Is caffeine haram?

everything that damages your health and bad for your body should be considered as haram.. it's so simple to understand

something is not totally correct in this thread.
The question asked:

format_quote Originally Posted by Bobbyflay23

Caffeine can kill a person if you drink I believe over 6 cups and can make you haulcinate if you drink like 5 cups or somthing and on top of that it's addicting with bad side effects in my opinion because if you stop drinking it you get in a bad mood and even my dad said he's losing is voice because he can't drink caffeine while fasting I've always thought it's haram and if so is it just the concentrated version of caffeine that's haram such as energy drinks and coffe drinks but things like soda are okay?

then azc answer with a link to a fatwa in IslamQA
the answer given is like:
What is prohibited is khamr (wine) or anything with its effects of inebriation (taskir).
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Every intoxicant is unlawful.” [Bukhari, Muslim]
He (peace and blessings be upon him) also once explained the basis of why khamr is unlawful when he said, “Khamr is that which covers [or clouds] the intellect.” [Bukhari, Muslim]
So what is meant by intoxicant in this context is that which “covers the intellect,” i.e., causes inebriation or drunkenness like beer, or euphoria such as cocaine or amphetamines. These are all unlawful.
Caffeine is not an intoxicant in that sense, but rather only a mild stimulant and hence permissible.
And Allah knows best.
wassalam
Faraz

This answer does not satisfy me at all, because this guy clearly does not know that cafeine is a drug and is both physically and mentally addictive.
And when something gets addictive, it always clouds the mind.
a good example of this is gambling. we all know gambling is physically addictive. and once someone is addicted to gambling, he cannot think clearly anymore about handling money.

besides, if that is true and caffeine is not haram because of the small dosis you take, then I would say that non-alcoholic beer then also is not haram because of the small dosis of alcohol in it something like 0,5%...or even drinking a few zips beer is then also not haram because it is only a few zips and you wont feel the effect.

cooking your dinner with alcohol is then also not haram, because alcohol vapourizes and what is left in your food is only small dosis of alcohol.

So, as you can cee, I cannot agree with this given answer.
In my opinion everything that is addictive or clouds the mind is Haram...unless it is needed as a medicine of course.

format_quote Originally Posted by umie

something is not totally correct in this thread.
The question asked:


then azc answer with a link to a fatwa in IslamQA
the answer given is like:
What is prohibited is khamr (wine) or anything with its effects of inebriation (taskir).
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Every intoxicant is unlawful.” [Bukhari, Muslim]
He (peace and blessings be upon him) also once explained the basis of why khamr is unlawful when he said, “Khamr is that which covers [or clouds] the intellect.” [Bukhari, Muslim]
So what is meant by intoxicant in this context is that which “covers the intellect,” i.e., causes inebriation or drunkenness like beer, or euphoria such as cocaine or amphetamines. These are all unlawful.
Caffeine is not an intoxicant in that sense, but rather only a mild stimulant and hence permissible.
And Allah knows best.
wassalam
Faraz

This answer does not satisfy me at all, because this guy clearly does not know that cafeine is a drug and is both physically and mentally addictive.
And when something gets addictive, it always clouds the mind.
a good example of this is gambling. we all know gambling is physically addictive. and once someone is addicted to gambling, he cannot think clearly anymore about handling money.

besides, if that is true and caffeine is not haram because of the small dosis you take, then I would say that non-alcoholic beer then also is not haram because of the small dosis of alcohol in it something like 0,5%...or even drinking a few zips beer is then also not haram because it is only a few zips and you wont feel the effect.

cooking your dinner with alcohol is then also not haram, because alcohol vapourizes and what is left in your food is only small dosis of alcohol.

So, as you can cee, I cannot agree with this given answer.
In my opinion everything that is addictive or clouds the mind is Haram...unless it is needed as a medicine of course.

'Truly Allah did not place your cure in what he made forbidden to you,' narrated by al-Bayhaqi in al-Sunan al-Kubra (10:5)]

Will you Abstain from such medicine which contain alcohol...?

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format_quote Originally Posted by Bobbyflay23

Caffeine can kill a person if you drink I believe over 6 cups and can make you haulcinate if you drink like 5 cups or somthing and on top of that it's addicting with bad side effects in my opinion because if you stop drinking it you get in a bad mood and even my dad said he's losing is voice because he can't drink caffeine while fasting I've always thought it's haram and if so is it just the concentrated version of caffeine that's haram such as energy drinks and coffe drinks but things like soda are okay?

No, I don't think it's Haram. I know that definitive and specific evidence is needed to declare it Haram whereas we've no evidence, even speculative one.

This tool of analogy sounds incorrect

If i dont get my Caffeine fix in the morning i will not drive unless its to the nearest caffeine dealer..And i will drive slowly with extra caution as i would if drunk..Caffeine is very subtly addictive and screws with ones central nervous system, balance, co-ordination, judgement of distance and speed is impaired during the withdrawals..Way worst than many illegal non toxic herbs imho and experience..I believe it was categorized in the same as most banned substances like heroine and cocaine back in the days when they were legal?
I drink way too much and I KNOW I sin in doing so.

format_quote Originally Posted by Bobbyflay23

Caffeine can kill a person if you drink I believe over 6 cups and can make you haulcinate if you drink like 5 cups or somthing and on top of that it's addicting with bad side effects in my opinion because if you stop drinking it you get in a bad mood and even my dad said he's losing is voice because he can't drink caffeine while fasting I've always thought it's haram and if so is it just the concentrated version of caffeine that's haram such as energy drinks and coffe drinks but things like soda are okay?

If you categorize addictive food is haram, then you should know that meat is addictive brother, and over eating of goat meat will harm your health, but still prophet eat meat. Try to consume 5 to 6 cups honey a day will it have bad effect for you or not.

Exactly. the fact that it is addictive should at least render it makrooh. the people who say it's 100% halal should go a week without it. only then they will see the headaches, nausea, etc. that signals a total dependency and addiction towards it.

"Coffee was invented by Arab and Turkic Muslims 600 years ago". coffee, tea and chocolate have not been available back then nearly as much as it is today especially since Europeans started to dominate Muslim lands. there have been plenty of drinks, hot and cold, that have stimulating properties in human history. that caffeine is a unique compound and how it affects the nervous system into dependency is a fairly recent knowledge.

caffeine intake has been linked to infertility in both men and women, more so for women. i believe a 'caffeine lobby' puts out positive lingo around caffeine drinks. many articles online only hint that ANY caffeine intake causes drop in the fertility hormones in men and particularly, women, however, they do openly say fertility decreases only with overconsumption.

Caffeine also causes hyperactivity in healthy people, while compensates for a lack of energy in people with unhealthy lifestyles and hides the real sources of lethargy like bad sleep habits, poor diets, anxiety and so on. and these things should logically only get aggravated left unchecked. most people i'm sure take caffeine as really a legal drug that makes up for and hides lackings in areas of their lives and health.

i hope to see more input from ulema at large regarding caffeine consumption.

Personally, i'm currently trying to give up tea and coffee. but it's tough. the withdrawals creep in... and also being Bangladeshi, having the South Asian tea culture doesn't help either. then there's the availability of espresso based and 'artisan' coffees all around. but abstinence is possible (with only very occasional intake) and the key is slow transition. make sure you're drinking plenty of water and fruits which provide energy, take 100%-caffeine-free herbal teas. also, get into the habit of quick exercises that gets the body going without the caffeine.

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format_quote Originally Posted by air

If you categorize addictive food is haram, then you should know that meat is addictive brother, and over eating of goat meat will harm your health, but still prophet eat meat. Try to consume 5 to 6 cups honey a day will it have bad effect for you or not.

not logically sound. you can go a few days without meat and not suffer from withdrawal symptoms of caffeine abstinence. that is a huge reason people (probably like yourself) find it tough to let go of caffeine, even though the withdrawals last only a few days.

Seriously now Muslims have to argue on these little things! I have not heard a single scholar saying that coffee or tea is haram. Just don't go to an extreme ( drinking 20 + cups of coffee), keep a balance (2-3 cups) should be enough and should not have any impact on human health. Islam teaches to keep balance in anything we do, extreme in any case will harm us.