DIETETICS IN THE QURAN

The Challenge of The Qur’an ~ 373 ~ the reason for the special method of slaughter prescribed in Islam. The wielder of the knife, having taken the name of God, makes an incision in the jugular vein; leaving the other veins of the neck intact. This causes death by a total loss of blood from the body, rather than by injury to any vital organ. Were the animal’s brain, heart, liver or any other vital organ to be crippled, the animal would die immediately, and its blood would congeal in its veins and eventually permeate the flesh. The animal’s flesh would thus be contaminated with uric acid and would become poisonous. Pork has also been prohibited in the Quran. At that time the reasons for this prohibition were not fully understood. Nowadays, people are much more well informed about its harmful effects. Uric acid, as we have seen, is present in all animals. The human body too has its share, which is extracted by the kidneys and excreted by means of urination. Ninety per cent of the uric acid collected in the human body is extracted in this way. But the pig’s biochemistry is such that it excretes only two percent of its uric acid. The rest remains an integral part of the body. It is this factor which causes the