Why Muslim cannot be a vegan? – for the wrong reason
It seems that these days, vegan campaigners took their quest more than meal preference and believed everyone should join their camp. But for a Muslim, it is more than just a fancy look to be vegan, as if this is a trendy thing to do these days. They foster the idea that Veganism is based on the support of the cruelty of man against animals or animals prone to have diseases compared to plants or that it has to do with sustainability at a global scale.
As for Muslims, Allah, God Almighty, reminded every Muslim to understand the knowledge behind Islamic slaughtering and the goodness of meat behind it. He reminded in the Quran – ‘The Cattle Verses No. 6’, Ayah 119 :
“And why should you not eat of that upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned while He has explained in detail to you what He has forbidden you, excepting that to which you are compelled. And indeed do many lead [others] astray through their [own] inclinations without knowledge. Indeed, your Lord – He is most knowing of the transgressors.”
For the sake of knowledge, Muslims who still think Islamic slaughtering is cruel or that Halal meat is not healthy, please read why Halal slaughtering is humane.
So why meat is so important in our lives :
1. Nutrient
An essential amino acid or indispensable amino acid, which can only be obtained from meat, is an amino acid that cannot be synthesized de novo (from scratch) by the organism and thus must be supplied in its diet. The nine amino acids humans cannot synthesize are phenylalanine, valine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, lysine, and histidine.
Amino Acid (Protein) Deficiency Signs include a weak immune system, loss of antibody production, fatigue, stomach acid/alkaline imbalance, dizziness/nausea, water retention, and infertility.
Protein
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is important for your body. It helps make DNA and red blood cells, for example. Vitamin B12 is naturally found in animal products, including fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and milk products.
Since the body doesn’t make vitamin B12, it must be obtained from animal-based foods and consumed regularly.
Causes of Vitamin B12 Deficiency
Vitamin B12 deficiency can happen if you have specific conditions, such as:
- Atrophic gastritis, in which your stomach lining has thinned
- Pernicious anemia, which makes it hard for your body to absorb vitamin B12
- Surgery that removes part of your stomach or small intestine, including weight loss surgery
- Conditions affecting the small intestine, such as Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, bacterial growth, or a parasite
- Immune system disorders, such as Graves’ disease or lupus
- Long-term use of acid-reducing drugs. Stomach acids help break down animal proteins that have vitamin B12.
Some vegans think they can always take vitamin B12 or amino acids through fortified grains, but again, economically, is everyone able to buy all these supplements?
These are some examples of the types of nutrients essential to eating meat in our daily lives.
2. Economy
A simple economic rule of thumb is supply vs demand. Ask yourselves, should we promote vegetarianism to the highest level? In Islam, balance in life is so important, and if a Muslim becomes a vegetarian eminently, we are helping the cost of meat to go up (which they are now) to a certain limit that we cannot afford anymore. Think about undeveloped countries and communities with meat as their sole nutrient dependency.
This scenario will trigger issues related to food security. In some nations, breeding an animal for self-sufficiency is much easier than growing a crop because of the climate and pH level in the soil, which makes growing crops impossible on a huge scale. And this is why we cannot stop eating meat, the number 1 source of protein and the goodness behind it. It is important to understand the reason why Allah opposed that every Muslim must take meat, and we should take it together with vegetables as a balance both diet and life.
God has preserved the earth longer than we think. Are we judging that God cannot run the earth anymore? Do we have to stop consuming meat?
We all agree that some degree of sustainability is important, but we cannot stop the natural cycle or natural habitat predators over prey. Technology, waste management and animal welfare can be educated and aligned, but we can not create much bigger problems.
Conclusion
The one thing you could not deny is that God created you with pointed teeth (canine) as a reminder that humankind should eat meat in its natural forms.
