Answer
Wa `alaykum as-salamu wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
- It is incumbent upon the Muslim physician and pharmacist to use alternatives of alcohol whenever possible.
- As for the patients, they may use medications in which alcohol was utilized in the preparation, as long as the medicine is not intoxicant, and it doesn’t have alternatives.
In responding to your question, Dr. Hatem Al-Hajj, Dean of the College of Islamic Studies at Mishkah University and a member of the Permanent Fatwa Committee for the Assembly of Muslim Jurists in America (AMJA), states:
Should Muslim Seek Medical Treatment?
Seeking medical treatment is recommended, and may be at times mandatory. However, one should seek wholesome medicines.
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said,
“Allah sent down the disease and the cure, and He made a cure for every disease. So seek treatment, but do not use as medicine that which is haram.” (Abu Dawud)
Can wine be used as medicine?
The prohibition of using unlawful (haram) substances as medicine applies primarily to alcohol.
Tariq ibn Suwayd al-Ju‘fi (may Allah be pleased him) asked the Prophet (PBUH) about wine and he forbade him or disliked his making it. He said: I only make it as a medicine. He (PBUH) said, “It is not a medicine; rather it is a disease.” (Muslim)
Also, every intoxicant is forbidden. The Messenger of Allah said, “Every intoxicant is haram.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim )
Based on the above and other proofs, there is a consensus about the prohibition of using pure khamr (wine) as medicine.he scholars also agreed on the impermissibility of using haram as medicine in presence of halal alternatives.
The Hanafis allowed the use of forbidden and filthy matters in treatment with the condition that: it is known to be a cure and there is no alternative.
If alcohol was utilized in the preparation, but the final medicine is not intoxicant, this medicine will be halal to use according to both Fiqh Assemblies belonging to the OIC and MWL, the Permanent Committee for Fatwa and Research in KSA, and the European Council for Ifta’ and Research.
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said,
“If alcohol falls into water and is altered, then someone drinks it, he would not be drinking khamr and the hadd (penalty) shall not be warranted for him, since nothing of its taste, color or smell remained.”
Benylin has 5% alcohol, which is a high percentage, therefore it should be avoided.
External use of alcohol in Islam
As for the external use of alcohol, it is controversial. I believe that alcohol is not physically impure, and that it may be used for topical applications to the body. The one clear report about its physical filth is from Umar in a message he wrote to Khalid ibn al-Walid. However, the whole report is not authentic.
It says in a statement of the Islamic Fiqh Council of the Muslim World League:
“… It is also permissible to use alcohol for external cleaning of wounds, to kill germs, and in creams and lotions that are used externally.”
In summary, it is incumbent upon the Muslim physician and pharmacist to use alternatives of alcohol whenever possible. As for the patients, they may use medications in which alcohol was utilized in the preparation, as long as the medicine is not intoxicant, and it doesn’t have alternatives.
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A medicine will be considered khamr (intoxicant) if it causes intoxication before death, but if it causes intoxication at a dose (amount) that is not possible to be consumed by a human being without killing him, then it is not intoxicant.
Avoiding it when there is no need is an act of cautious piety. Muslims, when capable, should work on finding alternatives to it. There are many other alternatives with much less alcohol content.
Allah Almighty knows best.