Wednesday 04/February/2026 – 11:19 PM
Dr. Zainab Al-Saeed, Fatwa Secretary at the Egyptian Fatwa House, answered a question about the ruling on a woman having istihaadah blood during the day in the month of Ramadan, explaining that istihaadah blood is the blood that comes out of a woman other than the time of menstrual blood, either less than the minimum duration of menstruation or more than its longest duration, explaining that the minimum period of menstruation is three days and the maximum is ten days, and any blood that is less than three days or more than ten days is considered istihaadah blood.
Does istihaadah blood during the day in Ramadan invalidate the fast? The Fatwa Secretary answers
The Fatwa Secretary at the Egyptian Fatwa House explained, during television statements, that a woman in the case of istihaadah is considered a pure woman from a legal standpoint, and she is permitted to fast, pray, and practice her normal life without embarrassment, stressing that istihaadah blood does not prevent fasting or spoil it in any way.
Dr. Zainab Al-Saeed explained that the rulings on istihaadah differ from the rulings on menstruation, explaining that the woman with istihaadah prays and fasts, and all she is required to do is perform ablution for every prayer after the time for it begins. If the time for noon prayer begins, she performs ablution for the noon prayer, and if the time for the afternoon prayer begins, she performs ablution for the afternoon prayer, without any prohibition on her from other acts of worship, indicating that fasting on the days of istihaadah is completely valid and there is nothing wrong with it.
The Fatwa Secretary confirmed that this ruling is established in the Sunnah of the Prophet, as one of the wives of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, asked him about menstrual blood, so he ordered her to pray and fast, but did not forbid her from any of that, which indicates that menstrual blood does not affect the validity of acts of worship, unlike menstrual blood, which has different rulings.
Dr. Zainab Al-Saeed distinguished between istihaadah blood and menstrual blood, explaining that blood that is more than three days and less than ten days is menstrual blood, and menstruation is considered an obstacle to fasting, prayer, and marital relations, stressing that a woman during her menstrual period is not required to fast, and it is forbidden for her to fast Ramadan on these days, provided that after the end of the month she counts the days that she broke the fast due to menstruation, and it is obligatory for her to make up these days at another time.
