Fasting During Pregnancy: What to Tell a Patient Before Yom Kippur

Pregnant women often ask if they can fast on Yom Kippur. The answer is not a simple yes or no—it’s a conversation at the crossroads of medicine, faith, and ethics.

The week before Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year, a 28-week pregnant patient came to see me. She is Jewish, and every year since adulthood she has fasted on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. She looked at me and asked a simple but profound question: “Doctor, can I fast this year?”

It is not just a medical question. It is also religious, cul…