so, here’s a worrying fact i heard the other day: 1 in 6 people in the UK are depressed.even more worrying is the amount of people that are being prescribed anti depressant drugs, despite the evidence that they don’t work for everyone. i’m not just blaming doctors or the medical profession here. the public in general want a quick fix to their problems and believe doctors can solve everything through giving them a “magic” pill. how may of these people have tried to sit down and work out the cause of their problems instead of relying on pills.
it worries me that people take pills for headaches and the common cold, instead of simply slowing down and taking a rest. i can’t remember the last time i took paracetamol. i just genuinely believe that you should let your body rest and try to get to the cause of the problem instead of covering up the symptoms.
how many admissions in accident and emergency are alcohol related? wouldn’t it make more sense to deal with the problem of how it’s it socially acceptable to get drunk regularly in this country? even amongst underage drinkers?
conventional medicine has come far, and of course people should seek treatment when needed, particularly for life threatening illnesses. what i’d love to see is more doctors willing to accept alternative medical treatments like massage, reflexology, blood letting etc as valid alternatives alongside traditional routes.
anyway, i’m drifting off topic. as you can see this is something i feel quite strongly about! what i wanted to write about was an interesting course* i attended recently looking at Islamic health and medicine, focusing on how eating certain foods can benefit your health.
here is a very basic summary of the notes.
water: 
you should drink it lukewarm/ partially boiled whenever possible, as it is better for your body temperature. zam zam water is the best kind, if you can get hold of it. you should drink 2 litres of water every day, and for every 1% that you don’t drink, your body loses 10% of its functionality, leading to fatigue, irritability and stress. it is said that water, salt, iron and one other thing(?) are from the heavens.
salt 
Sodium chloride, or common table salt, takes out minerals and that’s why it isn’t good for you. but eating the right salt can actually benefit your health. the best kind to have is Himalayan salt, as it has the most trace minerals. if you can’t get hold of that, then you should try sea salt or rock salt. the prophet pbuh used to begin and end every meal with a pinch of salt.
dates: 
the first plant that ever grew in the earth is a date palm. a single date contains nearly all the minerals we need. in fact it is possible to survive on just dates and water.the prophet pbuh used to soak dates in water overnight and then drink the contents. there are different types of dates, and the darker the date, the more nutritious it is. ajua dates (available only in Medina) are the best kind.
(is anybody else thinking it would be worth moving to SA just for the dates and water)
honey: 
can be eaten alone or with lukewarm/ partly boiled water.
bee hives are cleaner then a surgical room and no bacteria can survive in honey.
bee keepers live longer then any other group of people.
you can put it into your eyes (like eye drops) to help freshen your eyes. (this stings a bit but is strangely addictive)
a whole surah in the Qura’n (surah 16) is dedicated to the honey bee, you can read it all here.
Your Lord revealed to the bees: “Build dwellings in the mountains and the trees, and also in the structures which men erect.
Then eat from every kind of fruit and travel the paths of your Lord, which have been made easy for you to follow.”
From inside them comes a drinkof varying colors, containing healing for humanity.
There is certainly a sign in that for people who reflect.
(Surat an-Nahl: 68-69)
olives 
can be eater fresh(which i’m glad about because i get through a jar a day!), as pickles or as oil.
it eliminates free radicals and helps to reduce the bad cholesterol in your body, as well as combating tiredness.
Olives are referred to in the Qur’an in surah An-Nur (24:35)
“God is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of His light is as if there were a niche and within it a lamp: The lamp enclosed in glass: The glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed tree, an olive, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it: Light upon Light! God doth guide whom He will to His light: God doth set forth parables for men: and God doth know all things.”
ginger 
is also very good for you
sorry, i was either not paying attention, colouring in the pretty pictures or he didn’t say a lot about it (to redeem myself a little bit, i think it was the latter)
black seed 
is not the same as onion seeds, which is a common misconception. It should be eaten to help combat allergies, asthma and immune disorders. in fact, the prophet Pbuh said that black seed can cure every illness except old age and death. you should chew it after meals.
barely 
can be eaten for breakfast as oats. or you can drink barely water to improve your complexion, pr barely powder.
a dish called talbina was given to sick people at the time of the Prophet pbuh, which was made with barely.
sana
not sure what this is, and he forgot to pass the packet round like he did with everything else:( but it is used as a medicine and doesn’t damage your heart like some medicines can.
other points include the fact that we should have our main meal at breakfast and then reduce the amount we eat as the day goes on. the main food type at breakfast should be protein, preferably meat, fish or egg. we all looked a bit horrified at this, and he said it was because we had been brainwashed by he western way of living, which is rushed during the day and then the main meal is eaten at night, which is the cause of a lot of obesity. he also said we should try not to drink water with meals (which is proving to be quite difficult) as it leads to digestion problems. ideally, you should drink water half an hour before meals and then 2 hours after.
he also talked about food combinations and the time of day you should eat different types of food, including the combinations of hot and cold food, which i don’t feel confident enough to write about, but he recommended this book which you can buy an English translation of as well.
*all notes taken from a course delivered by Dr Salim Khan of the Muhsin instititute, in conjunction with the Utrujj foundation at Salford University, February 2008.
hema's sphere 