In Ramadan,\nMuslims abstain themselves from consuming food and drinks from dawn until dusk\nas an act of worship. This act is a symbol of obedience to Allah, empathises\nthe less fortunate and embraces a moderate lifestyle. Yet, Ramadan this year is\nvery different from the previous years as the Movement Control Order (MCO) is\nstill in force due to the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. As Covid-19 sweeps across\nthe world, the blessed month will be immensely challenging. Notwithstanding the\nadverse impact on human life the crisis can bring out, it can also bring many\nadvantages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of the Ramadan practices remain but on a limited basis to\nmaintain social distancing. Since the government’s order prohibits people from\ngatherings and masses, it is certainly also applicable to big families from\ndoing so. The current situation has prompted Muslims to consider other\nalternatives to perform the tarawih<\/em>\nprayers, recite the Quran (tadarus<\/em>),\ngather for iftar<\/em> and practicing other\nforms of worship within the safe confinement in their homes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The spread of Covid-19 has given us many lessons to be learnt\nespecially during this fasting month as we have more time to be at home with\nthe children and spouses. Indeed, Muslims should grab this opportunity wisely\nby continuing the ritual practices and maintaining a healthy lifestyle as well\nas eating habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Due to the limitations imposed in purchasing groceries, maintaining\nhealthy eating habits could be a challenging duty in order to ensure every\nmember of the household gets the necessary nutrients adequately. Nevertheless,\nwith proper planning, we can always have balanced and nutritious meals for the\nfamily without any food wasted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The impact of the MCO has created worries in buying the right food\nfor healthy eating, that can lead to choosing ready meals and processed foods.\nHowever, a healthy, variety and balanced diet can be served for the family with\na little bit of effort. During the fasting month, Muslims should make an effort\nto stay hydrated, stop overeating and make healthy dietary choices such as\nfresh, unprocessed foods with plenty of green leafy vegetables to ensure the\nbody is strong to fight diseases and also being able to keep healthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone must eat well,\nbut only as much as we need to maintain good physical and mental health, and\nenergy, to be able to perform good deeds and acts of worship. As everybody is at home and might be moving\nless, thus relying on low calorie intake should be taken into consideration.\nPeople also should be aware of cooking methods since small changes can create a\ngreat taste and make the food healthier. At sahur<\/em>\ntime, be mindful to take low glycemic index food to control blood sugar level. This\nincludes oat, barley, brown rice, yogurt, milk, broccoli and fruits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Food intake should be\nsimple and not too different from the normal diet. It requires proper planning\nin buying groceries and meal planning for the whole week. Besides that, it\neases food preparation and gives ample time to perform worship in this special\nmonth. Doing better planning in buying groceries does not require one to go out\nfrequently. Risk\nmay also arise from close contact with others when shopping or receiving food.\nAs always, good hygiene is vital to avoid any food-borne illnesses when\nhandling food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the context of food\nconsumption, Ramadan in the MCO period is an opportunity to put a stop to bad\nhabits that affect our health and adopt healthier diets as we have the time to\nplan better. Allah commands that every Muslim must not\nwaste any food and use sources as wisely as needed. Islam prohibits the habits\nof food wasting and excesses in eating and drinking, as well as others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During this Corvid 19 outbreak, we have to remain staying at home,\nthus many beneficial family activities and ritual practices can be done.\nSeveral guidelines for different essential purposes have been provided for the\npublic to face the critical circumstances brought about by the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the context of physical distancing, it is important to ensure\nthat family members including the elderly and friends are still engaged through\nnew platforms. If possible, use virtual alternatives or interactive channels\nsuch as the digital and social media can be used at home instead of going\noutdoors to physically meet them. While maintaining public health, engaging\nvirtually could also promote mental and psychosocial wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Planning an all-daily routine properly is the utmost importance for\nevery family in celebrating Ramadan as all of us remain indoors to curb the\nspread of the Covid-19 virus. It is essential to ensure all family members make\nuse of the time with useful activities together. Indeed, togetherness will\nenhance family bonding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore, let us channel the spirit of Ramadan during this\nchallenging time and follow the guidelines provided on physical distancing and\npracticing good hygiene to help prevent infection. Apparently, Covid-19 is a\nreset button for us to focus from our physical to the spiritual journey by pushing\nourselves to the limit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Undoubtedly, this Ramadan will never be the same as others we have\nbeen used to. Nevertheless, it is the right time to do self-reflections so that\nwe can seize the immense benefits and blessings it offers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In Ramadan, Muslims abstain themselves from consuming food and drinks from dawn until dusk as an act of worship. This act is a symbol of obedience to Allah, empathises the less fortunate and embraces a moderate lifestyle. Yet, Ramadan this year is very different from the previous years as the Movement Control Order (MCO) is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_analytify_skip_tracking":false,"_wpzoom_pinterest_image_url":"","_wpzoom_pinterest_hidden_image":"0","_wpzoom_pinterest_description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[225],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","category-225","description-off"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27413"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27413\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ikim.gov.my\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}