Question: May a person take “easy fast” tablets, vitamins or other medication before Yom HaKipurim in order to reduce headaches, hunger or weakness during the fast? May medication or a suppository be used during the fast itself for the same purpose?
RAMI: The Torah commands us to observe Yom HaKipurim through affliction, the principal expression of which is abstaining from food and drink throughout the day. Nevertheless, this does not mean that a person must deliberately make the fast more painful or difficult than the Torah requires.
Indeed, the Gemara teaches that eating on 9 Tishri in preparation for the fast is itself a mitzvah and is regarded as though one had fasted on both the ninth and the tenth (Yoma 81b). Rashi explains that we eat beforehand so that we will be able to fast properly on the following day. The Rosh further understands this as an expression of G-D’s kindness towards Israel: we are commanded to prepare and strengthen ourselves before entering the fast.
Accordingly, a person may eat nourishing food, drink sufficiently and take reasonable measures before the fast to make its observance easier. One who commonly experiences severe headaches, weakness or other significant symptoms may therefore take an “easy fast” preparation, vitamins or an appropriate permitted medication before the fast begins. Such preparation does not negate the mitzvah, because the required affliction consists primarily of abstaining from eating and drinking, not of deliberately producing additional suffering. Rabbi Ovadia Yosef rules accordingly in שו"ת יביע אומר — Responsa Yabia Omer, permitting such tablets before the fast for someone who suffers considerably while fasting.
However, a distinction should be made between preparation before Yom HaKipurim and the use of a medical preparation during the fast merely to suppress ordinary hunger or discomfort. Although a non-oral treatment such as a suppository does not constitute eating or drinking in the usual halakhic sense, חזון עובדיה — Chazon Ovadia rules that it should not ordinarily be used during Yom HaKipurim solely to make the fast more comfortable. Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach similarly regarded the deliberate removal of the ordinary sensations of fasting during the fast itself as inconsistent with the spirit of the Torah’s command.
Nevertheless, health takes precedence over unnecessary stringency. If a person becomes unwell, experiences abnormal weakness or fears that continuing without treatment may force him to eat or drink, he may use an appropriate non-oral medication. A person with diabetes, a serious medical condition or prescribed medication must obtain individual medical and halakhic guidance before the fast and must not endanger himself. Where eating, drinking or medication is medically required, observing those instructions is itself required by Halakha.
Therefore, “easy fast” tablets and similar preparations may be taken before Yom HaKipurim, particularly by someone who normally suffers greatly while fasting. During the fast, medication intended only to eliminate ordinary hunger or discomfort should generally be avoided, while treatment required to prevent illness or a genuine risk to health may—and when necessary must—be used.
###
RAMI Q&A is a regular Jewish Dispatch column addressing questions on Torah, ethics, faith, culture, and the practical challenges of modern life. Each response is grounded in Jewish thought, clarity of reasoning, and fidelity to first principles, offering considered answers rather than opinion or sentiment. To submit a question, email ask@ramibenzeev.org.
Rabbi Rami ben Ze’ev was previously known as Ram ben Ze’ev. The addition of the letter י represents a personal step of spiritual refinement and deeper alignment with Torah, expressing humility, growth, and a strengthened commitment to the service of G-D. All teachings and writings are now published under this name.