A review of the impact of intermittent ramadan fasting on wellbeing, nutrition and physical performance in different sports

IF 2.9 Q3 NUTRITION & DIETETICS

Clinical nutrition ESPEN Pub Date : 2025-04-08 DOI:10.1016/j.clnesp.2025.03.052

Tehreema Ghaffar, Francesca Ubaldi, Federica Valeriani, Vincenzo Romano Spica

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

Athletes in different sports may experience a change in the physical performance during Ramadan Intermittent Fasting (RIF). The impacts of fasting on performance, coping behaviour and fatigue in athletes have not been fully researched.

Objective

To examines the effects of Ramadan Intermittent Fasting (RIF) on the physical performance of athletes in different types of sports. The approaches used to assess effects of intermittent fasting among young athletes have not yet been systematically reviewed.

Method

Following PRISMA guidelines, 3 independent searches on different databases to identify all the articles describing effects of RIF on physical performance of athletes with all available articles from 2014 up to April 2024.

Results

Among 422 articles identified, 31 studies met eligibility criteria. Fourteen studies reported the effect of Ramadan fasting on individual sports, three studies on combat sports, and fourteen studies on team sports.

Conclusion

The RIF negatively effects the physical performance, players coping behavior, nutritional status and fatigue capacities in different sports, although, the negative effects are greater for Handball, Basketball, Volleyball, Football and Swimming although the impact is less negative for Tennis, Badminton, Martial arts and Endurance sports. The athletes who maintain their total energy and macronutrient intake, training load, body composition, sleep length and quality are unlikely to suffer any substantial decrements in performance during Ramadan. Adding other recovery methods could improve performance and reduce the fatigue and muscle soreness experienced with increased game frequency during RIF.

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来源期刊

Clinical nutrition ESPEN NUTRITION & DIETETICS-

CiteScore

4.90

自引率

3.30%

发文量

512

期刊介绍： Clinical Nutrition ESPEN is an electronic-only journal and is an official publication of the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN). Nutrition and nutritional care have gained wide clinical and scientific interest during the past decades. The increasing knowledge of metabolic disturbances and nutritional assessment in chronic and acute diseases has stimulated rapid advances in design, development and clinical application of nutritional support. The aims of ESPEN are to encourage the rapid diffusion of knowledge and its application in the field of clinical nutrition and metabolism. Published bimonthly, Clinical Nutrition ESPEN focuses on publishing articles on the relationship between nutrition and disease in the setting of basic science and clinical practice. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN is available to all members of ESPEN and to all subscribers of Clinical Nutrition.