates the best environment to keep skin glowing."