A recent research in UK shows that only 50% of the patients believe his/her doctor is aware of his/her religious necessities.
As per the research conducted with 50 patients and 18 medical practitioner,
*26 of the patients try to check and verify if the medicines prescribed are Halal or not
*42% of the patients do not take medicines that are not proven to be Halal
*58 of the patients stop taking the medicines if those medicines are Haram (or from Haram ingredients)
It is interesting to note that the acceptance of taking Haram medicines depend also on the seriousness of the diseases.
• 8% of the patients and 22% of the practitioners believe that Haram medicines can be used for treatment if the illness is not very serious.
• But if the sickness is a serious one, 36% of the patients and 44% of the doctors accept to use the Haram medicines.
Important questions to ask
Islam is not only a belief system but also a complete way of life. This means we have to be very careful and selective in what we consume and what we are led to take. Obviously, the same also covers the health issue. The below questions should give some clues when we have to get medical treatment.
-Do the medicines contain Haram or doubtful ingredients and if so, do we accept to take these medicines?
-Do taking Haram medicines affect our spirituality?
-Is there an alternative to that medicine that contains Haram ingredients?
-Is you doctor aware of your beliefs? If not, take come time to explain what you are allowed to have and what not.
Insulin in Diabets Treatment
Human insulin is similar to cattle and pork insulin and that is why insulin were mostly obtained from cattle and pork pankreas. However, some differences in those animal based insulins were found to cause production of antibodies and this resulted inflammation in the injection area. Because of these issues, synthetic insulins were developed in ‘80s.
Today many patients are treated with insulins from synthetic sources. But there are still some clinics that use animal origin insulins. So if you are a Muslim diabetes patient, you must verify that your insulin treatment should come from synthetic sources.
Use of Heparin to prevent clogging after bone, heart or brain surgeries
Heparin is mainly sourced from porks. Nowadays we can find medicines without heparins; this means we don’t have to take those medicines that contain heparins.
If you have a heart problem and need to have a surgery, you can consult your surgeon and ask him/her not to use medicines that contain heparin.
Pregnant ladies should be cautious and ask their physicians twice if their medicines contain pork based ingredients.
Vaccines continue to be a problem from the birth and there is always a speculation that some of those vaccines may contain Haram ingredients. It is better to verify and learn the truths before taking those vaccines.
Tablets coated with films and medicines in the shape of capsules are to be verified on if they contain gelatins.
Many cough syrups may contain ethyl alcohol. Remember those medicines are also easy to produce without alcohols. So you can ask your pharmacist to give the ones withou t alcohol.
Same goes for L-Systain. L-Systain is obtained from pork hair or human hair. Your pharmacist can easily give you your alternate medicine that does not contain L-Systain.
Catguts used for surgery may be obtained from animal sources. As a Muslim patient, you can ask catguts of synthetic or plant origins.
Always remember that you can’t be too careful these days. Ask your surgeon, practitioner and your pharmacist to give you medicines with Halal ingredients only. If you have a problem in understanding the terms or language used in prescriptions, please ask for help. You have a right to know.
