Karwa Chauth fasting means a challenge on a food-restricted and fluid-restricted day to all married women who observe this fast. No liquid intake when it is hot outside in the month of October when this festival falls becomes easier if you eat and drink a few foods and beverages early in the morning at the time of performing the ‘Sargi’ ritual.

Here is the list of foods and drinks that one should have to curb thirst and hunger for the whole day until moonrise:

Nuts like almonds and walnuts are full of protein and other nutrients. They keep you full for long and keep hunger at bay once eaten a handful. Eat dates and figs as they give the body the energy kick it needs without leaving you too full to breathe.

Avocados are packed with nutrients and are also loaded with healthy fats and fat-soluble vitamins that leave you feeling full for long time.

You can have a bowl of oatmeal. It is high in fibre keeping you full for longer due to its high content of complex carbs which take a while to be digested.

Eat chilled grapes, chilled peach slices, a handful of chilled berries, a bowl of chilled pomegranate and a cold refreshing apple to keep thirst at bay for rest of the day.

A plate full of chilled watermelon can also be eaten to quench your thirst for long hours.

Yogurt is great to keep thirst at bay. Add fruits to a bowl full of fresh yogurt as fruits are filled with water and help you retain it over rest of the day.

Drink a glass full of chilled lemon water adding some fresh mint leaves and frozen lemon slices. It will refresh your mouth and keep your thirst at bay for long.

A plate full of chilled cucumber slices, carrot slices and radish slices topped with celery is a great thirst quencher food. This salad is full of water and keeps releasing water in your body as it is being digested.

Few tips to help you keep Karwa Chauth fast without feeling hungry and thirsty:

Drink ice-cold homemade fresh beverages containing lemon and mint but no artificial sugar.

Minimise sugar intake during sargi time as a high sugar level in the blood will increase your thirst.

Minimize salty food intake to help control thirst for long.

Avoid eating fried foods. Deep-fried foods leave you bloated and feeling heavy and thirsty.

Caffeine is a diuretic which means it stimulates the process of excreting water. So coffee will leave you feeling thirsty. Avoid drinking it completely.

Avoid eating high-calorie foods. They increase your blood sugar levels which leave you feeling hungry soon.

Do not eat spicy foods in sargi. Spicy food will leave you feeling thirsty.

If your mouth becomes very dry, rinse it with a mouth wash or cold water. Remember to spit it out.

Spend the hot part of the day in the air conditioner if possible. Staying cool will help reduce your thirst.

Although sargi is a feasting time, sure and we all enjoy eating scrumptious foods. But, all too often we are left either too hungry or too thirsty because we choose wrong foods and beverages in the mere one hour allowed to eat and drink in the early morning on Karwa Chauth day. Follow these tips and enjoy Karwa Chauth fasting.

Happy Karwa Chauth ladies!