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The Islamic Bulletin
Volume XX No. 26
Page 29
I
SLAMIC
D
IETARY
L
AWS
a chemical substance which can be injurious to human health. 98% of
the body’s uric acid is extracted from the blood by the kidneys and
removed through urination. Medical science finds that there is a risk
for various diseases the pig is found to be a host for many parasites and
potential diseases. It is important to note that the pig ‘s biochemistry
excretes only 2% of its total uric acid content, the remaining 98%
remains as an integral part of the body.
Plus as everyone knows that swine (pig) eats its own
excretion, which means that of all the uric acid and the other waste
products excreted, most of it goes back inside again.
Read The Labels
The law requires that food manufacturers provide ingredient information
on the food labels. That makes our job easier. All we need is to read
the labels carefully
.
To be sure, ingredient labels are not the most readable
part of many food packages, and they may not always contain sufficient
information to determine the
Halal
status of a product. But reading
food ingredient labels is the first essential step in that direction. As you
read the labels, especially look for the following ingredients.
Bakery and Cereal Products
Look for these in all bakery and cereal products: Gelatin, mono- and
di-glycerides, animal shortening, whey. In cereals look for
marshmallows. (They contain gelatin)
Fruits and Vegetables
Additives and preservatives may be added in the preparation of
processed
and canned
fruits and vegetables. Look for: Gelatin, mono-
and di-glyceride, cheeses, alcohol or wine.
Candies
Look for: Animal fat, gelatin, alcohol, whey, glycerol, glycerine, and
marshmallows.
Meet The Suspects
Now that we have learned how to spot the suspect ingredients on a
food label, here is more information that will help us decide whether
these ingredients can be considered Halal
or non-Halal.
Lard
Lard is a saturated fat obtained from swine (pigs], particularly from the
abdominal cavity of the animal. Any food containing lard is
completely
Haram.
Mono- and di-glycerides
Mono-glyceride and di-glyceride are lipid (fat) molecules used as
emulsifiers in shortening, bakery, and dairy products. These may be
manufactured from vegetable oils, beef fat,
lard,
or marine oils.
Therefore, Muslims should stick to labels saying vegetable or marine
mono- and di-glvcerides.
Shortening
Shortening is a blend of fat and/or oil. If the label simply says
‘shortening’, stay away from it; it may even be lard. When the label
says ‘vegetable shortening’ without listing all the vegetable sources or
adding, the words “pure” or “100%”. Even 1% lard will make it
100%
haram.
Enzymes
Enzymes are a protein substance found and formed in all living cells
that bring about chemical reactions inside or outside of the body.
Enzymes can be extracted from animal sources, calves and pigs.
Vegetable enzymes are okay.
When In Doubt
Remember, you can always look for the symbols
K
or
U
which is
Halal
(but not on alcoholic items). Absolutely no pork and if unsure choose
vegetable ingredients.
Why Bother?
In
a way, the life of a Muslim revolves around the concept
of Halal.
He
or she must earn income from Halal sources, be involved only in
Halal
transactions, and eat
Halal
food. In every walk of life, staying away
from
Haram
is a lifelong struggle. It is obvious that Muslims should
seek an education and training for their children that will well prepare
them for this. Education of Muslim children can not be complete if it
fails to inculcate in them a strong faith in the superiority of
Halal
practices.
P
ORK AND
ITS HARMFUL
EFFECTS
Pork-prohibited in Qur’an
The Qur’an prohibits the consumption of pork in no less than
4 different places. Quran 2:173, 5:3, 6:145 and 16:115.
He has only forbidden you carrion, blood and
pork and what has been consecrated to other than Allah.
But anyone who is forced to eat it-without desiring it or
going to excess in it-commits no crime. Allah is Ever-
Forgiving, Most Merciful
.
(Qur’an, 2:173)
Pork prohibited in the Bible
The Bible prohibits the consumption of pork,
“You shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall
not touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.”
Leviticus
11:7-8
Pork is also prohibited in the book of Deuteronomy,
“Thou shall not eat of the swine nor shall you
touch its dead carcasses.”
Deuteronomy 14:8
Eating pork is harmful to health in a great many regards.
This harm still persists today, despite all the precautions that are
taken. First and foremost, no matter how clean the farms and
environments on which it is raised may be, the pig is not by nature
a clean-
living
animal. It
often
plays in,
and even
eats, its
own
excre-
ment.
Due to
this and
its
biologi-
cal
structure,
the pig
pro-
duces
much
higher
levels of antibodies in its body than other animals. In addition, far
higher levels of growth hormone are produced in the pig com-
pared to those in other animals and human beings. Naturally,
these high levels of antibodies and growth hormone pass across to
and collect in the pig’s muscle tissue. Pork meat also contains high
levels of cholesterol and lipids. It has been scientifically proven
that these significant amounts of antibodies, hormones, cholesterol
and lipids in pork represent a serious threat to human health.
Eating of pork can cause no less than seventy different types
of diseases. A person can have various Helminthes, like roundworm,
pinworm, hookworm, etc. One of the most dangerous is Taenia
Solium, which in a layman’s terminology is called tapeworm. It
harbours in the intestine and is very long. Its ova i.e. eggs, enter the
blood stream and can reach almost all the organs of the body. If it
enters the brain it can cause memory loss. If it enters the heart it can
cause heart attack and if it enters the eye it can cause blindness. If it
enters the liver it can cause liver damage. It can damage almost all the
organs of the body.
Another dangerous helminthes is Taenia Tichurasis. A com-
mon misconception about pork is that if it is cooked well, these ova
die. In a research project undertaken in America, it was found that
out of 24 people suffering from Taenia tichurasis, 22 had cooked the
pork very well. This indicates that the ovas present in the pork do not
die under normal cooking temperature.
When exposed to excessive quantities of growth hor-
mone as a result of a pork-based diet, the human body first puts
on excessive weight and then suffers physical deformations.
Islam has prohibited blood of any type. A chemical
analysis of blood shows that it contains an abundance of uric acid,