Short answer
Yes, if fasting would harm you or your baby. A pregnant or breastfeeding woman who has a reasonable fear of harm, based on experience or a doctor's advice, may leave the fast and make up the days later. In the Hanafi school there is no fidya, only qada. The Shafi'i and Hanbali schools add fidya when the fear is only for the baby.
A pregnant or breastfeeding woman who has a reasonable fear of harm to herself or her child may leave the fast and makes up the days later; no fidya is due, whatever the reason for the fear. If she can fast without harm, she fasts.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- If she feared only for the baby, she makes up the days and also gives one mudd of food per day as fidya.
- Hanbali
- If she feared only for the baby, she makes up the days and also gives fidya for each day.
- Maliki
- A pregnant woman makes up the days only; a breastfeeding woman who leaves the fast for the baby's sake makes up the days and gives fidya.
Explanation
The Prophet ﷺ said that Allah has lifted the fast from the traveller, and from the pregnant and the breastfeeding woman. The Hanafi school reads this together with the verse on the sick and the traveller: the fast is postponed, not cancelled, so the days are made up later and nothing else is owed.
How to judge. The test is a reasonable fear of harm, not a guess. It can be based on your own experience in a previous pregnancy, on clear signs such as dizziness, dehydration or a drop in milk supply, or on the advice of a competent doctor. Many women fast comfortably in a healthy pregnancy, especially in shorter winter days; others cannot. Both are within the sharia.
- If you start a fast and then fear harm, you may break it and owe qada only.
- Missed days can be made up after the baby is born or weaned. The Hanafi school sets no deadline.
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding years can leave many days to make up. Spread them out; the qada calculator helps you track them.
Women who follow the Shafi'i or Hanbali schools add fidya for each day when the fear was only for the baby. See what is fidya and when to make up missed fasts. Because health cases vary, speak to a qualified mufti and your doctor about your situation.
Ask a mufti about your own case. This answer explains the general ruling. When the details of your situation matter, as they do here, ask a qualified mufti and give them the full facts. Where to ask a scholar.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Baqara 2:185
شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ هُدًۭى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَٰتٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ ٱلشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ ۖ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍۢ فَعِدَّةٌۭ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ ۗ يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ بِكُمُ ٱلْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ ٱلْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا۟ ٱلْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ مَا هَدَىٰكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿١٨٥﴾
The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey - then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship and [wants] for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful.
The concession for those who would be harmed by fasting comes from Allah's wish for ease.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 715
Graded hasan sahih... إن الله وضع عن المسافر الصوم وشطر الصلاة وعن الحامل أو المرضع الصوم ...
"Allah has lifted the fast and half the prayer from the traveller, and the fast from the pregnant or breastfeeding woman."
Pregnant and breastfeeding women are excused in the same way as the traveller, who makes up the days.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Sawm, chapter on what requires qada and kaffarah, section on those excused. The pregnant and breastfeeding woman who fears for herself or her child may leave the fast and make it up, with no fidya.
- al-Majmu' (Nawawi), Kitab al-Siyam. The Shafi'i view requiring fidya when the fear is only for the child.
- Mukhtasar Khalil with al-Sharh al-Kabir, Bab al-Siyam. The Maliki distinction between the pregnant and the breastfeeding woman.
This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.