Health, Spirituality and Medical Ethics

Background and Objectives: A major problem in public health has been the prevalence of chronic diseases. Most of these diseases are due to lifestyle changes, especially in the field of nutrition. The Iranian Islamic teachings have extensive guidelines on the issue of healthy lifestyle and nutrition in particular. On that account, there are many sayings and traditions related to nutrition and its practices. The sayings of Imam Ali (AS) like avoiding eating when you are full, not eating your fill when mealtime, and masticating food well are among those traditions. In the light of Imam’s view, the role of these health behaviors is determinative of the public health. Using the latest scientific achievements and Iranian traditional medicine, this study reviewed the teachings of holy Imam Ali (AS) concerning public health.
Methods: In this review study, authentic narratives from collections and books of hadith related to nutrition practices were examined. There were special emphases on certain portions of the teachings that were extracted. These findings were evaluated after being in accord with the latest thoughts on medical literature and well-known databases such as PubMed along with the Iranian traditional medicine sources.
Results: According to the remarks of holy Imam Ali (AS) and the Iranian Islamic teachings, the role of nutrition and its practices is outstanding in public health. These remarks can be categorized in three pivots: abstaining from eating before hunger, abstaining from filling fully the stomach when eating, and chewing food well.
Conclusion: Using the guidelines of Imam Ali (AS), new dimensions of prevention practices and treatment of chronic diseases can be achieved. Furthermore, many other hypotheses can be raised making available a wide range of scientific researches.