On the Lookout for Haram Products

Alhamdulillah apart from the occasionally cold I have always been blessed with great health. I can count on one hand how many times I’ve been seriously sick. But, when I do get sick, it tends to happen at the most incontinent times. Such as when there’s a big exam at school. Or when I’m traveling.

Yes, I have somehow managed to catch the flu while here in the UK. Alhamdulillah it’s mild and I get over the flu relatively quickly; after one or two days the fever breaks. The only tough time is at night when the sleeplessness hits me. Add high humidity and a naturally warm room, and it’s even harder to sleep. Now, if I had been at home, I would have reached for the Nyquil. Anytime I have trouble sleeping because of an illness, I take a small dose of Nyquil, which puts me right to sleep.

But, I just learned Nyquil has alcohol. Now this really isn’t a huge deal nor does it mean I can never take it again. There are varying opinions about the issue of alcohol in medicine among Muslim scholars. Some say it’s fine so long as it doesn’t impair mental ability, some say a certain quantity is okay, and others strictly outlaw consuming alcohol in medicine. So depending on which opinion a Muslim follows, taking Nyquil to help relieve the effects of the flu is fine.

However, this situation highlights something all Muslims living in the West should do: read the ingredients of products unless the product is specially labeled as being halaal. Many products produced and sold in the West contain haram products.

One such example is gelatin. Gelatin can be found in so many products. There are the obvious foods: gelatin desserts (like Jell-O), marshmallows, gummy candies, trifles, candy corn, Poptarts, Peeps. Other products use gelatin as a stabilizer, thickener, or texturizer, such as jams, yoghurt, cream cheese, and margarine. Fruit juices, like apple juice, and vinegar are sometimes clarified using gelatin. A fact less well-known, gelatin is also used to stabilize beta-carotene, which is often used in soft drinks as a coloring agent.

Gelatin’s use is not exclusive to food. Many pharmaceutical capsules make use of gelatin to make them easier to swallow. As a surface sizing, it can be used to smooth glossy printing paper or playing cards and maintain the wrinkles in crêpe paper. Some cosmetics include a variant of gelatin called hydrolyzed collagen. I used a specific face wash for a few years until I read the ingredients one day out of boredom and came across gelatin. Never would have guessed I’d find gelatin there!

While gelatin is one of the biggies, many other ingredients are haram. Two closely related ingredients are whey and rennin. Rennin is an enzyme taken from the stomach of a newly killed calf and is used in the cheese-making process. In the process of producing cheese, a coagulum is formed by clotting milk with rennin. When that is cut, a watery liquid known as whey is released and drained off. The curd is further prepared to become cheese while the whey can be used in cream, butter, cheese, drinks, and syrups.

Other ingredients to avoid include vanilla extract (artificial vanilla is fine), alcohol, bone phosphates, cochineal/carmine, glycerine, l-cysteine, magnesium stearate (and stearic acid), shellac, emulsifiers, and any other animal by-products. Not all of these are found in food products. For example, magnesium stearate is often found in medicines, specifically tablets.

Some of these ingredients are not always haram. There are different ways to produce ingredients, like emulsifiers. Emulsifiers can originate from animals or vegetable sources. This is true for several common ingredients. Certain chemicals can by synthesized including stearic acid. There are also many substitutes in these modern times. Gelatin substitutes for vegans and vegetarians commonly are produced using plants rather than animals.

Also, some of these ingredients can be derived from halal animal sources so long as the animals are slaughtered in the manner specified by the Qur’an and hadith. Therefore it is possible to consume such products as cheese and gelatin originating from animals.

Yet it can be tough to learn whether or not these ingredients are halal and this safe for Muslims to eat or not. Unless one has a direct line to the producer of the food (or just anybody who knows exactly what is in the food), it is much better to play safe than be sorry. Muslims should avoid anything that is suspect, even slightly so. This grey area is termed mushboosh, and a good practicing Muslim should prevent himself or herself from eating/consuming such products.

Therefore, it is best to either completely avoid food with haram ingredients or stick to foods and other products labeled halaal. Even products labeled safe for vegetarians does not guarantee there is not some other haram ingredient (e.g. alcohol). Products imported from a Muslim country nor products imported into a Muslim country ensure the permissibility of consumption.

Remember, if there is no halaal label, check the ingredients, investigate. Learn the common haram ingredients and stay on the lookout while shopping. There are many Muslim websites online that list haram ingredients or products. I have included some links at the end of this post. Memorize these ingredients or keep a small list of them close by when shopping. Insha’Allah this will help in avoiding the ‘hidden’ and ‘unknown’ haram products so common in the Western world.

‘Forbidden to you for food are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah; that which hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored to death; that which hath been (partly) eaten by a wild animal; unless ye are able to slaughter it (in due form); that which is sacrificed on stone (altars).’ Qur’an 5:3

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http://www.muslimconsumergroup.com/

http://www.canadianhalalfoods.com/

http://www.halalmc.net/index.html

http://www.zabihah.com/