Question #325:
Is it permissible to inhale steam (without medicine in it) as a medical treatment during fasting hours of Ramaḍān? Will this break the fast?
Answer:
Shaykh Ṣāliḥ al-Fawzān -may Allāh preserve him- was asked concerning this; steam for those who use the sauna during their fast, does this effect ones ṣaum (fast)?
The Shaykh replied: “No, but he should avoid breathing in this steam, so it enters into his throat, but if it enters without intention then his ṣaum is correct.
I also asked our Shaykh ʿAdnān al-Masqarī -may Allāh preserve him- concerning the same question and he said: “No, this does not break the fast so long as it does not enter one’s throat similar to the istinshāq (sniffing water into the nose) for the one making wudūʾ“.
Summary: The using of the steam for the cleaning of the nostril area or the cases of a blocked nose for the one suffering from a cold, does not harm one’s fast. However one should be cautious that the steam does not enter the throat.
Answered by: Abū Hārūn Muḥammad ʿAbdin-Nūr