Abstinence is the deprivation, denial or renunciation of something, usually pleasurable or desired, or withdrawal of the freedom to do something in the direction of a goal.

Withdrawal can be voluntary, for religious or moral reasons, or forced or forced. An example of abstinence or continence is the abstinence of a food for a religious reason, such as abstinence from meat and not fish by the Catholic Church on certain days of the year or abstinence from pork and impure animals for The Jews and the Muslims.

The term abstinence comes from the Latin abstinentia, which derives from the word abstemius, which refers to the person who abstains from something, this word is formed by the prefix ab-, which means far from and temum, which means wine. The Latin term derives from the Greek term ἐγκράτεια , and this one from the Hebrew words anneh, hissamor.

Abstinence is an often forced and abrupt decision, which makes the individual no longer do one thing, such as drinking, smoking or using or using drugs. Withdrawal is closely linked to toxic substances, such as alcohol or drugs. There are other types of abstinence, such as abstinence from food or drink, disciplinary abstinence, sexual abstinence, etc.

The sexual abstinence is the deprivation of sex or sex, often with the aim of preventing diseases such as AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Sexual abstinence is closely related to chastity, and is practiced by young people of some religions, in favor of their devotion.

Along with withdrawal, there are symptoms and the crisis or withdrawal syndrome, which are sudden behavioral changes, usually as hallucinations and seizures in people who are very dependent on something. This expression is often used when it is related to drugs or some medications, and that generates physical and psychological dependence.

Fasting, diet or regimen, are temporary or partial abstinence from food or beverages.