Table 3.
Fasting Behaviors During Ramadan
| Total (N=310) | Age | Gender | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| <40 Years (N=117) | 40–50 Years (N=136) | 50+ Years (N=57) | p-valuec | Male (N=165) | Female (N=145) | p-valued | ||
| Were there any days you were not able to fast from dawn to sundown during the last Ramadan (2018)? n, (%) | ||||||||
| Yes | 62 (20.0%) | 15 (12.8%) | 29 (21.3%) | 18 (31.6%) | 0.0129 | 23 (13.9%) | 39 (26.9%) | 0.0044 |
| No | 248 (80.0%) | 102 (87.2%) | 107 (78.7%) | 39 (68.4%) | 142 (86.1%) | 106 (73.1%) | ||
| Approximately how many days were you unable to fast during the last Ramadan (2018)?a | ||||||||
| Mean (SD) | 7.0 (4.4) | 7.1 (4.3) | 7.2 (4.2) | 6.7 (4.9) | 0.9244 | 3.4 (1.6) | 9.2 (4.1) | <0.0001 |
| Median [Range] | 6.0 [1.0–15.0] | 6.0 [1.0–15.0] | 7.0 [1.0–15.0] | 5.0 [1.0–15.0] | 3.0 [1.0–6.0] | 10.0 [1.0–15.0] | ||
| Does fasting during Ramadan make you worry about your type 2 diabetes? n, (%)a | ||||||||
| Yes | 100 (32.3%) | 23 (19.7%) | 50 (36.8%) | 27 (47.4%) | 0.0004 | 62 (37.6%) | 38 (26.2%) | 0.0326 |
| No | 210 (67.7%) | 94 (80.3%) | 86 (63.2%) | 30 (52.6%) | 103 (62.4%) | 107 (73.8%) | ||
| What steps do you take to prepare, if any, for your type 2 diabetes during Ramadan? n, (%)a, b | ||||||||
| I talk to my physician and/or healthcare team about strategies for managing diabetes while fasting | 115 (37.1%) | 41 (35.0%) | 52 (38.2%) | 22 (38.6%) | 0.8428 | 75 (45.5%) | 40 (27.6%) | 0.0012 |
| Before starting the fast, I eat more food than I usually do | 47 (15.2%) | 13 (11.1%) | 25 (18.4%) | 9 (15.8%) | 0.2716 | 14 (8.5%) | 33 (22.8%) | 0.0005 |
| Before starting the fast, I eat different foods | 51 (16.5%) | 19 (16.2%) | 22 (16.2%) | 10 (17.5%) | 0.9701 | 21 (12.7%) | 30 (20.7%) | 0.0592 |
| I check my blood glucose levels more often than normal | 115 (37.1%) | 32 (27.4%) | 57 (41.9%) | 26 (45.6%) | 0.0194 | 68 (41.2%) | 47 (32.4%) | 0.1096 |
| I change my medication dose prior to Ramadan | 62 (20.0%) | 24 (20.5%) | 28 (20.6%) | 10 (17.5%) | 0.8765 | 16 (9.7%) | 46 (31.7%) | <0.0001 |
| I change my medication dose during Ramadan | 65 (21.0%) | 24 (20.5%) | 30 (22.1%) | 11 (19.3%) | 0.9011 | 33 (20.0%) | 32 (22.1%) | 0.6552 |
| I take medication at a different time of day | 91 (29.4%) | 28 (23.9%) | 46 (33.8%) | 17 (29.8%) | 0.2259 | 48 (29.1%) | 43 (29.7%) | 0.9133 |
| I change my medication to prepare for Ramadan | 52 (17.3%) | 23 (20.2%) | 24 (18.3%) | 5 (9.1%) | 0.1883 | 12 (7.6%) | 40 (28.2%) | <0.0001 |
| Reduce or limit activity | 92 (29.7%) | 31 (26.5%) | 40 (29.4%) | 21 (36.8%) | 0.3727 | 55 (33.3%) | 37 (25.5%) | 0.1328 |
| I do not take any specific steps | 45 (14.5%) | 22 (18.8%) | 16 (11.8%) | 7 (12.3%) | 0.2475 | 30 (18.2%) | 15 (10.3%) | 0.0506 |
| I do not know | 4 (1.3%) | 1 (0.9%) | 2 (1.5%) | 1 (1.8%) | 0.8584 | 3 (1.8%) | 1 (0.7%) | 0.3797 |
Notes: aParticipants completed only if indicating they were unable to fast during the last Ramadan. bResponses not mutually exclusive. cOne way analyses of variance overall F statistic p-value for continuous variables and χ2 test p-value for categorical variables by age group. dIndependent samples t-test p-value for continuous variables and χ2 test p-value for categorical variables by gender.