Background: Spiritual health has attracted wide attention in health-related and nursing sciences. However, most research on this complex and ambiguous concept has been conducted from the Judeo-Christian philosophical worldview, and the Muslim community that comprises a large population of the world, and particularly the Iranian population, has not been investigated. Objectives: The present study aimed to explore the experiences of Iranian Muslim adults regarding spiritual health. Methods: This qualitative content analysis was conducted among 14 participants. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection, and Granheim and Lundman (2004) method was used for qualitative content analysis. The results were categorized into six major themes. Results: The six major themes extracted for spiritual health included harmonious reciprocal connectedness, moderation, spiritual striving, transcendence, purpose seeking and wisdom thinking, and faith. These characteristics were reciprocally interconnected and intertwined. It should be noted that some of the extracted attributes were quite new. Conclusions: Considering the cultural and philosophical foundations of different communities, assessment of spiritual health in different societies would reveal novel and innovative aspects of this concept. Paying attention to these aspects is essential in the health promotion.

Background: Spiritual health is a complex concept and it is important to review its promotion and evolution from a Muslim point of view in Iran. So, the present study was designed to explore the process of spiritual health promotion among Iranian Muslims. Materials and Methods: This study is a grounded theory in which the continuous comparative analysis method Strauss & Corbin (1998) was used to analyze data. This study’ s sampling method was purposive in trying to select participants with the maximum variation. Results: The “ striving effort to promote spiritual health” was the core category which was the participants’ strategy of the participants to confront their main concern, “ to achieve transcendence” . The essential spiritual process in this study was “ the journey in the transcendence path” . People would find the purpose and meaning of life by interconnecting and relying on their inner forces, and by establishing the moderation between the dimensions of existence. In this way, individuals will become closer to human perfection with the help of these components. They will achieve immersive wellbeing and moral maturity through the consolidation of spiritual health. Such a person lives to serve among the people. Conclusions: Adult promotion of spiritual health is dynamic and complex. The main process in this path is spiritual growth, which begins and continues as a result of the striving to advance spiritual health and refinement. Considering these findings has become a concern for holistic care within the scope of nursing care.

The number of traveling Muslims has increased substantially, and demands for Islamic facilities and services that adhere to their religious practices are growing exponentially. This creates business opportunities for service providers in Muslim and non-Muslim countries alike. Propelled by the growth of this new market segment, service providers such as airlines and hotels have customized aspects of their businesses to accommodate these niche demands. However, some industry players willfully ignore this market, either for fear of losing non-Muslim customers or lacking the know-how to tap into this lucrative new market. This research benchmarked some service providers (hotels) worldwide and conducted a content analysis of their websites to identify the services they provided for Muslims. The evidence shows that some hotels worldwide provide limited services to satisfy Muslim needs. Most of these hotels did not provide information about their Islamic facilities on their website, including some hotels in Islamic countries. This can be related to the social pressure (non-Muslim tourist markets), which prevents service providers from advertising their services. Lack of knowledge and research on the factors that prevent service providers from serving Muslim tourists and little information about their challenges make this area unexplored. Future research should test the research model proposed by this study and identify the factors influencing the service provider’s intention to serve the Muslim market and the barriers. This paper can serve as a guideline for industry players to partake in this growing and lucrative market.

Introduction: Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, has special religious importance among Muslims. During this month, Muslim adults and adolescents (who have reached the age of adulthood according to the Islamic rules) fast. Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders present with symptoms generally called GI discomforts such as heartburn, abdominal pain, dyspepsia, constipation, bloating, and irritable bowel syndrome. This study aimed to assess the effects of Ramadan fasting on GI discomfort. Methods: One hundred fasting subjects were enrolled in the study. Personal information (age, gender, education level, and occupation) was collected from participants and they were assured that their information would remain confidential. Participants had to fill out a food questionnaire before and in the third week of Ramadan. Food patterns were identified by factor analysis. The relationship between dietary food patterns and GI symptoms was assessed by logistic regression analysis. Result: The results of logistic regression analyses of the association between dietary patterns and the development of GI discomforts in Ramadan represented that adherence to high fat and protein dietary patterns significantly reduced dyspepsia and diarrhea (P<0. 05) while adherence to relatively healthy dietary pattern caused a marginally significant reduction in constipation (P<0. 1). Conclusion: This study showed that total energy intake during Ramadan fasting did not differ compared to before the month while the dietary patterns changed significantly. The full-fat diet reduced hunger pain and constipation but increased diarrhea while a healthy diet reduced dyspepsia and diarrhea during fasting.

document number: 112