For the past 30 days, Muslims all over the world have been observing the mandatory month-long Ramadan, during which they had denied themselves the normal three square meals and the joy of snacking on their favourite treats.

Between today and Friday, the Muslim world will be celebrating the end of the fasting, thus enabling them to return to their normal eating habit.

We must realise, though, that there’s the natural tendency to indulge in binge-eating, as if to catch up with the lost “opportunity” and to make up for all the goodies we had denied ourselves while the fasting lasted.

However, experts say the best way to return to eating normally after such a long fast is to gently and slowly inch your way back to eating foods, especially by eating those foods that are very easy to digest, before settling permanently for the usual solid stuffs.

A nutritionist, Dr. Soje Sholebo on Indiadoctors.com, warns that you should never overindulge if you don’t want to end up on the hospital bed.

Sholebo says having abstained from food and water for long hours, the digestive and the body’s metabolic systems had been on break for a while. As such, he counsels that people who had undergone the fasting may need a week or two of conscious healthy eating and lifestyle to ease the body’s functions back to its old pace.

He advises people who had observed the 30-day fast to avoid heavy meals in the first week following the end of the Ramadan. Instead, he recommends a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.

For many who had looked forward to the fried or jollof rice and meat that will be served to mark the end of the Ramadan period, Sholebo says the worst thing to do in the next few days is to eat  fried  or processed foods.

He notes that since fasting is also a means of detoxifying the body, eating fried foods which contain toxic substances after a long fast could lead to inflammation of the body cells.

He says, “Start with fruits and vegetables. Vegetable soups have enough fibre to give strength and also restore lost nutrients for the first week. For the next week, you add cooked yam and brown or white rice.

“Stay away from fried foods because they are a real slippery slope to ‘retoxifying’ yourself. Add proteins on the third week. Eat smaller meals more often throughout the day. Drink water with slices of cucumber or citrus to help hydrate more efficiently. Your body is still detoxifying, so keep foods simple and healthy for long-term result.”

Again, experts on quickfasting.com warn that eating the wrong meal after a fast could lead to stomach ulcers, constipation and, in severe cases, a heart attack.

The in-house doctor on the site, Dr. El Mohammed, advises those who have been on the long fast to avoid eating in fast food joints and restaurants for the next three weeks.

He says home cooked meals, which usually contain more natural nutrients and are less likely to have preservatives and chemicals are the best option for individuals that have been fasting.

“I hear people say ‘I have just finished fasting for 30 days, I’m going out to my favourite restaurant to have my favourite dinner.’ This is wrong. When on a long fast of about 20 days or more, the digestive system shuts down partially or completely.

“The stomach and the intestines have been cleaned out. A thorough fast cleans out everything. Therefore, you must allow time for the digestive system to prepare itself for food again.”

The doctor adds, “If you eat solid food or processed food after a long fast, the first thing that will occur is constipation. Your digestive system will not move that solid food until it starts functioning again. This is because, all along, it has been busy cleaning, not digesting.

Mohammed says that citrus fruits, such as oranges and grapefruits, and food such as yoghurts, are the best food to take, as they contain “good” bacteria that help to restore the intestinal flora and the digestive system.

Water is another fluid that the body must have in abundance in the first two weeks after a fast to restore the body’s metabolism and also nourish the skin.

Mohammed says fasting can lead to dehydration and consequent loss of moisture to the skin cells, resulting in wrinkles.

He recommends at least a sip of water every hour to make up for the low water intake during the fasting period.

“Your skin contains plenty of water, and it functions as a protective barrier to prevent excess fluid loss. But you lose a lot of water during a long fast and dehydration makes your skin look more dry and wrinkled.

“A sip of water every hour will do the trick, or you can have watermelon. This is a great fruit to start with, because it has higher water content than other fruits,” Mohammed adds.

Other habits you should avoid in the next two weeks are smoking and heavy drinking. The doctors warn that tobacco and alcohol may shock the system after fasting and this may lead to sudden cardiovascular events like a heart attack.

Finally, Mohammed notes that how you break a long fast has a major effect on the benefits that you receive from the fast.

Happy Eid al-Fitr!

Culled from www.punchng.com