Is Vegetarianism Allowed in Islam (1)?

iStock_000017490436XSmallO, you who believe! Fulfill the obligations. The cattle quadrupeds are allowed to you, except that which is recited to you, not violating the prohibition against game when you are entering upon the performance of the pilgrimage. Surely, Allah orders what He desires. (al-Qur’an – Chapter 5, Verse 1)

In Qur’an Allah clearly states that He created the cattle for human benefit and consumption:

What! Do they not see that We have created the cattle for them, of what our hands have wrought, and of them, they are the masters? And, We subjected unto the cattle, and some of them they ride upon, and some of them they eat. And for them, in them are benefits and drinks. What! Will they not be grateful? (al-Qur’an – Chapter 36, Verses 71-73)

The Infallible (AS) have said: Of all the foods in the heaven and the earth, which can be taken with bread, meat is the best. Eating meat increases the growth of flesh and increases energy significantly.

In the Bible: For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. (Romans, 14:2)

Muhammad ibn Abdillah narrates from one of his companions that he said – I said to Abu Abdillah (AS) – May I be made your ransom! Why did Allah forbid the dead animal, blood and flesh of swine?

He said: Verily when Allah, the Blessed, the High, prohibited these to His servants and made the other things lawful to them, it was not because Allah liked these prohibited things for Himself; Blessed and High is He, nor did He dislike other things and so, allowed His servants to use it.

The fact is that He created the creatures and knew what would sustain their bodies and keep them in good health. Therefore, he made it lawful for them as a favor from Himself for their own well-being. Moreover, He knew what would be harmful to them, so He forbade it to them and made it unlawful. Yet He allowed it for those facing emergencies, and made it lawful to him when his body could not be sustained otherwise. Therefore, He ordered him partake from it to that amount which would avert the emergency, but not anymore.

Unless they choose a proper balance of foods, strict vegetarians are at risk for several deficiencies, especially vitamin B12. The other nutrients at risk are riboflavin, calcium, iron, and the essential amino acids lysine and methionine. Vegetarian children not exposed to sunlight are at risk for vitamin D deficiency. Zinc deficiency can occur in vegans because the phytic acid in whole grains binds zinc, and there is little zinc in fruits and vegetables. Since B12 is present only in animal foods and a limited number of specially fortified foods, vegans should probably take B12 supplements prescribed by a physician. Further, the symptoms of vegetarianism may include protein deficiency, amino acid and mineral depletion coupled with chronic low levels of energy. Islam’s inclination to ingesting meat is an important dietary advice to Muslims and a prescription to healthy life. Animal products have been researched to have powerful vibratory frequencies, healthy and nutritious. We should know that in Islam:

  Animals have been created mostly for the benefit of humankind; men are the masters of them.

  God has created cattle for men, in which there is a sign of God.

  Cattle have been made for man to ride on and to serve as food and for various other advantages.

  Man can make use of the flesh, skin, feathers, and bones of animals.

  Qur’an approves dogs to be used for hunting.

  It points out that man, through the application of his skill and intelligence, has been able to make multiple uses of the skin and hair of animals for his comforts and conveniences.

Recommended Times for Hijama-Therapy

Recommended-Times-for-Hijama-TherapyBest Weekday for Hijama
It is impossible to establish an universal rule for the best day of the week for Hijama. Many Muslims (especially from the sub-continent) consider Thursdays to be a specially blessed day of the week for Sakat (which means Charity, Welfare – it is one of the Five Pillars of Islam). Many Hakim (Muslim healers) see Thursdays as the best week day for a Hijama treatment. I too like to do special treatments on Thursdays but generally recommend to select less busy week days which you can relax on and use to focus on your well-being. The Hijama-session itself takes a total of approx. 1-2 hours.

Best Time of Day for Hijama
The best day time for Hijama is – similar to cupping and leeching – in the morning and before lunch time. Ideally you have eaten nothing or little before the treatment. There is only some bleeding after a Hijama session, and you can be active again soon. Should you give more blood during a session, you should rest for the remainder of the day. After treatment  you should enjoy fresh vegetables and fruit, drink plenty of water, herbal teas (such as Nettle tea and Peppermint) and fresh juices that nourish, delight and replenish you.

Ideal Days of the Month for Hijama
We can observe the power of the moon in plants, animals and natural events and we can also observe it in ourselves. The tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon and the Sun and the rotation of the Earth. The water of the seas is slightly lifted due to the gravity of the moon while the Earth underneath the seas keeps on rotating. The Moon is indeed so powerful, some scientist propose that the tidal effect of the Moon may have helped trigger the convection on the Earth that led to the multi-plate tectonics. What has been also established is that the moon is directly responsible for life on Earth and acts as the Earth’s protector taking thousands of hits from asteroids who would have otherwise hit our planet.

The moon is of great importance in Islamic science, alchemy and esoterical studies and this dedication to the study of the moon speaks of the remarkable wisdom in the Islamic healing arts that have always worked to integrate the material with the esoterical and the subtle realms (that which is unseen, such as the Psyche). This is a truly holistic approach to life and all existence.

The best days for Hijama appear to be the seventeenth day until the twenty-seventh day of the lunar month (day seven-teen to twenty-seven after last the full-moon). I want to study this further in my practise and may make amends to this statement.

During the first days of the lunar month, i.e. from the first day until of the fifteenth day, blood-flow and blood re-newal is stimulated.

In the middle of the lunar days (12-13-14-15), the strong pull of the moon continues to stimulate the blood, and through Hijama the body would loose much of its young blood cells which is counter-productive to the aim of the Hijama treatment, which is to clean the body of old tissue and stimulate blood renewal.

A Guide to Hijama

hijamaMany confuse Hijama to be the same as popular wet cupping (or dry cupping in it’s alternative blood less application) or even the same as leeching. However, Hijama is it’s own unique medicinal technique that cures  patients of many ailments including psychic illness (depression aso.), chronic headaches, poisoning and asthma to name just a few applications.

Hijama (or Al Hijamah) is a traditional Arabic form of wet cupping treatment that is part of the prophetic medicine heritage of Mohammed (a.s). The word “Hijama” is derived from the Arabic verbs “Hajama” and “Haj’jama” which means “to minimize” or “to restore to basic size”, or “to diminish in volume”. In Arabic they say, “A certain person diminished the problem”, they meant that he returned the problem to its original size. There is also a verb “ahjama” which means “to withdraw or retreat from attack”. Hijama is seen as one of the major pillars of prophetic medicine.

The quest for the true “Tib Nabawi”, aka Prophetic Medicine has established an entire literary genre of writings based on either Sunni and Shi’a Hadith by Sunni and Shi’a scholar respectively. The “Prophetic Medicine” (in Arabic: Tib Nabawi) is the title of 25 different books written by different Muslim scholars between the 9th and 18th century (Western calendar) who describe remedies ascribed to traditional prophetic medicine.  The original teachings about Hijama as established by the Prophet (a.s) were gradually obliterated and lost over time. What can be found on Hijama on the internet is almost all derived from Sunni sources.

One of the major differences of Hijama to simple wet cupping as it is popularly practiced in the West is in the cutting technique itself. In popular wet cupping as practiced in the West, China aso., the skin is punctured with a  surgical needle rather deeply (0,3 – 0,9 mm) while in Hijama the skin is only scratched. A small fold of skin is carefully pinched between thumb and index fingers of the left hand, while the right hand “scarifies” the skin fold with few small superficial scarifications (about 0,.1 mm in depth) just to open the skin barrier of the epidermis. Specific care is taken not to include any anatomical structure (nerve or a superficial vein). Scarifications must be always superficial not deep, sequential not simultaneous, few not many, vertical not transverse, longitudinal not pin-point, short (about 2 mm) not long, and gently slow not rapidly done.

Hijama is applied at skin sites directly overlying the affected areas of the body, which is expected to give better local clearance of interstitial fluids and improvement of pathology than practicing Hijama at distant anatomical sites (as some practitioners of wet cupping do, relating to theories of the Meridians).

Before the actual cutting the areas of skin are prepared with a heated glass cup or cups with rubber bulps. After sterilizing the skin region very well, the practitioner holds one cup in his right hand and the other hand holds a small conical paper and lights it from the candle. When the piece of paper burns well s/he inserts it quickly inside the cup, and fixes the cup quickly and lightly on the skin of the patient. Alternatively the cup is reheated with a gas flame devise. The heated cup will create a suction on the skin and the practitioner must wait for 2-3 minutes letting the cup fix themselves on the person. After the elapse of 2 – 3 minutes, the practitioner repeats removing the cup(s) and fixes them again in the same fashion. These repetitions are made at least twice and attention must be paid not to let the suction effect weaken. A similar effect of creating a vaccum on the skin is achieved with rubber bulps that create suction. New silicion glass bulps are by now on the market that also promise to reduce the bruising that may result from the suction of the skin.

Finally, a sterilized blade is taken and the practitioner disinfects the skin again with antiseptics or with sterilizing spray, and holds the angle of the blade in his hand, between the thumb and the forefinger, and carefully and superficially slits the prepared skin in superficial slashes 0.5 – 1 cm apart from each other. S/he cuts few slashes up and down mentioning the name of God (Dhikrs).

When the practitioner finishes the slight slashes, he fixes the cup on it slightly and quickly. Then the cup starts sucking the spoiled blood.

The quantity of spoiled blood which is extracted for the first time by means of Hijama amounts to 100 – 200 ml. Any cup should never be filled more then 8 times and special attention needs to be paid to the constitution of a patient and the specific illness that is treated with Hijama.

The Unique Medical Dissertation by Imam Reza(A.S.)

The-Unique-Medical-Dissertation-by-Imam-Reza(A.S.)The Unique Medical Dissertation by Imam Reza(A.S.)

The sciences of Ima`m al-Reza`, peace be on him, were not confined to the precepts of Islamic law; rather they included all kinds of science of which was medicine. The Ima`m was unique in medicine, and the clear proof of that is this dissertation which al-Ma’mun called al-Risala al-Dhahabiya fi al-Tibb (the golden medical dissertation). As al-Ma’mu`n admired the dissertation, he gave the Medal of Doctor to the Ima`m, peace be on him.
The dissertation contains general programs necessary for putting right man’s body and protecting it from diseases, so it is regarded as the main base of preventive medicine in these times and as a great means of improving health. Any how, it is necessary for us to give a brief outline of this dissertation before presenting it. That is as follows:

The Text of the Golden Medical Dissertation
As for the text of this medical excellent dissertation, we have quoted it from the book entitled Tibb al-Imam al-Reza, which is one of the publications of the al-Haydariya Press. It was printed in the year 1385 A. H., and it reads as follows: “In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Know, Commander of the faithful, when Allah tries a servant with a disease, he appoints for him a medicine in order to cure himself with it, and for every kind of disease there is a kind of medicine, conduct, and prescription.”

This paragraph gives an account of Allah’s firm wisdom in creating man, who contains wonderful systems which are subject to various kinds of diseases. Allah, the Exalted, creates a disease and creates a medicine for destroying and putting an end to such a disease. Nowadays, medicine has reached zenith: antibiotics such as penicillin and oromycin have been discovered, the science of surgery has been developed, so a group of diseases such as tuberculosis, enteritis, and typhoid has been folded and thrown into the sea. Accordingly, modern medicine has confirmed the wise words of the grandson of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, who says that Allah appoints a medicine for each disease. As a result, those diseases which have no cure will be omitted from the file of medicine.

Ima`m al-Reza`, peace be on him, has said: “Man’s body is just like a kingdom: The heart is the king of the body; the (blood) vessels, the limbs, and the brain are workers. The house of the king is his heart; his land is the body; the helpers are his hands, his legs, his eyes, his lips, his tongues, and his ears; his storekeepers are his stomach and his abdomen; and his chamberlain is his chest. Therefore, the hands are two helpers which bring (things) near, take (them) away, and work as the king reveals to them.

The legs carry the kings wherever he likes. The eyes lead him to that which disappears from him, for the king is behind a curtain and does not reach it except through them. They are also his two lamps; they are fort and well-fortified place of the body. The ears introduce nothing to the king except that which agrees with him, for they are unable to bring in anything unless the king inspires to them. When the king inspires to them, he keeps silent and listen to them. Then he answers whatever he likes; and the tongue explains on his behalf with many tools of which are the wind of the heart, the steam of the stomach, and the help of the two lips; and the two lips have no strength except by the means of man, and they are in need of each other.”
The wise Ima`m has shown man’s body; this wonderful body through which Allah’s mighty power, His marvelous creation, and His firm regulation have manifested themselves. In this connection Allah, the Exalted, says: O man, what has beguiled you from your Lord, the Gracious One, Who created you, then made you complete, then made you symmetrical, into whatever form He pleased He constituted you. Concerning this body containing systems and cells which none can describe, the pioneer of wisdom and eloquence in Islam, Ima`m ‘Ali, the Commander of the faithful, peace be on him, says: “Do you think that you are a small body, while the greatest world has folded itself in you.”

Yes, man is not a limited skeleton; nor is he a small body; rather he contains the whole world, so he is a group of universes and worlds.

The Prophet’s grandson, source of knowledge and wisdom (i.e. Imam al-Reza) has likened man’s body to the government whose machinery consists of a president, soldiers, helpers, and a land over which it rules. The Imam, peace be on him, has mentioned the following main organs and systems of the body:

  1. The Heart
    As for the heart, it is one of Allah’s marvelous signs in man’s body, for it pumps the blood to all parts of the body, and the blood conveys food and oxygen in order to distribute them among all places of the body, and then it conveys the waste products in order to rid the body of them.1
  2. The heart pumps the blood to the lungs in order that they may take adequate supply of oxygen from the air which man breathes. In the lungs, the blood gets rid of some waste products which it gathers from the parts of the blood and which take form of a gas called carbon dioxide. The heart also pumps the blood to the kidneys.
  3. As for the regulation of the beats of the heart, it is one of the secrets of creation and origination; the average of the beats of the heart is seventy times per minute. So their average amounts to one hundred thousand times a day, forty million times a year, and over two thousand millions in middle age. Therefore, we must think of this great glorification which never ceases nor flags by night and day. We must think of this marvelous sign in the body, which is the organization of heat. There is something like thermometer in the body.
  4. When sensory news comes from the skin and tells about the external surroundings and degree of their heat, this area which is in the brain stem and what is on it hurries to the circulatory system and urges it to protect the external boundaries and orders it to play the role of the sincere worker during this crisis, and the flexible circulatory system responds to it, and quickly the contraction of the blood vessels occur, and the heart pumps adequate supply of blood to the skin. If the skin is cold, the flow of blood which conveys heat increases in order to remove the coldness and vice versa.
    Surely, the heart is the source of man’s and animal’s life; therefore, it is the king of the body, and all man’s organs are its soldiers and helpers.
  5. The Nerves
    As for the nerves, they are the sinew of life; and it is they which control the body; and they play an important role during anger, fear, the rest of the emotions, match, sexual work, and the like. Some nerves are called voluntary, and they control a group of muscles in the body which are called the striated muscles. In this connection some important physiological researches have been mentioned; therefore, the nerves are proof of the Wise Creator’s mightiness.
  6. The Brain
    As for the brain, it is the greatest of all Allah’s creatures; it dominates the whole body, controls all movements of it; and drives it to wherever it desires; and by it man is distinguished from the rest of animals. Allah has singled out the brain for man, and through it He has ennobled man over all His creatures.
    Surely, the brain is a world of wonders. No creature can match it in greatness, for it contains stores which never are full and it preserves whatever knowledge is deposited in it. If we want to mention the wonders of the brain, then we have to write a full book about them. Glory belongs to Him who has originated and created the brain!
  7. The Hands and the Legs
    Among the amazing organs in man’s body is the hand, which helps man accomplish his own needs such as preparing food and drink, and which help him perform wonderful works such as writing, goldsmithing, building, and others. The hand carries out all these works according to signals and guidance it receives from the brain, for it is as a worker in the factory of the brain; likewise, the leg helps man walk and accomplish his own needs. Were it not for the hand and the leg, man would do nothing. So glory belongs to Allah, the Wise!
  8. The Ear
    One of the marvelous organs in man’s body is the ear, which contains the following:
    A. The Outer Ear: It is the lobe of the outer ear along with the cannel which leads to the eardrum.
    B. The Middle Ear: It has three bones just as the tools of a blacksmith: the hammer and the anvil, the stirrup, and the two muscles of the hammer and the stirrup; there is a lobe which connects the middle ear to the pharynx.
    C. The Inner Ear: It contains something like snail and three semicircular canals, and these parts are connected with each other and interlocked. Membranous canals like bags are in the semicircular canals, and Korti organ is in the cochlea, which circles two times and a half.
    It is the inner ear which receives sounds. As for the middle and the outer ears, they convey sounds.
    Sound results from the vibration of the molecules of a matter, so it does not travel unless there is a material means such as liquid air, gases, solid bodies, and the like. Medical books have mentioned important researches regarding sound, which reveals the Wise Creator’s mightiness and marvelous creation.1
  9. The Eye
    As for the eye, it is among Allah’s greatest signs, for through it man receives light, knows external surroundings, realizes forms and colors. It is the most marvelous room of art photography; for it is a dark room and closed by three walls which are from outward to inward: the sclera which gives the white color to the eye; the choroid which irrigates the eye through its veins; the retina which conveys the sensitive elements; cones and rods which receive light. In the front there is a thin crystal called the cornea which let the light coming to the eye enter.
    Then the light, after the cornea, passes through the transparent liquid which refracts light; it is the aqueous humor which lies between the cornea and the iris; and it is the iris which gives the familiar color to the eyes, in the middle of it there is a special opening receiving light and is like the lens of a photographer; it is called the pupil.
    When light enters the pupil, it faces a crystal of a new kind; it is the crystal body (the lens); it is the most marvelous crystal in existence, for it expands and contracts to the extent that the forms of its convexity are very different; therefore, the eye harmonizes with the views before it. If the visible distance is near, it expands and changes in order to fit the condition, and vice-versa; therefore, it is the sane, motive crystal. After the crystal body, light enters a new, transparent humor refracting light; it is the vitreous humor. When light ends passing through it, it reaches the retina where the rods and the cones receive and move it as a nervous stream to the occipital lobe.
    The eye is marvelous in creation and protection, for Allah, the Most High, has placed it in a low, facial area surrounded by three high hills, which are: the eye-brow, nasal pyramid, and the bony prominence of the forehead as well as it is covered by lids which opens and shuts very quickly. Besides Allah has surrounded it by tears in order to purify and moisten it. So glory belongs to the Creator, the Originator, the Almighty!
    Ima`m al-Reza`, peace be on him, has mentioned some organs of man’s body. He has shown their characteristics and their functions (anatomy). Now, let us move to another part of this dissertation. He, peace be on him, has said: “And speech is not good unless it is repeated through the nose, for the nose adorn speech as blowing adorns the flute; likewise, the nostrils are the two openings of the nose and they bring good air to the king. If they bring bad, displeasing air to the king, he reveals to the hands to be as a curtain between him and that bad air.
    There will be a reward and punishment for the king because of this, so his punishment is severer than that of the outward, powerful kings in the world, and his reward is better than theirs. As for his punishment, it is sadness; and as for his reward, it is happiness. The origin of sadness is in the spleen, and the origin of happiness is in the kidneys and the ribs , and from them they reach the face, so from there happiness and sadness arise, so their signs are seen on the face, and all these blood vessels are ways of workers to the king, and from the king to the workers, and the proof of that is that when you take a medicine, the blood vessels convey it to the place of illness, with their help.”
    The Prophet’s grandson (i.e. Ima`m al-Reza`) has displayed the operation of utterance and mode of expression, which is a wonder in itself, for speech comes out harmoniously and equally balanced, and it aims at a certain (thing); and it is among the unique, wonderful phenomena which are proof of the Almighty Creator’s mightiness. He, the Most High, says: The Beneficent (Allah) taught the Qur’a`n; He created man; He taught him the mode of expression. So what man wants to perform before uttering it arises in the brain, which inspires the tongue to perform it, and that occurs through a wonderful operation which the concerned in this research have mentioned.
    The Ima`m, peace be on him, has mentioned that the reward and punishment which the heart and the brain bring about to man’s body. Both reward and punishment appear on the expressions of the face; happiness covers the face when there is a reward; and sadness covers it when there is a punishment. The Ima`m has shown that the origin of sadness is the spleen, and the origin of happiness is the kidneys and the ribs. These phenomena result from these organs in man’s body.
    He, peace be on him, has said: “And know, Commander of the faithful, that the body is like a good land which is maintained by plowing and watering; water should not be increased lest it should drown it; nor it should be decreased lest it should make it thirsty, so that its reformation lasts; its revenue increases; and its plants grow. If the land is neglected, it becomes spoiled and no plant grows therein; therefore, the body is like such a land; it becomes good and well-being flourishes through organizing foods and drinks.
    “O Commander of the faithful, reflect on the food which fits you and your stomach, strengthens your own body and gives it to enjoy it, so estimate and carefully consider your own food.
    “And know, O Commander of the faithful, that each one of these natures likes that which suits it; therefore, eat that which suits your own body; he who takes an increase of food does not make use of it; and he who takes an amount of food without an increase or a decrease makes use of it; and raise your hand from food while you still incline to it; for it puts right your own body and stomach, pure your reason, and lightens your body.”
    The wise Ima`m has specified the general program of general health, which depends on balance and immoderation in eating and drinking. The Qur’a`n has mentioned this rule regarding keeping man’s body and protecting it from diseases; saying: Eat and drink but do not be extravagant.
    Surely the digestive system is the most important one of man’s systems; it is the most vital and sensitive of them, for it is affected by the extravagance of food which results in fatness, which is one of the blights which destroy man’s body.
    Certainly taking care of nutrition, especially in the prim of life, has a great effect on the health condition in the years that follow as well as it lengthens the period of youth; and it is one of the most modern means in preventive medicine; therefore, the different diseases which affect man are a direct result of extravagance in food and drink, unbalanced sexual life, and other life affairs.
    The wise Ima`m has likened man’s body to a fertile land; and this is a very wonderful comparison, for if man takes care of his land and reforms it, then it will produce and give the most agreeable crops; and if he turns away from it and neglects it, it will be damaged, die, and not give any crop; likewise, if man takes care of his body, puts it right, and does not spoil it through extravagance in food and drink, it becomes good and he enjoys health, which is the most expensive thing in man’s life.
    The Ima`m, peace be on him, has emphasized the necessity of avoiding extravagance in food, and that man should raise his hand from food while he is still desirous of it, for that is the most useful way for keeping his health and protecting him from diseases. Definitely, eating too much food leads to fatness, which gives rise to the following:
    A. Heart failure
    B. High blood pressure
    Now, let us move to another part of this dissertation. He, peace be on him, has said: “O Commander of the faithful, eat cold (foods) in summer, hot (foods) in winter, and moderate (foods) in the two seasons according to your strength and appetite; and start with the lightest food on which your body feed according to your material, your ability, your activity, and your time in which you must have food every eight hours or three meals every two days;
    you must have food early at the beginning of day, and then you have supper; when eight hours of the following day passes, you must eat one lunch; and you are in no need of supper; likewise, my grandfather, Mohammed, may Allah bless him and his family, ordered ‘Ali, peace be on him, to have one meal on every day and two meals on the following day; that should be according to an amount which should be neither increase nor decrease; raise your hand from food while you feel appetite for it; and let your drink be immediately after your food.”
    This part of the dissertation gives an account of organizing the food on which general health stands as follows:
    A. One must have light foods during the days of summer, for having heavy foods causes heavy damages to his own body. As for winter, it is on the contrary, namely, one must have heavy food which containing fat and sugar, for his body is in need of them.
    B. One must have food according to his own ability; he must not overexert himself in having food.
    C. One must have the lightest and the easiest food for the digestive system; in the mean time, he must take into consideration his own age, for when man grows old, he must have light food with little salt and fat, for they bring about arteriosclerosis, especially when he is over fifty years of age.
    D. One must decrease the meals of food; he must confine himself to three meals of food, according to what the Ima`m, peace be on him, has detailed; without doubt this way makes body sound and safe from diseases.
    E. The Ima`m has underlined that it is necessary for one not to eat any food except when he feels appetite for it and must not fill his own stomach with it. These are some valuable health pieces of advice.
    Now, let us read another part of this dissertation. He, peace be on him, has said: “Now we must mention what must be mentioned regarding the direction of the seasons of the year and its Roman months which occur therein; each season (must be mentioned) separately; the foods and drinks which must be used (therein); what must be avoided; and how one must maintain (his) health, according to the view points of the old.”
    This part of the dissertation is a preparatory preface concerning what man must have and avoid during the seasons of the year. He, peace be on him, has said: “As for the season of spring, it is of the rest of time, and its beginning is March (Adhar); and the number of its days is thirty days; and therein day and night are good; the earth becomes soft; and the power of phlegm terminates; the blood becomes exited; and one must use light food and meat; and he must refrain from eating onions and garlic and sour (things); and he must use laxative therein; and he must use therein bloodletting and cupping.”
    The Ima`m has mentioned the season of spring, which is the most beautiful one of the seasons of the year, and the most useful of them to living beings. How wonderful these words of the Ima`m: “It is of the soul of the time.” That is because, therein, night and day become good; the earth becomes soft; the blood becomes exited. The Ima`m has warned men against eating onions and garlic and sour things, for they bring about diseases which modern medicine will discover, as well as he has regarded it as recommended to have laxative and to take some blood through bloodletting and cupping.
    He, peace be on him, has said: “April (Nisa`n) is thirty days; day lengthens therein; the temper of the season becomes strong; the blood moves; the east wind blows; roasted foods are used therein, what is prepared with vinegar; the meat of (birds and animals which are) hunted; and you must treat yourself with having a sexual intercourse, and then massaging yourself with an ointment in the bathroom; drink water before breakfast; smell flowers and scent.”

Imam JaʿFar Al-sadeq and Herbal Medicine

100020 Imam JaʿFar Al-sadeq and Herbal Medicine

Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādeq’s work on medicine (Ṭebb al-Emām al-Ṣādeq) belongs to a genre of traditional herbal medicine attributed to the Shiʿite imams and known as the Medicine of the imams (ṭebb al-aʾemma), whose salient figure is Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādeq. Imam Ṣādeq’s narrated dictums (Hadith) are central to Shiʿite medical literature as it enhanced, in the course of time, the spiritual image of the imam in popular religion. Imam Jaʿfar, indeed, was not the only imam who contributed to Shiʿite traditional medical wisdom, but the variety of his ethical instructions on the priorities of foods and drinks has significantly extended the chapter of “eating and drinking” (bāb al-aṭʿema wa’l-ašreba) in Shiʿite jurisprudence.

IMAM AL-ṢĀDEQ’S POPULAR MEDICINE

Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādeq’s medical traditions are concerned with three spheres: a variety of beneficial and harmful food items and drinks; some commonly known diseases and their remedies; corroboration of some traditional methods of treating illness.

Useful and harmful foods and drinks. Beneficial fruits reportedly mentioned by Imam al-Ṣādeq include apple (10 Hadiths), dates (7 Hadiths), quince (6 Hadiths), pomegranate (5 Hadiths), citrus fruits (4 Hadiths), pear, walnut, and raisins (3 Hadiths each), grape, melon, and olive (2 Hadiths each).

Vegetables, legumes, and grains with health benefits reportedly recommended by Imam al-Ṣādeq include barley, lentil, and rice (16 Hadiths), rice (13 Hadiths), wild chicory (5 Hadiths), eggplant (5 Hadiths), black cumin and chard (4 Hadiths each), onion (3 Hadiths), radish, harmal peganum, marshmallow, turnip, beans, and pumpkin (2 Hadiths each), carrot, lettuce, leek, garlic, and frankincense (1 Hadith each).

Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādeq is also credited with naming a number of juices and beverages as being beneficial to one’s good health. They include water (12 Hadiths), milk, and vinegar (7 Hadiths each), honey (3 Hadiths), and rose water Hadith.

Beneficial kinds of meat and other animal products, reportedly remarked by Imam al-Ṣādeq, include general references (13 Hadiths), fish (7 Hadiths), egg (4 Hadiths; see ʿAqil, pp. 268, 278, 446-47, quoting Majlesi, LXII, pp. 190, 207-8, 212, 215, LXIII, pp. 46-47; Ḥorr ʿĀmeli, XXV, pp. 39-41, 44-45, 77). Harmful drinks and foods which cannot be used even for medical treatment include alcoholic beverages, specifically wine (13 Hadith), blood, pork, and dead meat (1 Hadith each).

Commonly known diseases and their remedies. In cases of certain pain in the waist, honey and cumin are advised (3 Hadiths). In cases of certain stomach pains, honey, cumin, rice, and sumac are advised (4 Hadiths). For treating certain hemorrhoids, it is advised to eat rice, leek, especially white leek (3 Hadiths). In case of head cold, among other things, violet oil is advised (3 Hadiths). For treating tapeworm, freckles, throat pain, cough, chest pain, nightmares or anxiety during sleep, herbal medicine are mostly advised (1 Hadith each) . For treating fever, in general, twenty-one Hadiths are quoted in which footbath and eating fruits such as apple and, on occasion, onion and honey are advised. For the remedy of eye disease, washing, cleaning, nail-cutting, and eating specific foods are advised (9 Hadiths).

Methods of treating some illnesses. Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādeq has corroborated some traditional methods of treating illness and health problems. He has sometimes supported his instructions with God’s blessing and šariʿa law; treatment of the eyes with kohl (9 Hadiths); vento treatment (ḥejāma) or art of cupping (39 Hadiths); cauterization (kayy) or burning the skin (1 Hadith); cutting down on food (11 Hadiths); taking a bath (8 Hadiths).

Islamic Medical Wisdom “The Tibb al-A’imma”

islamic-medecineIslamic Medical Wisdom “The Tibb al-A’imma”

“The Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt (as), were as concerned with treating the body as they were with treating the soul, and their regard for the soundness of the body was similar to their regard for the refinement of the soul.”

INTRODUCTION

They were physicians of the soul and the body, and Muslims would consult them for their physical illnesses as they would for curing their spiritual sicknesses. This collection of Hadith is ample evidence of that. The Imams, peace be upon them, were not merely conveyors of religious regulations and legislation, but were leaders committed to caring for the Muslims, equally concerned-if such a term is correct-with the health of their bodies and their beliefs, such that they encouraged the learning of medicine (al-.tibb). In his comprehensive statement on the divisions of knowledge, ‘Ali b. Abi Talib (d. 40/661) Amir al-Mu’minin, peace be upon him, combined it [medicine] with the knowledge of jurisprudence (al-fiqh), saying: ‘There are four kinds of knowledge: jurisprudence for religions, medicine for bodies, grammar for languages, and [study of] the stars to recognize the seasons. Much has been related from the Imams in collections [of Hadith] on medicine and preserving good health, just as there are more descriptions of various remedies related from them. Here for the reader are a small number of their sayings which are general rules for preserving health and physical well-being:

Amir al-Mu’minin said to his son, al-Hasan [b. Ali b. Abu Talib (d. 49/669)], peace be upon him: ‘Shall I teach you four general principles so that you may have no need of medicine?’ Al-Hasan replied: ‘Yes indeed, Amir al-Mu’minin.’ He said: ‘Do not eat unless you are hungry, cease eating while you still have a desire to eat, chew your food well, and, after you awaken from sleep, relieve yourself. If you practice these measures, you will not require medicine,

Amir al-Mu’minin Imam Ali, peace be upon him, also said: ‘The Qur’an contains a verse which sums up all medicine: “Eat and drink but do not be prodigal.” (Qur’3n 7:31) Zarr b. Hubaysh said that ‘Amir al-Mu’minin related four statements on medicine which, had they been uttered by Galen and Hippo crates, a hundred pieces of paper would have been decorated with their words. These were: ‘Guard against the cold (al-bard) at its onset, and face it at its end, for its effect on the body (al-badan) is similar to its effect on trees. Its onset withers them and its end causes them to leaf. ,

He also said: ‘There is no healthiness with gluttony.’ Al-Baqir [the fifth Imam, Abu Jafar Muhammad b. Ali (d.117/73 5)], peace be upon him, said: ‘The medicine of the Arabs is of seven kinds: cupping (al-hujjama), administering clysters (al-ltuqna), steam baths (al-hammam), inhaling medications through the nose (al-suut), vomiting (al-qay}, taking honey (al-asal), and, the final remedy, cauterization (al-kayy). Some-times, added to that is [the application of] lime (al-nura).’

Al-Sadiq [the sixth Imam, Abu Abd Allah Jafar b. Muhammad (d. 148/765)], peace be upon him, said: ‘If people eat moderately, their bodies will be healthy. ‘ He also said: ‘Three things make a person fat, and three things make him lean. As for those that make one fat, they are an excess of steam baths, smelling sweet scents, and wearing soft [i.e. fine] clothes. Those that make one lean are the excessive eating of eggs (al-bay {l), diarrhea (al-ishal), and filling the belly (al-butn) with food.’

Abu Haffan-Yuhanna b. Masawayh, the well known Christian physician-related that Jafar b. Muhammad, peace be upon him, had said: ‘The natural constituents (al-taba’i) [of the body] are four: blood (al-dam), which is the slave -and sometimes the slave kills the master; wind (al-rih), which is the enemy-if one door is closed to him he comes to you from another; phlegm (al-balgham), which is the king, and endeavors to deceive; and bile (al-mirra), which is the earth when it shakes, it shakes those on it.’ Ibn Masawayh [also] said: ‘ Ali drew upon what Galen felt to give this description. ,

Al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said: ‘Walking causes the patient to suffer a relapse. When my father [i.e. al-Baqir] fell ill, he was dressed and carried to fulfill his need, that is, to perform the ablution (al-wudu’). , He would say: “Walking causes the patient to suffer a relapse. “,

AI-Kazim [the seventh Imam, Abu al-Hasan Musa b. Jafar (d. 183/799)], peace be upon him, said: ‘Stay away from the treatment of physicians (al-atibba) as long as you are well, for it is similar to building-a little of it leads to much.’ He also said: ‘ Abstaining from certain foods (al-lahmiyya) is the chief medication. The abdomen (al-maida) is the house of illness. Accustom [the body] to what you are used to.’

Abul-Hasan, peace be upon him, said: ‘There is no medication which does not stir up an illness, and there is nothing more beneficial for the body than withholding from it all except what it requires.

Imam Reza [the eighth Imam, Abu al-Hasan Ali b. Musa (d.203/818)], peace be upon him, said: ‘Had the dead person been massaged, he would have lived. Why did you disclaim that?’

They, peace be upon them, said: ‘ Avoid medications as long as your body can bear the illness. When it cannot bear the illness, then take medications.

These are some of the things mentioned by the Imams, peace be upon them, regarding medical treatment, and they summarize the general principles and fundamentals of pre-serving health. Cautioning against gluttony is the basis of treatment, moderation in eating according to the needs and soundness of the body, the requirement for rest and calm after suffering from an illness, abstaining from certain foods, accustoming the body to routine, cautioning against using medications without need and more than is necessary explaining the natural constituents and elements of the body and, in fact, even pointing to artificial respiration, etc., is all general medical advice and does not apply to a particular individual or country, or to a particular era.

The medical treatments related from the Imams in this book of ours, and others, contain medical preparations and prescriptions of specific proportions and particular qualities. They sometimes deal with particular cases, observation of the condition of the patient, the climate {al-.taqs} of his province and the soil {al-turba} of the place where he lives. The answer of one of the Imams in reply to the patient’s question, and the medication, may have been given after considering the above-mentioned points. This is a matter which should be taken into account, since variations in the climate and seasons of different countries require specific treatments for certain patients. For example, it would not be correct to use a medical treatment of the same proportion and quality for a hot country as for a cold country, and vice versa. That, then, may have been the reason for the variations in some medical prescriptions, or in the ones whose significance is not known. Our distinguished ancient and modern scholars have mentioned that. Here are some of their statements on the subject for the reader:

It is narrated that the two al-Sadiqs [the Imams Ja’far al-Sadiq and Musa al-Kazim], peace be upon them, explained the statement of Amir al-Mu’minin, peace be upon him, that ‘The abdomen is the house of illness, abstaining from certain foods is the chief medication, and each body is accustomed to its conditioning’ [as meaning that] something which may be beneficial for an illness which affects certain people in one region may kill others in the same region who use it for that some illness. What is suitable for people with one habit is not suitable for those whose habits differ, etc.”

Pomegranate and its benefits

Pomegranate

The princely pomegranate, ar-Rumm in Arabic, is mentioned in the Qur’an as one of the many delicious rewards awaiting in Paradise. Its numerous uses in cooking and medicine, as well as its beautiful structure, make the fruit a wonder for Muslims who believe that each pomegranate seed is a sign of the sustainer.

Pomegranates are mentioned three times in the Qur’an: As one of the fruits that will be found in paradise:

“In both of them [gardens] are two springs, spouting […]In both of them are fruit and palm trees and pomegranates. So which of the favors of your Lord would you deny?” (Quran, 55:66-69)

As a reminder of God’s sustenance on earth,

“And He it is who produces gardens (of vine), trellised and untrellised, and palms and seed-produce of which the fruits are of various sorts, and olives and pomegranates, like and unlike; eat of its fruit when it bears fruit, and pay the due of it on the day of its reaping, and do not act extravagantly; surely He does not love the extravagant.” (Quran, 6:141)

And as a sign of his artistry,

“And it is He who sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby the growth of all things. We produce from it greenery from which We produce grains arranged in layers. And from the palm trees – of its emerging fruit are clusters hanging low. And [We produce] gardens of grapevines and olives and pomegranates, similar yet varied. Look at [each of] its fruit when it yields and [at] its ripening. Indeed in that are signs for a people who believe.” (Quran, 6:99)

The frequent mentions of this fruit owe to its gem-like beauty, a glistening core of seeds compacted in a layer resembling honeycomb.

Equally astounding are the colours of both the fruit and flowers which are an attestation to the Qur’anic verse:

“And whatsoever He has created for you on the earth of varying colors [and qualities from vegetation and fruits] and from animals. Verily! In this is a sign for people who remember.” (Qur’an, 16:13)

In Arabic a pomegranate is known as the royal word ‘rumaan‘, in Urdu ‘anaar‘ and interestingly, because of its resemblance to many fragments resulting from detonating a grenade, in Hebrew the word ‘rimon‘ may mean both pomegranate and shell.

pomegranate plants fruit veg quran A split-open pomegranate fruit reveals red gems resting between protective papery skins

Inside a pomegranate are the edible succulent grains of pulp-like tissue, pink-red in colour. Once the leathery skin is removed, these “seeds” can be plucked loose for on-the-go eating or a sharp tap of a wooden spoon will scatter them into a bowl.

Tasting Those Seeds

Pomegranate grains have a “fresh, sweet-sour”, very juicy taste (Gernot Katzer), while other forms of the fruit may be acidic. Here in Britain one rarely finds a very acidic pomegranate although many fruit varieties very popular throughout the Middle East are used to sweeten meat dishes and salads.

Where Pomegranate Shrubs Grow

Pomegranates originate from the Middle Eastern region and are cultivated in central Asia, Mediterranean countries and northern India.

In India, pomegranates have a culinary reverence. The grains of more sour fruits are dried and used as a flavourant and substituted for raisins in baking. The juice of the pomegranate is a favourite in many Middle Eastern countries and Asia.

I remember, as a child, my family would buy the cool red juice from street vendors in Pakistan and just before a rice dish had finished cooking, handfuls of pomegranate grains would be stirred in, bursting with red colour and bite. Pomegranate fruit juice is also used to make sauces and jellies.

Nutritional Value of Pomegranates

Nutritionally, pomegranate fruit is rich in Vitamin C and contain 65 calories and it is a good source of sodium, riboflavin and calcium. A handful of grains for suhoor (pre-dawn meal) are ideal for balanced health over the Ramadan fasting period.

Prophet Muhammad of Islam, peace be upon him, told his companions that each pomegranate potentially held a heavenly grain,

“There is not a pomegranate which does not have a pip from one of the pomegranate of the Garden (Jannah) in it.” (Abu Nu’aim)

And these pips, along with the outer skin, are rich with antioxidant and antibacterial properties, testimony to its benefits for cleansing the palate. The prophet therefore also said, “Pomegranate and its rind strengthen digestion (stomach).” (Abu Nuaim, narrated by `Ali)

Uses Of Pomegranate

Among its various uses in the culinary world, the scarlet flowers of the pomegranate plant produce a vibrant red dye for textiles, which has been used for centuries in Central Asia.

Pomegranate plants also provide herbal medicines for diarrhoea, fevers, gum disorders and earraches. Resourceful explorers have found the bark of the pomegranate shrub to have medicinal use while the fragrant flowers of the tree can be used to relieve sore eyes.

:: Gernot Katzer’s fruit and spice pages

– See more at: http://www.greenprophet.com/2012/07/plants-quran-pomegranate/#sthash.kfMnpFWb.dpuf

What are the health benefits of olive oil?

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over the last 50 years, there have been thousands of studies examining the health benefits of olive oil. Below are some examples:

Olive oil and the cardiovascular systemAceite de oliva españa
In 2010, more than 45% of global olive oil
production came from Spain
Olive oil is the main source of dietary fat in the Mediterranean diet, which is associated with a low death rate from cardiovascular diseases compared to other parts of the world.

Maria-Isabel Covas, at the Parc de Recerca Biomèdica de Barcelona, Spain, carried out an extensive review of studies that had focused on the biological and clinical effects of olive oil.

The study was published in the journal Pharmacological Research2.

The study found that people who regularly consume olive oil are much less likely to develop cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension (high blood pressure), stroke, and hyperlipidemia (high blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels).

Covas also found that regular olive oil intake helps reduce inflammation, endothelial dysfunction (problems with the inner linings of blood vessels), thrombosis and carbohydrate metabolism.

Covas concluded “The wide range of *anti-atherogenic effects associated with olive oil consumption could contribute to explain the low rate of cardiovascular mortality found in Southern European Mediterranean countries, in comparison with other western countries, despite a high prevalence of coronary heart disease risk factors.”

*Anti-atherogenic means preventing the hardening of the arteries and the development of atherosclerosis.

Frying with olive oil does not raise heart disease risk
People who regularly eat foods fried in olive oil do not have a higher risk of heart disease or premature death, researchers at the Autonomous University of Madrid in Spain reported in the BMJ (British Medical Journal).

In this study, Professor Pilar Guallar-Castillón and colleagues surveyed 40,757 adults aged from 26 to 69 years over an 11-year period. They focused on the people’s cooking methods and dietary habits. None of the participants had heart disease when the study started.

The team defined fried meals as food that had only been prepared by frying it. Participants were also asked whether their fried food was sautéed, battered or crumbed.

The researchers concluded:

“In a Mediterranean country where olive and sunflower oils are the most commonly used fats for frying, and where large amounts of fried foods are consumed both at and away from home, no association was observed between fried food consumption and the risk of coronary heart disease or death.”

Olive oil helps prevent stroke
Dr. Cécilia Samieri, from the University of Bordeaux and the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) in Bordeaux, France, and colleagues reported in the journal Neurology that olive oil may prevent strokes in older people.

The team found that older people who regularly used olive oil for cooking and salad dressing or with bread had a 41% lower risk of stroke, compared with their counterparts who never consumed it.

Dr. Samieri said, “Stroke is so common in older people and olive oil would be an inexpensive and easy way to help prevent it.”

Depression risk lower with olive oil, higher with trans fats
People whose diets are high in trans fats – fast foods and mass-produced foods like pastries – may have a higher risk of depression, compared with those whose diets are rich in mono- and polyunsaturated fats.

According to a study carried out at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in Spain and published in PLoS ONE, olive oil appears to have a slight protective effect regarding depression risk.

Dr. Almudena Sánchez-Villegas and colleagues added that their findings stood even after taking into account people’s overall diet, physical activity and lifestyle.

The research team gathered and analyzed data on 12,000 volunteers over a period of 6 years. Their average age at the start of the study was 37.5 years. They had all regularly completed a 136-item questionnaire which had information on their dietary habits, lifestyle, and physical and mental health.

The investigators counted the number of people with depression at the start of the study and then again during each follow-up. Cases of depression had to be those clinically diagnosed by a doctor.

The study authors found that when they compared the volunteers who consumed trans fats regularly with individuals whose dietary fat consisted primarily of olive oil, the trans fat consumers had a 48% higher risk of developing depression.

The amount of trans fat consumed was directly related to depression risk – the more they ate, the higher the risk.

Olive oil may reduce breast cancer risk
A team of scientists at the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona in Spain found a key mechanism by which virgin olive oil protects the body against breast cancer, in contrast to other vegetable oils.

The researchers decoded a complete cascade of signals within the cells of breast tumors that are activated by virgin olive oil. They concluded that the oil reduces the activity of p21Ras, an oncogene, prevents DNA damage, encourages tumor cell death, and triggers changes in protein signaling pathways.

The team found that while corn oil – which is rich in n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids – increased the aggressiveness of tumors, virgin olive oil had the opposite effect.

They demonstrated that virgin olive oil is linked to a higher incidence of benign (non-cancerous) breast tumors.

Olive oil helps maintain healthy cholesterol levels
A Japanese study published in the Medical Science Monitor3 showed that LDL-cholesterol mean concentrations were lowered in 28 outpatients who were given olive oil supplements once a day for six weeks.

LDL (low density lipoprotein) is often referred to as “bad cholesterol”. The “good cholesterol” is called HDL (high density lipoprotein).

The study authors concluded “These results point to an overwhelmingly beneficial influence of olive oil on the lipoprotein spectrum.”

How extra virgin olive oil protects against alzheimer’s disease
Oleocanthal is a type of natural phenolic compound found in extra-virgin olive oil. In laboratory experiments with mice, researchers discovered that oleocanthal helps shuttle the abnormal Alzheimer’s disease proteins out of the brain.

As background information, the researchers explained that Alzheimer’s disease rates are lower in Mediterranean countries, where consumption of olive oil is higher than anywhere else in the world.

Amal Kaddoumi and team set out to determine whether oleocanthal might help reduce the accumulation of beta-amyloid, believed to be the culprit of Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Their study was published in the journal Chemical Neuroscience.

The team tracked the effects of oleocanthal in the cultured brain cells and brains of laboratory mice.

They found that in both cultured brain cells and the mice’s brains themselves oleocanthal consistently boosted the production of two proteins and key enzymes known to be vital in the removal of beta-amyloid from the brain.

The study authors concluded “Extra-virgin olive oil-derived oleocanthal associated with the consumption of Mediterranean diet has the potential to reduce the risk of AD or related neurodegenerative dementias.”

Extra virgin olive oil helps prevent acute pancreatitis
Extra virgin olive oil is rich in oleic acid and hydroxytyrosol, which affect the development of acute pancreatitis (sudden inflammation of the pancreas).

Researchers at the University of Granada in Spain carried out an in vitro experiment which found that the components of extra virgin olive oil can protect from acute pancreatitis.

Head researcher, María Belén López Millán said that “there is increasing evidence that there are oxidative-inflammatory processes involved in the origin of chronic diseases and that diet plays an important role in such processes.”

Extra virgin olive oil protects the liver
Investigators at the University of Monastir, Tunisia, and King Saud University, Saudi Arabia, carried out a study demonstrating that extra virgin olive oil may protect the liver from oxidative stress.

Oxidative stress refers to cell damage associated with the chemical reaction between free radicals and other molecules in the body. Put simply, oxidative stress means cell damage.

In this study, which was published in BioMed Central, Mohamed Hammami and colleagues reported that laboratory rats exposed to a moderately toxic herbicide that were fed on a diet containing olive oil were partially protected from liver damage.

Hammami said “Olive oil is an integral ingredient in the Mediterranean diet. There is growing evidence that it may have great health benefits including the reduction in coronary heart disease risk, the prevention of some cancers and the modification of immune and inflammatory responses. Here, we’ve shown that extra virgin olive oil and its extracts protect against oxidative damage of hepatic tissue”.

Olive oil protects from ulcerative colitis
Ulcerative colitis, a fairly common long-term (chronic) disorder, is a disease that causes inflammation of the large intestine (colon). It is a type of inflammatory bowel disease that is similar to Crohn’s disease, a related disorder.

Scientists at the University of East Anglia in England say that consuming more olive oil could help fend off ulcerative colitis.

Dr Andrew Hart and team gathered and analyzed data on more than 25,000 people living in Norfolk, England. They were aged between 40 and 65 years. The volunteers were part of the EPIC study (European Prospective Investigation into Diet and Cancer), spanning from 1993 to 1997. None of them had ulcerative colitis at the start of the study.

The participants regularly completed questionnaires and kept detailed food diaries, which included information on their overall health and consumption of fats.

In a 2004 follow up, the researchers compared the diets of those who had developed ulcerative colitis with those who had not.

They discovered that the participants with the highest intake of oleic acid – a component of olive oil – had a 90% lower risk of developing ulcerative colitis compared to those with the lowest intake.

Dr. Hart said “Oleic acid seems to help prevent the development of ulcerative colitis by blocking chemicals in the bowel that aggravate the inflammation found in this illness. We estimate that around half of the cases of ulcerative colitis could be prevented if larger amounts of oleic acid were consumed. Two-to-three tablespoons of olive oil per day would have a protective effect.”

What is the olive oil?

byislam1

Olive oil is a fat obtained from the fruit of the Olea europaea (olive tree), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean region, where whole olives are pressed to produce olive oil.

The oil is used in cosmetics, medicine, cooking and soaps, and was also used as a fuel for traditional lamps. Although originating in the Mediterranean countries, today it is used worldwide.

Greece has the highest olive oil intake per person in the world. Greeks consume, on average, 24 liters per-person-per-year, according to the North American Olive Oil Association1. Spaniards and Italians consume about 15 and 13 liters-per-person-per year, respectively.

BENEFITS OF OLIVE OIL

byislam

Out of all the cooking oils that exist, for example: vegetable oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, nut oil, peanut oil, safflower oil, (just to name a few) are not healthy for the body, except for OLIVE OIL. Olive oil is the only oil that is healthy for the body. According to scientists, olive oil can help prevent cancer (even breast cancer), heart disease, rhumatoid arthritis, blood clotting (after eating a fatty meal) and help lower high blood pressure. Naturally grown or organically grown, cold pressed, extra-virgin olive oil is the best. In the Holy Qur’aan, Allah (who is the Creator and Sustainer of all the Boundless Universes) refers to the Olive as a blessed tree:

Qur’aan 24: 35

“Allah is the light of the galactic heavens and the planet earth. The allegory of His light is that of a concave mirror behind a lamp that is placed inside a glass container. The glass container is like a bright, pearl-like star. The fuel thereof is supplied from a blessed olive tree, that is so vast it encompasses both east and west. Its oil is almost self-radiating; needs no fire to ignite it. Light upon light. Allah guides to His light whomever He wills. Allah thus cites the parables for the people. Allah is fully aware of all things.”

When you buy olive oil in the store, you have to be careful because the majority of the olive oil in the store is not pure (they do not contain all the nutritional value that olive oil is supposed to have); trying to find real olive oil is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

In order to find real olive oil, it must meet the following specifications: (1) Extra virgin olive oil should have a free oleic acid acidity of no more than 1%, whereas ordinary virgin olive oil can have an acidity of up to 3.3% (this is not good). (2) Extra virgin olive oil is supposed to be cold pressed. (3) Extra virgin olive oil is supposed to be unfiltered and look cloudy. Most olive oil that you find in the store is factory-produced olive oil that looks clear. If it is clear, then it has been filtered, which further reduces the nutritional quality of the oil. Let me repeat: Real olive oil is not filtered; it looks cloudy. (4) The oil should be packaged in dark glass bottles to protect it from the damaging effects of light. Avoid buying oil that is stored in plastic containers because the oil can absorb some of the compounds used in the plastic, such as PVC’s (polyvinyl chlorides) which cause cancer.

When you buy your Extra Virgin Olive Oil, it should be stored in a cool cupboard away from sunlight and heat. You may refrigerate the olive oil, though this will make it more cloudy. The cloudiness will disappear when the oil returns to room temperature.

Now, as I have stated earlier: Naturally grown or organically grown, cold pressed, extra-virgin olive oil is the best. It is very important to be aware that just because you can find olive oil in the store that says “extra virgin olive” it does not mean anything because of the corruption that exists in the industry of food/health. There are those who exploit the masses of health conscious people, for profit. Please go to the following two web addresses or sites on the internet to get more information on the olive oil scandal and also learn more about olive oil in general.

Modern science:

Olives are rich in monounsaturated fats, vitamin E, antioxidants, and they prevent heart disease by reducing the LDL (bad cholesterol) and increasing the HDL (good cholesterol] levels. The Vitamin E contained in Olives is the body’s primary fat-soluble antioxidant. Anti-oxidants help to strengthen the body’s immune system; reducing the severity of asthma, cancer, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis, premature ageing, as well as delaying the effects of ageing. Olives contain compounds called polyphenols that appear to have significant anti-inflammatory properties. Key benefits of olives: Used as a balm, it fortifies the hair keeps it shiny and prevents dandruff Used as a balm, it fortifies and moisturizes the skin, combating dry skin and softening it. It also combats against acne.

Massaged onto the body, Olives fortify the limbs, combat against inflammation, and sooth away aches and pains from worked out muscles. Help against wrinkles and delaying the effects of old age. Help combat against strokes, heart-disease, High blood pressure, diabetes. It aids digestion, and strengthens the bowels, as well as the stomach.

Drinking tea from Olive leaves helps against High blood pressure. Recent scientific research have proved the health benefits of olive leaves in treating high blood pressure and hypertension.

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References:

-The olive oil scandal www.beyondhealth.com/html/selected_articles_1.html
– Olive oil: www.elenigourmet.com