What Breaks the Fast?
Things that invalidate the fast
- Deliberately eating or drinking anything.
- Smoking, including vaping, according to the scholarly consensus of contemporary councils.
- Marital relations during the fasting hours.
- Deliberately inducing vomiting (Sunan Abu Dawud 2380).
- Menstruation or post-natal bleeding beginning at any point in the day.
- Substances taken as nourishment, such as an IV drip given for nutrition.
Qada and kaffarah
Most invalidations require making up that day (qada). Deliberate marital relations during a Ramadan day additionally require the expiation described in Sahih al-Bukhari 1936: freeing a slave, or fasting two consecutive months, or feeding sixty poor people.
Where scholars differ
Contemporary scholars differ over some medical procedures — non-nutritional injections, inhalers for asthma, blood tests and endoscopy. Many councils permit them; others advise caution and making the day up. Follow the ruling of the scholars you refer to.
Attribution: the rulings summarised here are the positions recorded in the classical schools and the well known hadith collections. They are presented for information, not as a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar in your community.
Frequently asked questions
Does an accidental sip break the fast?
Eating or drinking forgetfully does not break the fast; stop as soon as you remember and continue (Sahih al-Bukhari 1933).
Does bleeding or a blood test break the fast?
A small blood draw does not according to most contemporary scholars; large-volume donation is discouraged during fasting hours because of weakness.
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