What Islam Teaches Us About Healthy Lifestyle

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Islam is a peaceful religion that promotes the message of Allah and the love language and lifestyle of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). This religion doesn’t force obligations or restrictions on its followers; it instead teaches them how to balance their religion with their lives and everyday routines, which counts as a healthy lifestyle. However, there are other things as well that Islam teaches us to have a healthy lifestyle such as:

Avoid Alcohol Consumption​

Alcohol is forbidden in Islam because it not only intoxicates the person consuming it but it also causes severe health issues in the future such as cardiovascular diseases, damaging the liver and causing cirrhosis, cancer, even anemia.

When alcohol is consumed, it weakens the white blood cells in your body. Because of this, your body won’t be able to fight bacteria and other diseases. By avoiding alcohol, you will have a healthy brain, strong immune system, and decreased risks of cancer.

Don’t Overeat​

According to the 2nd half verse of Surah-Al-A’raf, “Eat and drink, but be not excessive. Indeed, He likes not those who commit excess.” It states that when Muslims eat food, they shouldn’t eat too much because overeating can cause their body to have indigestion, become overweight, and even lead to breathing difficulties.

This is why Islam teaches us to have balanced diets so that we can avoid overeating that can cause severe health issues like obesity, heart problems, and diabetes.

Awareness of Hygiene​

One of the most important things that Islam teaches us is cleanliness and the importance of hygiene. We’re taught to keep ourselves clean and tidy from a young age in Islam. When it comes to taking care of your hygiene and being clean, there are many things that you can do such as, cutting your nails and keeping them clean, making it a daily routine to shower, removing waste from your homes, not leaving bodily waste around your home, washing your hands, etc.

Keeping yourself clean in Islam is considered an act of worship in itself. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) has stated that “Cleanliness is half of faith.” And “Allah loves those who keep themselves clean.” When we need to pray, we perform Wudu (ablution). It’s a holy act of worship in which we wash our body parts thoroughly following a set of steps.

Praying 5 Times a Day​

A Muslim must pray 5 times a day in a mosque at their prescribed prayer timings. These prayers only take 10-15 minutes to perform by following a specific set of instructions. They can also be considered as an exercise that can help the human body to stay in shape by increasing the blood circulation inside the body. If someone is praying after eating, it can also help them digest their food and burn off its calories.

There are various Islamic apps such as Islamic Finder available on both Android and iOS that can be used by Muslims to keep track of prayer timings for preventing missing up of prayers.

Fasting in the Month of Ramadan​

Ramadan is the 9th month in the Islamic calendar. It is the month in which Muslims are told to abstain from eating or drinking anything from dawn to dusk. By doing this, we gain many benefits such as:

Fast Metabolism:​

When you fast, your metabolism becomes faster because the enzymes of your liver are easily able to break down fats and cholesterol in your body and transform it into bile acid, which then gets turned into heat. Therefore, resulting in speeding up your metabolism.

Weight Loss:​

In the duration of your fast, there is a process in which stored fat in your body is used up for energy, making you cut down your body weight. However, it’s important to make sure to eat healthy food after breaking your fast and not junk or fatty food.

Resistance of Bad Habits:​

In this month, we’re taught to fight the temptation of giving in to our desires. By doing this, we’re able to drop bad habits and avoid them from developing.

Get Some Rest in the Afternoon:​

If you want to give some relief to the vital organs of your body, such as your heart and brain, then lie down on your bed and take a short nap in the afternoon. This is because a nap in the day can help you to relieve stress and even help you to remember something that you forgot about. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) made it a habit himself and would even advise his companions to do the same.

Cover Utensils in the Kitchen Before Sleeping at Night​

When storing kitchen utensils, Islam advises us not to leave them bare open. This is because dust or germs can collect on the surfaces of utensils. Another danger of leaving dishes uncovered is that various kinds of insects crawl out at nighttime.

These insects carry with them germs and diseases that can come in contact with the utensils, spreading those germs onto the utensils. As a result, diseases such as food poisoning can occur that can prove to be fatal.

That is why the Holy Prophet (PBUH) advised the companions: - “Cover up the utensils and tie the mouth of the water skins, for there is a night in a year when a disease descends, and it does not pass an uncovered utensil or an untied water skin but that it enters it.” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith: 2014)

Cleaning With Water after Defecation or Urination​

When you pass urine, Islam teaches you to wash the genitals with water. This ruling is called Istinjaa. Washing with water removes excrete matter, preventing the buildup of bacteria that can lead to infection in the private parts.

Conclusion​

Islam isn’t just a religion that pertains to praying. It includes basic teachings for all fields of life so that mankind can enjoy a healthy lifestyle. Islam forbids alcohol consumption as it damages vital body organs such as the liver. To prevent various health complications that can occur due to obesity, it advises eating in a balanced manner. Islam puts a strong emphasis on hygiene and makes it mandatory to keep ourselves and our surroundings clean to prevent the spreading of infections.
 
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