The Effect Of Taking Drug During Fasting

Drug during fast

Fasting is a situation of abstaining from any nutritious substance. These include but not limited to food and water. I would have continued the definition by saying for religious reasons.
However, the practices of fasting are gradually shifting from religious reasons to health reasons. Therefore, how do people who are fasting treat themselves when they fall sick?

Some fasting individuals may be on medications that are used for treating some diseases they are suffering from. Example are diabetes patients, obesity etc. Fasting for health reasons may be a simple decision to make when confronted with this kind of problem. However, this is not the case when it is for religious reasons. How do medical personnel solve this kind of problem? Let us look at what can happen when on medication during fast and options available.

Types Of Fast

There are generally two types of fast known. They are:

Dry Fasting: In this category, the person does not take any nutritious food or liquid. The days are usually short and most of the patients will not really have a problem with this kind fast.

Wet Fast: This fast is the type whereby the person avoid nutritious foods while consuming any kind of liquid. This type can really take some good number of days for those who are ready for it.

General Guidelines

However, the following guidelines must be followed when fasting is involved.

Children, pregnant and nursing women must not fast. This is because there is no literacy study to ascertain the effect of any type of fasting to children and the unborn fetus. Others are extreme frail, those with weakened immune system, eating disorders, medications dependent diabetic, heart diseases.

There have been health benefits of fast. For example, fast help to reduce blood pressure.

Common Symptoms Of Fasting

• Headache
• Dizziness
• Constipation
• Light-headedness
• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Disturbances to healthy rhythm
• Reduce blood pressure

How Fast Affects Drug

Taking drugs on an empty stomach have the following effects.

Fasting can be dangerous when a fasting person sight food or thinking of it. The reason is that these two things can stimulate acid secretion in the stomach. This secretion can have very negative effects on some drugs that are highly altered due to the presence of an acid. Some drugs have the ability to reduce blood pressure like diuretics, which alters electrolyte balance and dehydration. Dehydration can also cause some drugs to damage the kidney since there is less liquid to work with.

In general, drugs on empty stomach will have the following effects

• Altered Absorption
• Increased side effects or other adverse effects

Altered Absorption

It is a common knowledge that food slows down the rate of movement of drugs to the intestine. This helps to regulate how quickly some drugs reach the blood stream. On the other hand, if the drug is taken on an empty stomach, it moves too fast, which can cause the rate of action and reaction to increased and lead to a toxic level.

Increase Adverse Effects

Food protects the GastroIntestinal (G.I) tract from effects of some drugs. Taking such drugs on an empty stomach can lead to irritation of the GI tract.

Many stories of altered medications during fasting can be found in some literature. According to ncbi website, some patients eat once a day during fast. They, therefore, take drugs meant for three times a day after food once. Others split it into three times in a space of some few hours like within six hours in the day. This can lead to complications. However, there are others who fail to take their drugs altogether. This can be consequential.

Medically some drugs can be used during fast without having side effects. They include eye drops, creams, ointments, and medicated plaster. Also, drugs with sustained released can be used with caution.

The quality of food eaten to breakfast can influence the absorption of some drugs. Beverages can increase gastric acidity and in turn, increase the absorption of a weak acid. The fat and carbohydrates can alter the bioavailability of drugs but still, depends on the formulation used e.g. free acid phenytoin with a fat meal is high bio-availability which is not so with extended release.

A little increase or decrease bioavailability of drugs with the narrow therapeutic index can cause mark effects.

Wet fasting causes dehydration and decreases glomerular filtration which. This can increase the half-life of some drugs that need to be cleared from the system.

How To Take Medications During Fast

A doctor should be consulted before taking any decisions. The most likely solution is to take a long acting drug which does not have effect during fast or to postpone medication till after fast. however, some cases require adjustment of the dosage or medications. Take, for example, patients on High Blood Pressure medications will be adjusted since fasting helps to reduce Blood Pressure.

Also, injections such as intravenous infusion should not be taken on an empty stomach as some of the drugs can weaken one. It is very important to keep away from injection because most prescription for injection is for very strong ailments which need a very strong dose of the drug.

Fasting With Disease

Heart Disease: Do not dry fast. Wet fast with juice, bananas, and avocados to balance blood sugar level.

Hypoglycemia: Must be wet fast

Ageing: Short fast are recommended

Ulcers: Fast with less acidic juices.

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