With the sighting of the new Moon, over 1.9 billion of the global population are taking part in the celebration, which marks the ninth month of the Islamic calendar.
It is a time when Muslims all over the world fast from sunrise to sunset amidst a period of deep spiritual reflection.
Following the lunar cycle, the Islamic month of Ramadan this year began in the United Kingdom on the evening of Wednesday, 22nd March, and – after 30 days – is likely to end on Friday, 21st April with the sighting of the next crescent moon.
Hazmi Bahrin, Palace for Life Foundation’s Community Development Coordinator, appeared on the BBC’s Sunday Morning Live programme to explain more to viewers.
Bahrin said: “Ramadan is the most important month in the Islamic calendar. It’s the month when the Qu’ran is revealed, and that’s why we hold it so dear.
“It’s not just a month where we stop eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset – it’s also a period of time where we have a lot of self-reflection, self-restraint, and with lots of fasting, we have a lot more focus in that month as well.”
Elite level footballers wishing to partake in Ramadan face the challenge of managing their fast with intensive training, playing and recovery schedules.
“This poses certain challenges for footballers and professional athletes,” Palace’s Head of Sports Medicine, Dr Zafar Iqbal – who has worked with a number of elite Muslim athletes – recently told The Mirror.
"You’ve got to be training to a high level and the main things you’re concerned about are optimising your performance, hydration, nutrition, sleep, training and recovery.
"Because the body has not had food for a long period of time during the day, as soon as you put excess food into the body and it doesn’t get used up, it’s going to get stored [as fat]. We have to be careful, especially during Ramadan, that the players don’t gain excess fat. The only way to do that is to make sure they are eating the right kind of foods as well.
“The key thing is to have an open communication. I've heard of some players being concerned they may not have the support of their manager or the medical team, so they’ve hidden the fact they are fasting because they’ve been worried about being judged or not picked.”
