Guidelines for Yom Kippur in a Normal Pregnancy Regarding the Fast

Guidelines for Yom Kippur in a Normal Pregnancy Regarding the Fast

In this article, we will review the guidelines for how a pregnant woman should conduct herself on Yom Kippur regarding the fast.

A pregnant woman, if everything is normal, may fast as usual, but she must be careful to follow several guidelines:

A. Complete rest is required in an air-conditioned place.

B. If necessary, if there is weakness, she may also recite the silent prayer while sitting.

C. If possible, it is preferable to recite the vidui once while standing, at least Ashamnu. (If she is very weak, there is no need to recite even the vidui while standing.)

D. It should be noted that if she does not have the strength to pray everything, the most important part on Yom Kippur is the vidui, and it takes precedence over all the other prayers.

E. The most important matter is the fast, and it takes precedence over the prayers of both the woman and the husband. That is, if in order for the woman to be able to rest, the husband will also be unable to pray, it is preferable that both of them not pray and that the woman fast; where possible, they should pray individually.

F. It is not recommended for any pregnant woman to go to synagogue during the day, but only to rest at home .

G. If there are children at home, one must arrange for someone to care for them so that the mother can rest.

H. If there is no older daughter or someone who can care for the children, the husband is obligated to pray at home and forgo praying in the synagogue .

I. There is a good practice that a woman who is forbidden to fast and is obligated to eat as usual should watch the children of another woman who can fast provided that she rests; in this way she shares in her friend’s fast.

J. If it is not possible to fast completely, the first preference is to drink and eat less than the halachic measure. We will explain in detail what this means and under what conditions a pregnant woman should begin drinking in measured amounts.

Eating and drinking in measured amounts

According to Torah law, the prohibition to eat and drink applies only at a certain measure, while less than this measure is prohibited only rabbinically, or under the law that “half a measure is prohibited by Torah law”; however, its status is more lenient than that of a person who does not fast at all. Therefore, when necessary, it is preferable to eat and drink in measured amounts rather than break the fast completely. In practice, from the body’s perspective, all bodily needs can be supplied through measured amounts, unless a person has already reached a state of danger in which he requires a large quantity, or a patient for whom eating in measured amounts may endanger his condition, even if the risk is in fact only emotional and psychological.

To determine the measure, one must pay attention to two parameters: how much one may eat or drink, and when one may again eat or drink that measure.

Drinking – every 9 minutes, a drink of 40 cc. If necessary, one may reduce this to 4,  and if there is a more urgent need, every 2 minutes .

Eating – a volume of up to 30 cc (approximately the size of a matchbox together with the box).

There is no halachic difference whether one drinks water, juice, or soup; therefore, the recommendation is to include natural juices as well, such as grape juice or apple juice, or chicken soup, Ensure, and the like. (In cases of diabetes, one must clarify carefully exactly what is permitted and recommended — and whether it is permitted to fast by consuming measured amounts.)

Likewise, there is no difference regarding food whether one eats a concentrated food such as a biscuit or cracker, or a food that contains air, or one with low caloric value. Therefore, when eating in measured amounts, a concentrated food that is satiating is always preferable.

In practice, most of the difficulty in fasting in general, and especially during pregnancy and nursing, relates to drinking rather than eating. If one drinks 40 cc every 9 minutes, this amounts to 240–280 cc per hour, which is certainly a sufficient amount of water. Even if one does not remember to drink exactly every 9 minutes, one can easily reach a cup of water, or at least half a cup, per hour. And when necessary, if one reduces the interval to 4 minutes and persists for a full hour in drinking every 4 minutes, this amounts to 600 cc. If later, as needed, one repeats such an hour once or twice more, it is easy to reach the recommended quantity of water for a pregnant woman at rest in an air-conditioned place over a 24-hour period.

Therefore, it is important to pay attention to early signs indicating when one may begin drinking in measured amounts.

   When does one begin drinking in measured amounts?

In the following situations, one may begin drinking in measured amounts:

1. A severe headache (somewhat stronger than what occurs during a regular fast).
2. Unusual abdominal pains.
3. Pain in the lower abdomen.
4. When back pains appear.
5. Contractions (when she usually does not have contractions).
6. Dizziness that does not pass when lying down.
7. When there is great weakness or she sees black circles.
8. Vomiting or diarrhea (nausea without vomiting is not dangerous).
9. If it is necessary to calm nausea and vomiting only through food, she may also eat less than the measure .
10. During a fast there is more nausea, and a woman who knows that her nausea leads to vomiting must be careful to avoid dehydration.
11. If there is a sudden attack of hunger in the middle of the night or also during the day.
12. Bleeding.
13. Water breaking.
14. If she does not feel fetal movements for several hours — she should lie on her left side for an hour and concentrate.
15. If she still does not feel movements, she should drink something sweet in measured amounts .
16. If she still does not feel movements, she should go to the emergency room as soon as possible .
17. If she had contractions before Yom Kippur, she should drink in measured amounts from the beginning of the fast.
18. Until the ninth month, if a strong contraction begins during the fast, she should drink in measured amounts.
19. From the ninth month, if she has a contraction, even if it is not strong, she should drink in measured amounts.
20. Whether before the ninth month or afterward — if she has regular contractions, namely 3 contractions in an hour, she should immediately drink 2 liters of fluids without measured amounts.
21. If there are regular contractions and labor is developing, she should drink normally, and if she also needs food, she should eat normally, so that she arrives at childbirth with strength .

Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim, sec. 618).