Surviving the holidays: gender differences in mortality in the context of three Moslem holidays.

"It was hypothesized that holy days may affect mortality patterns differentially by gender. The present study focused on Moslems in Israel.... After removing the long-term growth and the seasonal effects, women's mortality was found to be significantly greater in the month of Ramadan than in the month before, and in the two weeks before the feast of 'Id el-Adhha than in the two weeks after it. For men, mortality was higher in the two weeks after the feast of 'Id el-Fitr than in the two weeks before it."