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Fasting in the Catholic Church involves specific rules and practices, primarily observed during Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and Fridays in Lent. The Church encourages Catholics aged 18 to 59 to engage in fasting, which is defined as reducing food intake to one full meal and two smaller meals that together do not equal a full meal. Certain individuals, such as the pregnant, nursing, or those with medical conditions, are exempt from the fasting obligation.
Fasting is closely linked with abstinence, which primarily involves refraining from eating meat on particular days such as all Fridays during Lent, Ash Wednesday, and Good Friday. Historically, Catholics were obligated to fast from midnight until receiving the Eucharist; this has since shifted to one hour before Mass.