Ramadan, the ninth month of the Muslim year, during which strict fasting is observed in daylight hours, begins on 18 June this year and ends on the evening of 17 July. Many Muslims try to give up bad habits during Ramadan and some will pray more or read the Koran.

Does Ramadan always start on the same day?

No. Because Ramadan is a lunar month, it begins about 11 days earlier each year. During a Muslim’s life, Ramadan will fall during winter months, when the days are short, and summer months, when the days are long and the fast is more difficult – especially for those living in northern Europe.

This can pose problems for Muslims in the UK, where believers can be fasting for more than six hours longer than those in Mecca. And, in some of Europe’s northern-most towns, the sun sets for just two hours or less, leaving a fleetingly brief window for observant Muslims to break their fast. In the Swedish town of Kiruna, The Independent reports, the sun will not set until August and Muslims have been advised to fast “between the times that the sun was last clearly seen to rise and fall”.

Some scholars have suggested that the Muslim diaspora use Mecca time to measure their fast, but the idea remains controversial, with many believers still opting to face fast days as long as 19 hours.

Why is the month so significant?

Principally because it is the month that Allah revealed the Koran to the last Prophet, Muhammad.

Why do Muslims fast during Ramadan?

The practice is intended to help teach Muslims “self-discipline, self-restraint and generosity”, the BBC says. It’s common to have one meal (known as the suhoor) just before sunrise and another (known as the iftar) directly after sunset. Writing in The Independent, Arifa Akbar says when she was a Muslim child growing up in the UK non-Muslims used to warn her that fasting was unhealthy. Now, she writes, “fasting seems to have been reinvented as the ancients saw it – a way of giving the body a rest, cleansing both physically and spiritually, and a way of sharpening our collective sense of self-restraint”.

Who is exempt from fasting?

Those who are not required to fast during Ramadan are non-Muslims, young children, the sick or those with mental illnesses, travellers, the elderly and women who are menstruating, pregnant, breast-feeding or have recently had a baby, says Al Jazeera. In previous years, Olympic athletes have been considered exempt from the fast, and at the 2014 World Cup some Muslim footballers also made use of the exemption available to travellers.

Are there any tips for fasting during Ramadan?

The NHS has a section on its website full of tips for staying healthy during Ramadan. It suggests eating at least two meals a day – the pre-dawn suhoor meal and iftar at dusk – and including complex carbohydrates that help release energy slowly. This includes foods such as wheat, oats, lentils and basmati rice.

High-fat and high-sugar foods are not recommended. The NHS suggests baked samosas, boiled dumplings, grilled meat and milk-based puddings as good alternatives to less-healthy fried food.

Dr Razeen Mahroof, an anaesthetist from Oxford, says: “Ramadan isn’t always thought of as being an opportunity to lose weight because the spiritual aspect is emphasised more generally than the health aspect. However, it’s a great chance to get the physical benefits as well.” Nevertheless, Mahroof says a balanced diet is needed, with the right proportion of carbs, fat and protein, in order to see any benefits.

Google has also released a web portal that includes timetables for sunset and sunrise, as well as videos, maps for local restaurants and useful Ramadan apps.

Do employers make concessions during Ramadan?

Akbar says Ramadan is “marked far more openly in Britain” than it used to be and some employers have begun to adapt. Flexi-time is being offered to some Muslims undertaking a daily fast for 30 consecutive days that will involve around 19 hours of abstention from all food and drink between sunrise and sunset. Other companies are allowing Muslims to begin their working day later so they can catch up on sleep after waking up at 3am to eat. The NHS has a section on its website full of tips for staying healthy during Ramadan.

When does it end?

Ramadan ends this year on the evening of 17 July. Every Ramadan culminates with the festival of Eid ul-Fitr, which takes place either 29 or 30 days after the beginning of the month. Eid, as it is usually known, begins with morning prayers and is followed by feasting and celebration among family and friends. Some Muslims also celebrate Eid by wearing new clothes, giving each other gifts and decorating their homes.