“Nearly all of the herbal dietary supplements tested in a Congressional investigation contained trace amounts of lead and other contaminants, and some supplement sellers made illegal claims that their products can cure cancer and other diseases, investigators found.

The levels of heavy metals — including mercury, cadmium and arsenic — did not exceed thresholds considered dangerous, the investigators found. However, 16 of the 40 supplements tested contained pesticide residues that appeared to exceed legal limits, the investigators found. In some cases, the government has not set allowable levels of these pesticides because of a paucity of scientific research.”

Read More: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/26/health/policy/26herbal.html

Assalam Aleikum wa Rahmatula wa Barakatu

Ramadan is around the corner. Are you ready for the month? Are you
ready to get the most of the fasting, or simply to get by with the
fasting?

I am forming a 7-day cleansing program starting from the first week of
July. You are cordially invited to join me. Click on the link below to
learn about this Pre-Ramadan Cleansing Program.

Pre-Ramadan Cleansing Program:

http://islamicholisticliving.wordpress.com/2010/06/18/pre-ramadan-cleasning-its-free-sign-up-now/

It’s amazing. It’s rewarding. It’s FREE!

Please spread the words and share this information with your friends
and family members.

Wendy

South Africa Muslim Communities Prepare for World Cup 2010

With the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ just months away, the South African Muslim community is hard at work preparing to welcome the many Muslim players and fans that are expected to be in the country in June and July this year.

“Volunteers will be placed outside stadiums handing out lists of Halaal restaurants, products and prayer facilities in that city and they will also answer any questions from Muslim spectators,” said Moulana Abdul Wahab Wookay, head of the NIHT.

Read more: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=1170723/index.html

South Africa Prepares to Host Muslim Guests for World Cup

The latest news coming out of Cape Town is the immense preparation being taken to host all the Muslim guests that will come to South Africa for the World Cup.

“Food and beverages are one thing, but other non-natural perishables like chocolates, sweets and pharmaceuticals could contain non-Halaal substances such as pork-based substances or extracts from an un-Islamic slaughtered animal. That’s why details are so important,…”

Read more: http://www.breakingworldcupnews.com/south-africa-prepares-to-host-muslim-guests-for-world-cup-2010/52053

NPR Market Place just ran their story on Greeen Zabiha and KOL Foods. Give it a listen, leave a comment, share it, and let us know what you think.

Green Zabiha (Right Click Save Target As)

Well, alhamduillah, I learned more than three things. But, I’ll just list three at a time

You probably know that what you eat may affect your health. But, do you know that:

1. The order that you eat your meal (e.g., soup first or last) has great impact on how your body reacts.
2. The way you prepare your food may turn healthy ingredients into toxins.
3. The combination of food you eat in a single meal may affect your digestion and nutrient absorption.

Stay tuned with our eating wisely series.

The prophet (SAW) said: Eid Al-Adha plus the three following days are days of eating and drinking.

So, why not try this recipe for your Qurbani meat?

Ingredients required:
2lbs ground beef
1/3 cup cooking oil
2 tablespoons ginger paste
2 tablespoons garlic paste
1/2pkt Shan Seekh Kabab Masala (available at Desi stores)
[LivingHalal disclaimer: we are not promoting Shan ) ]

Directions:
Mix all of the above ingredients except oil.
Make small meat balls.
Thread each meat ball through a skewer.
With a wet hand, flatten the ground meat mixture in a thin layer
around each skewer.
Pour oil onto a cookie sheet to coat the surface, and arrange the kababs on the cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 to 400 degrees until meat is cooked through.

This can be served as a snack or a dinner dish.

Recipe courtesy of aunty Nasreen Kakli for LivingHalal

This is an article about the “first” Halal Subway store in the US. It shows that if you try to seek/offer Halal, Allah will make it easy for you eventually.

Often, Muslim restaurant owners argue that selling Halal is too costly and that customers are not enough. They forgot that Allah is the provider. More importantly, they forgot that selling Haram makes their income Haram and subsequently blocks their Dua’s (supplications) even when they are in desperate need, as mentioned in the authentic hadith about a stranded traveler whose dua being rejected due to his Haram intakes and Haram clothing).

May Allah grant us Halal and save us from Haram (both food and income).

Nation’s Only Halal Subway Shop Big Success
By Suleman Din
Religion News Service

ISELIN, N.J. — There’s just one place in North America where an observant Muslim can follow Jared’s diet — the two-sandwich-a-day plan that helped Subway pitchman Jared Fogel lose 245 pounds.

The Subway restaurant that adheres to Islamic restrictions is off Route 27 here, and it is indiscernible from other Subways, except for a neon green sign in the window spelling out “Halal,” the Islamic equivalent of kosher.
In two years she has served halal food at her Subway, Ruhila Khan has built a following from all over the tri-state area. The success can be seen in the Sales Volume awards on the wall behind the register.

“I don’t have enough space to hang up all of them,” Khan said, smiling. “I did something for Allah, and he has blessed us.”

In a state with one of the largest Muslim populations in the country, restaurant owners and community members say it makes business sense for mainstream restaurants to cater to Muslims.

“It’s symbolic of our acceptance in the fabric that is America,” said Irfan Rydhan, founder of zabihah.com, a Web site that lists halal restaurants across the U.S. “Especially if you grew up here. Your home cuisine is American cuisine.”

Muslims consuming fast food is not a new concept; globalization has made U.S. brands available in Islamic countries. For instance, just outside Islam’s holiest mosque in Mecca, wealthy Saudi Arabians can munch on halal Whoppers or Kentucky Fried Chicken while watching pilgrims perform the Hajj.

But in the U.S., choices for Muslims have been limited to restaurants offering traditional ethnic fare, Rydhan said. Independent Muslim-run fast food joints started appearing in the 1990s in urban centers that have sizable Muslim populations, such as Jersey City.

Now, a younger, suburban Muslim consumer wants the same fast-food brands as other Americans, he said.

The breakthrough with American fast food restaurants has come from franchise owners like Khan and Ali Hashmi, who owns a nearby A&W Root Beer Restaurant that also serves Halal food. Both are Muslim immigrants who convinced their chains they could tap a fresh market.

Khan, who owns the Subway shop with her husband, Shahnawaz, said opening an American fast-food franchise that sold halal food was something she wanted to do since immigrating from Pakistan 15 years ago. When she went through training to open a Subway franchise, Khan said, she pushed for the chance.

What helped convince Subway, Khan said, was the restaurant’s location. Near the Garden State Parkway, the nearby “Little India” strip, Muslim butchers and ethnic restaurants, the sandwich shop gets much of its business from the South Asian Muslim community.

“We give our franchisees leniency, so they can use local options,” said Subway spokesman Kevin Kane. “They know what’s in their community.”

Subway also has numerous restaurants in Muslim countries, Kane said, adding that recently in Ohio, the first kosher Subway restaurant opened.

Halal dietary restrictions are very similar to kosher rules. Pork is forbidden and the slaughter of animals for meat is done under special guidelines, so the meat remains uncontaminated with blood. Halal rules are taken directly from the Quran.

Customers who come into Khan’s Subway restaurant can order from the standard menu. Or, they can choose from a small printout taped to the wall that lists the halal menu. The sandwiches are the same minus the Italian BMT (pepperoni, Genoa salami, and ham) but Khan keeps the halal meat in a separate fridge, and uses different utensils to handle it.

Just a year since opening, the nearby A&W has yet to rival Khan’s Subway. Most Muslim customers come on the weekend, said Mahmood Iqbal, who runs the store with Hashmi.

Without permission to openly advertise the halal option at their restaurant, Iqbal said they rely on word of mouth. The only indication halal is served is a laminated menu on the counter and on the cash register, there is a special yellow-and-red button labeled “Halal Chicken.”
“Many of our customers, they eat Indian food at home,” Iqbal said. “They come here because they want a change.”

Iqbal has faith business will pick up at the A&W, and keeps a green Islamic prayer mat behind the counter, for the devout customer to use in a pinch. “One guy wanted to do the evening prayer, so he went into the party room and prayed, while I made him his dinner,” Iqbal said.

While Khan and Hashmi drove the decision to serve halal locally, one American chain now offers halal at all its locations.

Outback Steakhouse began serving halal lamb, though Muslim customers have to make sure they don’t get their vegetables dressed with “seasoned butter,” which contains bacon in the seasoning, and avoid the cabernet sauce. The chain’s supplier of lamb meat is a New Zealand-based company that follows halal standards because of its large business in the Middle East.

There is no official count on the number of restaurants in America serving halal food, but Rydhan said he has seen an increase.

“I started in 1999 with 20 restaurants in the Bay Area,” he said. “Now on average, I’m getting 20 new additions to the list every day.”

Source: Beliefnet

Friendly Reminder: Even if it’s halal, calories still counts.

Keywords: Halal subway, striving for halal, halal substitutes, halal options, living halal, fear Allah, trust Allah

First of all, even if a product is halal, it doesn’t mean it’s healthy.

The following image is taken from BK’s menu for their fried products (anything other than French Fries). Click on the image to enlarge it.

LivingHalal friendly reminder: Calories always count! Check this site.