Everything about Islamic Dietary Laws totally explained
» This is a sub-article to Hygiene in Islam, Healthy diet and Food and cooking hygiene.
Islamic dietary laws provide a set of rules as to what
Muslims eat in their diet and other areas.
Overview
Islamic jurisprudence specifies which foods are
halāl (lawful) and which are
harām (unlawful). This is based on rules found in the
Qur'an, the holy book of
Islam. Other rules are added to these in
fatwas by
Mujtahids with various degrees of strictness, but they're not always held to be authoritative by all.
Islamic law prohibits a
Muslim from consuming
alcohol, eating or drinking
blood and its by-products, and eating the meat of some
carnivores and
omnivores, such as
pork,
monkeys,
canines, and
felines (
Quran 5:3, 5:90).
Crab meat is also seen as prohibited by some of the Hanafi school, but the majority of Muslims consider all shellfish (including crabs, lobsters, shrimp, crayfish, and all non-poisonous mollusks) to be
halāl.
Healthy diet
A
healthy diet is considered important in Islam, although what constitutes such might not be necessarily in consideration of Western standards. Some Muslim scholars consider an excess of eating is a sin due to an interpretation of the following verse in the Qur'an:
Food and cooking hygiene
Food and cooking hygiene is an important part of Islamic dietary laws.
Dhabihah: Islamic slaughter
The proper Islamic method of slaughtering an animal is called
dhabihah. For the meat of a land animal to be halāl, it must be properly slaughtered by a Muslim or by the
People of the Book (
Christian or
Jew), while mentioning the name of God (
Allah in
Arabic). According to some
fatwas, the animal must be slaughtered only by a
Muslim. However, some different fatwas dispute this, and rule from the
Qur'anic position, according to verse 5:5 of the Qur'an, that an animal properly slaughtered by People of the Book (Jew or a Christian) is halāl. Thus, many observant Muslims will accept
kosher meat if halāl options are not available. Other main references in Qur'an include 2:173, 5:3, 5:5, 5:90, 6:118, 6:145, 16:115.
If there's doubt to anything being regarded as Halal or Haram, Muslims are generally advised to refrain from consumption until clarification or permissiveness is given by another Muslim learned in
Fiqh.
Animals for food may not be killed by being boiled or electrocuted, and the carcass should be hung upside down for long enough to be blood-free. Different rules apply to fish; for instance, fish with scales are always halāl, while it has been debated whether
shellfish and scaleless fishes, such as
catfish, are halāl, haraam or
makru (prohibitively disliked).
Food certification
Due to the recent rise in Muslim populations in the United States and Europe, certain organizations have emerged that can certify
halāl food products and ingredients for Muslim consumers. The
Muslim Consumer Group is an example of an organization that places certification labels such as the
H-MCG symbol to identify the halāl status of different edible and non-edible consumer products.
Prohibited food
Some animals and manners of death or preparation can make certain things
Haram to eat, that is,
taboo food and drink. These include what are regarded as
unclean animals.
Dead Animals
In Islam, there's a prohibition against the eating of dead animals. According to Islamic
Fiqh (Jurisprudence), this includes animals that die by drowning, fire, electrocution, trauma (for example "roadkill"), or by boiling while alive. (Permitted) animals must be killed by conscious slaughter or by hunting to allow (the most) blood to flow. The exceptions to these rules are generally creatures from the sea, which may die in while in open air.
Alcohol
In Islam, intoxication by
alcoholic beverages — or any intoxicant — is generally forbidden, but
alcohol is allowed to be used for medical and other purposes, for example industrial and automotive use.
Qur'anic verses don't expressly prohibit the consumption of alcohol, but it's normally prohibited by laws derived from the
Sunnah or
Hadith (actions and sayings of the Prophet and his companions).
Blood
Eating or drinking
blood and its by-products is forbidden.
Carnivores
Consumption of
carnivores is prohibited. However,
Piscivorous animals (animals that consume only fish), are not considered carnivorous.
Omnivores
Consumption of
omnivores, such as
pigs,
monkeys,
humans and
dogs, is prohibited.
Pork
Pork and products made from pork are strictly forbidden for consumption and handling in Islam.
Gelatin
Gelatin made from
porcine skin or bones, which makes up roughly 50% of the supply of gelatin on the market is forbidden.
Gelatin made from other animals, for example, fish, is acceptable. Kosher gelatin comes from certain fish to avoid the Kashrut prohibition against mixing meat (fish isn't considered meat) and dairy in the same meal. Therefore, gelatin in food items certified as Kosher is halāl, as it's from fish. However, it's typical to use algal sources of thickeners, in the home or in commercial products, to ensure they're halāl.
Other religions
Comparison of Dhabiĥa Halal and kashrutFurther Information
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