Archive | December, 2013

I cannot tolerate…

24 Dec

I’m doing that really important thing today calling “sorting out your life before you screw it up so badly you end up being mental all over again”
Long title but I think you get the point. Back in September I ate all sorts of junk to have this human MOT test done to see what I was intolerant to, what the problems were with my body, to check out my hormones and yadda, yadda, yadda. I found out I was intolerant to loads things. Due to my busy life style and can’t be botheredism I kinda fell over, my face met the floor and it was downhill since then. Not like the good ol’ days(!) so it’s all good. I can fix it if I fooooooocuuuuusssss…

The list totals up to about 50 things but obviously a few categories include several things so it means most, if not all staples are out the window.

So, my intolerance list in no particular order:

  1. Fructose – that’s fruit sugar in case you didn’t know
  2. Cheese – I eat the raw kind if I find it and it doesn’t smell or taste like feet (note: that doesn’t mean I’ve tasted feet before)
  3. Cow’s milk – I totally drink raw milk though!
  4. Gluten – This is summarised as the next three items of food
  5. Wheat
  6. Barley
  7. Rye
  8. Quinoa
  9. Spelt – I think?!
  10. Oats – apparently I should be able to stomach (nwithhout pun intended) some.  I’m happy without.
  11. Seafood – prawns
  12. Rapeseed oil
  13. black pepper, apparently.
  14. Nutmeg – we Muslims can’t consume it anyway
  15. Pork – So haraam even the test’s telling me to avoid it.
  16. E211 – aka sodium benzoate aka benzoic acid sodium salt
  17. E214 – aka Ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  18. E215 – aka Sodium ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  19. E216 – aka Propyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  20. E217 – aka Sodium propyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  21. E218 – aka Methyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  22. E219 – aka Sodium methyl p-hydroxybenzoate
  23. E220 – aka Sulphur dioxide a common preservative used in almost everything processed. Lovely.
  24. E621 – aka Monosodium Glutamate aka MSG which needs to be illegal and banned from the Earth.
  25. Yeast – all kinds as far as I’m aware but specifically brewer’s yeast.
  26. Soya – again, needs to be banned from Earth
  27. Brazil nuts – adjusted my raw fudge recipe for this. Still yummy though!
  28. Cashews
  29. Peanuts – really? Mind you, they are legumes which brings me on to…
  30. Legumes! – all of them, this includes…
  31. Lentils – all of them obviously
  32. Grapefruit – was never a fan
  33. Kiwi – a known allergy in my family.
  34. Hops
  35. Malt – as above really. No malteasers
  36. Corn – aka maize, refined maize starch and all those similar things. Includes popcorn
  37. Goat’s milk
  38. Rice – white, brown, ground, flour
  39. Allspice
  40. Tomatoes
  41. Flaxseeds/Linseeds
  42. Nori – aka Seaweek. Need to find out if that includes kelp noodles which did give me stomach aches… oops?
  43. Chia seeds
  44. Kelp
  45. Semolina -I was totally intoxicated after consuming halwa, an Indian dessert so that was obvious
  46. Agave – agave syrup is apparently bad for us anyway… more on that some other time
  47. Millet
  48. Hemp flour(?) but apparently I’m ok with hemp seeds so abstaining from all to be safe!
  49. Stupid people – Never tried eating one before so that’s good (the human MOT didn’t show this, I may have added that in myself
  50. …

May Allaah have mercy on me and make this next stage in my life easy for me, aameen!

Remedies from the Sunnah Part 2

15 Dec

It’s finally here!! I do apologise from the bottom of my gluten free heart. I have been busy lately and also struggling with food.

So… Health and the Sunnah!

Ibn Qayyim said: After guidance the next blessing is our health.

We need to fulfil our duty with our health and being healthy is from the Sunnah.

We learn that for every disease there is a cure:

“…There is no disease that Allah has created, except that He also has created its remedy.” Bukhaari 7,582.

Thus, there is no such thing as an incurable disease (except old age).

We learn that eating healthily is from the Sunnah:

Four Aayaat relating to this in the Qur’aan:

  1. “O mankind, eat which is halaal and tayyib …” (Al-Baqarah, 2:168)Ibn kathir explains this as meaning that which doesn’t harm the body or harm your mind.
  2. “Eat from what Allah has provided you as halaal and tayyib, and fear Allah in whom you believe.” (Al-Maa’idah, 5:88)
  3. “So, eat of the spoils you have got, halaal and tayyib, and fear Allah. Surely, Allah is Most-Forgiving, Very-Merciful.” (Al-Anfaal, 8:69)
  4. “Eat from the good things (tayyibaat) We have provided to you, and do not exceed the limits in it, lest My wrath should descend on you…” (Taa-Haa, 20:81)

So now we have the commands how can we do this? Let’s take a look…

Importance of Breastfeeding:

There ate three Ayaat in the Qur’aan relating to this:

  1. “Mothers (should) suckle their children for two full years, for one who wants to complete the (period of) suckling…” (Al-Baqarah, 2:233)
  2. “We commanded man (to be good) in respect of his parents. His mother carried him (in her womb) despite weakness upon weakness, and his weaning is in two years…” (Luqmaan, 31:14)
  3. “…His mother carried him with difficulty and delivered him with difficulty. And his carrying and his weaning is (in) thirty months*, …” (Fussilat, 41:15)

*here 30 months includes the minimum period of pregnancy, that is 6 months and the maximum period for suckling a child, that is 2 years. So 6 months plus 24 months is the full two years.

As we all know that breastfeeding an infant increases intelligence, immunity, decreases risks of diabetes, obesity, risks of infections, asthma, allergies etc.

However, what the World Health Organisations (WHO) and other similar organisations don’t tell you is that if you don’t breast feed your baby you are putting them at risk of exposing them to the above diseases. For instance not breastfeeding your baby and switching to bottle feeding increases the risk of diabetes and obesity. This message, when put this way is more alarming. (As a side note, have you seen how many formula milks contain soya amongst other rubbish? I had a look out of curiosity!)

Wean your child correctly:

Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah said: “A child should be given only milk until their teeth appear, because their stomachs are weak and unable to digest food. When the baby’s teeth appear, his stomach has grown strong and is able to be nourish by food. Food should be introduced gradually.” Book: Tuhfat al-Mawdood bi Ahkaam al-Mawlood. 16th chapter.

Do not force feed them into eating when they are not ready. Instead wait another week and try again until they are interested in food.

With that I shall conclude and inshaaAllaah the next part which you won’t have to wait long for I hope, we will look at fasting and praying and the benefits of each briefly.

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