[:en]Prohibition of Blowing Food or Drink[:]

[:en]Prohibition of Blowing Food or Drink

Author: Zulfania Rahmah (19711112)

Blowing food or drink is a habit that some people do. We often encounter someone eating food or drinking hot drinks and then blowing on it, like a mother who feeds her child by blowing on food before putting it in the child's mouth or someone who drinks hot tea and then blows on it before drinking it. This habit seems to have become a common thing to do, even though blowing hot food or drinks is an act that was prohibited by the Prophet shallallahu 'alaihi wassalam. There are several hadiths regarding the prohibition of blowing on food or drink, including:

  1. Hadith from Abu Qatadah ra

Messenger of Allah shallallahu 'alaihi wassalam  said,

Amen رَهُ بِيَمِينِهِ…

"When you drink, don't breathe into a glass, when you poop, don't touch your genitals with your right hand... (HR. Bukhari 153)".

  1. Hadith from Ibn Abbas ra

أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى Allah َ فِيه

"Prophet shallallahu 'alaihi wassalam forbids breathing in a glass or blowing on a glass (HR. Ahmad 1907, Turmudzi 1888, and authenticated by Syuaib Al-Arnauth)."

Although the example above does not mention the hadith regarding the prohibition of blowing on food, in general, food or drinks are consumed by humans and have similarities, so the hadith regarding drinks can also apply to food.

There are several reasons for the prohibition of blowing on food or drink from a health perspective, including:

  1. Transferring microorganisms from the mouth to food or drink

The prohibition to blow on food or drink is actually related to food hygiene. Breathing or blowing will move microorganisms or dirt from our mouths to food or drink. Microorganisms trapped in food or drink can be detrimental to health, if the habit of blowing on food or drink is continued (1,2).

  1. Spread viruses

Mouth and breath can contain the virus. When we breathe into food or drink, the virus can spread to the food or drink quickly. The virus can then be transmitted to other people's bodies, if we give food or drink to other people (3).

  1. Increase the acidity of food

Hot food or drink contains moisture. When we blow on food or drink, there will be the formation of acidic compounds because water vapor combines with carbon dioxide from our breath. These acidic compounds will cause the acidity of the food to rise. Foods with increased acid levels, if consumed continuously will interfere with health (1).

Reference

1. Suhrianati. Sagacious Journal Vol. 3 No. 1 July-December 2016. 2016;3(1):67–78.

2. Sakienah. Blowing Food or Hot Drinks It's Dangerous [Internet]. steemit. 2018 [cited 2020 May 5]. Available from: https://steemit.com/food/@sakienah/blowing-food-or-hot-drinks-it-s-dangerous-c8520914077b9

3. Dawson P, Han I, Lynn D, Lackey J, Baker J, Martinez-Dawson R. Bacterial Transfer Associated with Blowing Out Candles on a Birthday Cake. J Food Res. 2017;6(4):1.

 

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