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Muslim consumers have special needs in medical treatment that differ from non-Muslim consumers hence leading to a growing demand for Halal medications among Muslim consumers. The term ‘Halal pharmaceutical’ defines pharmaceutical products which contains more than one active halal to consume ingredient and various types of excipients. Halal pharmaceutical products should not only be free from Haram constituents, but they should also be Tayyib, meaning goods and products should meet quality standards.
Heart disease is a major killer globally. Coronary Heart Diseases are responsible for higher mortality and morbidity rates in developed and developing countries, especially in younger people recently, with increasingly disproportionate rates. But unfortunately, the medicine available to treat heart diseases are mostly made from Haram ingredients.
One such medicine for heart diseases is the use of Bovine Heparin. It is an anticoagulant widely used for treating heart attacks. Although it was discovered in the early 1900s, it remains one of the most commonly used anticoagulants in clinical practice today. Heparin was first discovered in dog livers but later produced from bovine lungs, livers, and intestines in the 1930s. In the 1940s, porcine heparin from intestines was introduced to the market, where it remained alongside intestinal bovine heparin for the next 50 years. These sources make Heparin haram to consume.
Religious groups were left facing a difficult situation with using Heparin as a treatment. For instance, Jewish and Muslim patients who follow Kosher and Halal regulations are prohibited from eating pork or pork-derived products like porcine heparin. For the Muslim patients, the strict rules were discussed in the Islamic Medical Association of North America’s ethics committee. They stated that the use of porcine heparin is permitted for Muslim patients based on the rules that “Necessity makes prohibited things lawful” and “the choosing of the lesser evil within two options” of which in this case would be not using the available heparin could lead to significant morbidity or mortality. They also mentioned as long as there’s some modification of the original porcine product, then it’s appropriate to use.
However, on a more positive note, heparin is a promising drug for halal certification. The USA’s FDA is encouraging the reintroduction of bovine-sourced heparin. Furthermore, the Malaysian pharmaceutical company ‘Duopharma Biotech’ is currently in the process of joint venture with the South Korean company ‘PanGen Biotech’. They are investing in the world’s first halal biosimilar, commercialized under the brand name ERYSAA, which stimulates the production of red blood cells in anemic patients undergoing kidney dialysis. The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) also announced an innovative new procedure for treating blocked heart arteries, making the UAE the fifth in the world to have this mode of treatment. All in all, a multi-million-dollar halal treatments for heart diseases such as halal heparin can cater to 500 million patients in the near future.
It is important to note that the Halal status of the active ingredients. In the last decade, awareness of Muslims on the use of Halal medications has improved a lot. Recently, countries such as Malaysia, in collaboration with religious authorities and university researchers, produced a final draft of the Malaysian Standard related to Halal Pharmaceutical, that describes the general guidelines in the manufacturing and handling of Halal pharmaceuticals. Similarly, pharmaceutical companies in the UK and US, are also mandated to provide full information about their products by their governments.
