The Science behind Zabiha

Society Religion & Philosophy
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The Biology of Blood Prohibition in Islaam
By: Moin uddin Ahmed
Al Jumuah Vol 14, Issue 6

[1st couple of intro paragraphs omitted, no info given]

It is fairly easy to detect spoilage of meat through changes in color and odor, but unfortunately, it is not possible to detect any specific human pathogen (bacteria harmful to humans) that the animal may have concealed in its blood or the history of the animal. The presence of these bacteria can only be determined by microbialogical tests, which are practically impossible to perform on each animal. Tuberculosis, Anthrax, Mad Cow Disease and food poisoning are diseases found in animals, and the E. coli organism, which is not virulent in cattle, but a dangerous bacteria to humans, can be detected only by the blood test of the animal. The question of whether bovine diseases may be readily transmitted to people eating beef from infected cattle is still hotly debated, but it is becomining widely accepted that this transmission can occur. However, the quality of blood is a doubtful matter, and has a strong reason why Allah has forbidden it to be eaten, as it contains both harmful and filthy substances. Islaam has shown the safest method for humans to remove the blood from the carcass of the animal, and that is by discarding the blood during slaughtering, in order to avoid the risk of contracting diseases.

The blood carries pathogens which exist in dormant state when the animal is alive in the state of spores (hard shell protecting bacteria); and so long as the animal’s immune system is intact. However, as soon as the animal dies, its blood defense mechanism then fails, the bacteria start to multiply and are then capable to attack. Let us consider this from medical point of view: blood removal is in complete conformity with the standards of aseptic technique, it serves similar to sterilization of food by cooking; the main objective is to prevent humans from infectious diseases. Knowing all this now, one wonders how and why humans began to consume blood and why was it necessary to prohibit it in our religion? The history of consuming blood began with Nomadic tribes; blood was a staple of their diet.

But blood wasn’t only consumed for the nutritious value. In fact, most blood consumers used blood as a spiritual solution in rituals. The Nordic peoples were one of those types of tribes. They looked upon drinking the blood of an animal as a supernatural event—believing that to drink the blood meant that they were drinking the sould of the animal which would boost their strength and give them the qualities of the slain beast. Tribes of East Africa tap the blood of cattle by shooting with special arrows. Marco Polo, a Venetian traveler gave a description of the 13th Century Mongol army when they went on campaigns without provision and without making fire, living on the blood of their horses. These practices seem to have started from the concept that blood can serve as food and is the very soul of animal, but opposite conclusions were also drawn. In the Middle East, Muslim and Jews banned the consumption of blood, as did the early Christians.

The Qur’an forbids the consumption of certain types of meat as well as the blood of any animal, including the one whose meat is permissible. When Abrahim determined to sacrifice his beloved son in the name of Allah, the angel (Jibrail) replaced Him with a goat, and this sacrificing technique was symbolized as a ritual slaughter by Muslims.

The Islamic Method of Slaughtering
In order to slaughter according to the tenets or our religion we must follow certain guidelines. The animal should be healthy and be relaxed to remove tension prior to slaughter. One can accomplish this by making sure the animal has plenty of food and water beforehand. The approved method is to state, “In the name of Allah”, then the recitation of Qur’anic verses, and begin cutting quickly with a sharp knife the wind pipe, the esophagus, and the two external jugular arteries and veins, causing the animal to vleed to death without being tortured. Blood will shoot out from the ruptured vessels. The incision of the main arteries and veins close to the discharge of heart (pump) experiences a sudden drop in pressure, resulted in ample flow of blood through the opening, thus the blood rolls back from the brain by gravity. As a result, the oxsygen supply to the brain is cut off, the animal loses consciousness and the sensation of pain subsides. It means before death, this process terminates the part of the brain that causes the animal to feel and it loses consciousness, and therfore eliminates pain at the time of death.

** More of the article to follow**

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Blood Removal

Next, there is the process of blood removal, which is an essential part of the Islamic slaughtering process. With the heart beating fast, blood from all parts of the body collect in the heart, which is then flushed out through the ruptured vessels and arteries, no blood could be pumped back to the heart or body. During this period the animal will remain in an unconscious state, until the blood removal process is completed and then commences the death. But in a non-Islaamic killing by electric shock method (stunning) causes the animal to become senseless prior to slaughter, an unacceptable method according to Islaam. The reason for this is because some animals paralyze if the amperage exceeds its tolerance level, an extremely painful experience for the animal to endure. When such a fatal blow or an electric shock (stunning) is applied to the animal, it can make the blood reverse its flow in veins and arteries, which ultimately counteracts with out-flowing blood. This causes the blood to remain stagnant in the body and does not allow it to flow out during the time of slaughter. Some times an internal hemorrhage may also take place. So, stunning prior to slaughter does not solve the problem of blood removal. Therefore, stunning is not acceptable in Islaam.

In slaughter houses the carcass of the stunned animal is hung upside down after being slaughtered in order to allow the carcass to bleed by gravity through major vessels. This method does not eliminate the blood that is trapped in veins and capillaries. This trapped blood requires the application of force in order to pull it out of the body which can only be accomplished by pumping the animal's heart during slaughtering. The meat processing period starts after the animal is slaughtered, first the skin removal takes place, then the chopping of the carcass, and then cutting it into small pieces and finally transferring the meat to a storage unit for refrigeration. This entire operation is time consuming, carried out at room temperature, which is an ideal temperature for the bacteria in the contaminated blood of the stunned animal to grow and produce toxins. However, in case of zabiha slaughter, some traces of blood are still sticking to the meat after it has been thawed, but it may not be considered as contaminated blood, as the bacteria and toxins had been discharged with blood at the time of slaughter.

Why Blood is Forbidden

The scientific reasons why blood is forbidden is because the immune system of the body collapses as death occurs (failure of body defenses), resulting in death of the anti-bodies in the blood. Many pathogens, which are alive in the blood of the animal in sporing form (protective covering) come out from their spores as the death of animal occurs (i.e. favorable condition to multiply) and become active. This starts the putrefying blood and tissue muscles to produce obnoxious gases, thus degrading the value of meat.

It is also known that if any part of the body is attacked by a virulent infection, it is able to overcome bodily defensive mechanisms such as in the case of cancerous diseases that spread destructively and require immediate blood transfusions or the case of an amputation of an infected organ before blood gets contaminated and spreads to other parts of the body. The waste collected from the tissues, dead cells, nitrogenous matter, urea, and toxins (poisonous substances of bacterial activities) are collected in the blood plasma called the excretory system. Fifty-five percent of blood is made up of brown liquid called plasma. Plasma is the main carrier of waste products to the kidneys through liver for filtration. Toxins, highly poisonous matter, are heat resistant and dangerous to the health of humans if ingested; some of them remain unaltered at the cooking temperatures. Inorganic salts, called electrolytes, are also present in the plasma in the form of dissolved ions. These ions are the binding force for harmful metallic impurities. The filtrate liquid from the waste is called urine and is actually a filth in blood stream which is why the Qur'an rejects it as food. So it is necessary to drain out the entire blood of animal at the time of slaughter in order to remove waste along with urine that is present in the blood.

more to follow...

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Blood Disorders

Similarly, in human blood, there are many disorders that can be found in animal's blood as well. At room temperature the bacteria multiply in the blood of a stunned animal and destroy tissue cells, particularly the fats and muscles at a rate of about an inch an hour. This diminishes the nutritional value of the meat and also produces poisonous substances called toxins which are injurious for the health, sometimes even fatal. Through the cooked meat becomes sterile (free from germs) there are still harmful substances that remain in the cooked blood, like inorganic ions, which assist in the formation of complex structures by the process of coagulation called clotting. The toxins are the products of the metabolic activities of bacteria and are highly poisonous, such as toxoplasma pathogen which invades the tissue and may damage the central nervous system of humans. It could be possible that these complex compounds (clots) polymerizes on cooking. Some toxins are heat resistant and once formed, are not easily destroyed even by the cooking process, such as Staphylococcal food poisoning and Botulism. The smoked meat or surface cooking of stunned animal meat is highly risky to eat, because its blood is contaminated.

In conclusion, there is much for us to learn about the biology of blood and the various methods of slaughter; especially why the Islaamic method is the healthies choice and also the most desirable method for all of mankind---Muslims and non-Muslims alike. By making informed and educated decisions, we can, insha'Allah, protect the health of ourselves and our families from contaminated meats and foods.

May Allah subhana wa t'aala bless this brother for writing such an informative article. Insha'Allah, you have derived as much knowledge and enlightment as I have.

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We're talking about halal legislation in General forum so I thought this article relates very well to that topic. Hope you find it informative.

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Thanks Muni, gives you a different perspective on things.

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Jazakallah Khair for sharing :k: