The Islamic Ruling on Using the Placenta of Human Origin in Cosmetics

Abstract

Currently the placenta is one of the ingredients used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, and as described by the scientist it has a very nutritious chemical content for those products. The issue of Placenta, which especially derived part of the human body, has never been the subject of discussion by early Islamic Jurists. The Placenta which is now becoming popular as an ingredient in cosmetics and medicines, came into questions when various views on its benefits, negative effects, and halal status were raised among a public. The early Islamic Jurists have simply limited their discourse on the suitability of any person to consume illegal or unlawful products such as carrion or pork under special emergency conditions that threaten the safety of a person's life. The early Islamic Jurists also did not discuss the status of Islamic ruling on eating any part of the human body, including the Placenta, as this point was never occurred to them (beyond their imagination on that time). Therefore, the topic of cosmetics which is containing of human placenta becomes an interesting contemporary Fiqhi issue to be explored more deeply. This article attempts to discuss this contemporary issue in detail, providing the explanation of a basic and comprehensive guidelines from the Holy Al-Qur'an, Sunnah, and Islamic Jurisprudence. Another thing that the author tries to present in this article is the legal decision made by the Modern Fiqhi Academy on the subject, with the compliment of author's analysis. Ultimately, the author hopes this article would be able to give clear explanation of the Islamic legal opinion on the use of cosmetics containing human Placenta, which further could bring a comfort to all Muslims who are the consumers of those various types of cosmetics in the modern market today.