You generally do not eat or drink on Yom Kippur, but there are important exceptions for health, age, and safety. Jewish law treats preserving life and health as more important than fasting, so some people are not only allowed but actually obligated to eat.

Core rule: Fasting is the norm

  • Yom Kippur is observed as a full fast from both food and drink for about 25 hours, from just before sunset until after nightfall the next day.
  • Traditional Jewish law says that healthy adults above bar/bat mitzvah age (13 for boys, 12 for girls) should fast.
  • The fast is one of the “afflictions” of the day, meant to help people focus on prayer, reflection, and atonement rather than physical comfort.

So for a healthy adult, the standard expectation is: no eating, no drinking, all Yom Kippur.

When you can (and should) eat

There is a very strong principle in Jewish law: preserving life overrides almost every religious obligation. You can or must eat on Yom Kippur if fasting would seriously endanger your health. Common examples:

  • Serious illness or medical risk
    • A person whose health could be harmed by fasting (heart issues, diabetes, certain chronic conditions, etc.) may be required to eat or drink as needed, often following a doctor’s and rabbi’s guidance.
  • Pregnancy and postpartum
    • A pregnant woman fasts only if this does not endanger her or the fetus; if there is medical risk, she may eat and drink, sometimes in small measured amounts.
* A woman within about three days of giving birth is generally told **not** to fast; after that, it depends on her condition, and health risk overrides fasting.
  • Breastfeeding mothers
    • If fasting may harm the mother or baby (for example, the baby relies solely on her milk), she may eat and drink according to medical and rabbinic guidance.
  • People with eating disorders or other sensitive conditions
    • Contemporary rabbinic and educational initiatives emphasize that someone for whom fasting is dangerous—such as a person with an eating disorder—should eat to stay safe and not feel guilty about it.

In practice, many rabbis instruct people in these categories to eat in small, spaced-out quantities when possible (less than specific halachic amounts over several minutes), but if that is not enough to protect health, they are told to eat normally.

What about children?

  • Children under about 9 should not fast at all and should eat and drink normally.
  • From around 9–11 , some families gently train children by delaying meals a bit, but not a full fast.
  • Only once they reach religious adulthood (12 for girls, 13 for boys) is the full fast expected for a healthy child.

So yes, many kids do eat on Yom Kippur, and that is considered proper observance for their age.

Are there people who are told not to fast?

Yes. In modern guidance, some groups emphasize that for those who cannot fast safely, “it is a mitzvah (commandment) to eat” —meaning that eating in that situation is a religiously positive, life‑protecting act, not a failure.

Examples:

  • People with serious medical conditions where fasting is risky.
  • Postpartum women in the first days after birth.
  • Some soldiers on active, dangerous duty, who are explicitly told not to fast so they do not endanger themselves or their mission.

Practical takeaway

  • If you are healthy and an adult : the answer to “can you eat during Yom Kippur?” is basically no , you are expected to fast.
  • If you are sick, pregnant, postpartum, have an eating disorder, are very frail, or caring for a baby , the answer may be yes, you should eat (sometimes in small amounts, sometimes normally) —ideally under medical and rabbinic guidance.
  • Children and those whose health is at risk absolutely can eat , and in many cases are religiously obligated to do so.

For any personal situation, the safest move is to speak with a medical professional and a competent rabbinic authority, since Jewish law is very protective of health and life.

Bottom note: Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.