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How 'qurban' meat can help alleviate stunting

What critics including vegetarians overlook about Muslims’ so-called obsession with red meat is the fact that consumption of red meat in Indonesia is still low. 

Mulia Nurhasan (The Jakarta Post)
Bogor
Thu, August 24, 2017

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How 'qurban' meat can help alleviate stunting Mosque committee members divide the meat before distributing it to locals at the Marga Utama Foundation in Denpasar, Bali, on Sept. 12 2016. (JP/Zul Tri Anggono)

E

very year, Muslims around the world celebrate Idul Adha, the time when millions sacrifice cattle to Allah (qurban), and share the meat to the poor. However we need a more fruitful qurban tradition.

In Indonesia, the most commonly sacrificed animals by Muslims are cows, goat and sheep. The statistics of qurban animals show an increase of animals slaughtered from 2010 to 2014. In Jakarta in 2016, the number increased by 100 percent from the year before, with total of animal slaughtered at over 95,000.   

What critics including vegetarians overlook about Muslims’ so-called obsession with red meat is the fact that consumption of red meat in Indonesia is still low.

The Total Diet Survey reported in 2014 that in average, Indonesian consumed about 42 to 90   grams of meat per day, with only 11.1 gram red meat and red processed meat per day. Children under five years old consumed less than 30 to over 63 grams of total meat per day, including only 8.3 grams of red meat and processed red meat per day. This number is far less than the US recommendation for adults to consume 142-198 grams of lean meat daily in order to fulfill the recommended energy and nutrient intake, or 126 grams of total meat daily, with 60 grams of fresh red meat per day by Swedish standards.

Although meat intake has been associated with an increased risk of colon cancer, heart failure, and other blood toxicity in many studies, these findings are more correlated to processed meats than fresh red meats. Many studies fail to show correlation between fresh red meat consumption and various diseases.The adverse effect of processed red meat consumption is plausibly caused by the high sodium content and food additives that can increase the risk of heart failure by increasing blood pressure.

Fresh red meat, on the other hand, contains no such ingredients. As a diet high in protein and low in carbohydrate, fresh red meat can contribute to low glycemic index, which can be beneficial in battling diabetes and overweight.

In fact, in developing countries, fresh red meat plays a critical role in reducing the incidence of under-nutrition and diet-related diseases. With correct preparation, fresh red meat consumption promotes micronutrient sufficiency as it contains more preformed vitamin A, vitamins D and E, riboflavin, calcium, and iron and zinc in forms that are better absorbed from the diet.

Red meat is also protein and fat rich, providing varieties of essential amino acids, fatty acids and micronutrients which are important for child growth and adult metabolism. Lacking these micronutrients is often referred to as hidden hunger, meaning the individual body is actually in a hungry state, without the person knowing it.

Indonesian women of reproductive age and children under five years old are known to suffer from hidden hunger, as they are micronutrient deficient.

As a consequence, the Health Ministry in the 2013 Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) recorded about 37 percent of Indonesian children were stunted, and more than 20 percent of women in reproductive age were malnourished.

In separate studies in West Java, it was also recorded that more than 50 percent of children were vitamin A deficient and more than 50 percent of lactating mothers and their infants were anemic.

Infants are more likely to die within their first year when born from mothers who entered pregnancy in a micronutrient deficient state. Micronutrient deficiency in children cause stunting, and children born from stunted mothers are likely to become stunted themselves. Stunting has long term impact, not only to physical health, but also to social well-being such as hindrance to income generation and the chance to finish school. Stunting causes both shortness and suboptimal function later in life.

Households with low expenditure on animal source food, including red meat, have unsurprisingly been associated with higher stunting rate.  

Fresh red meat consumption is highly important for Indonesian children and women of reproductive age. Higher consumption of red meat can literally save lives of the unborn and create more equal opportunities for children of all social economic background.

Although qurban is a tradition particularly celebrated during Idul Adha, slaughtering cattle animals to dedicate the meat for the poor can be done throughout the year. It is a religious practice   aligned with the second universal sustainable development goal in ending hunger, including ending hidden hunger and reducing malnutrition.

Qurban meat in Indonesia should be addressed to improve the nutritional status of children and women of reproductive age. The Idul Adha celebration should be used as a momentum to deliver this message.

Eid Mubarak!

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The writer is a PhD candidate at the Department of Nutrition, Sports and Exercise, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, who has published scientific articles. She is also an independent consultant on agriculture-nutrition related issues, and is currently based in Bogor. She can be contacted at mulianurhasan@gmail.com

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