Questions tagged [health-safety-shmira]
NOTE: For professional medical advice, please contact your physician.
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Is one allowed to smoke Marijuana?
Not taking into account Dina D'malchusa, what are the Halachic problems with smoking marijuana? Is it allowed?
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The Trolley Problem: Is it better to kill 1 person or let 5 die?
I was recently reading about the Trolley Problem
A trolley is running out of control down a track. In its path are five people who have been tied to the track by a mad philosopher. Fortunately, you ...
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Is practicing Yoga against Torah?
What does Halacha and Halachic Authorities have to say about the permissibility of a Jew practicing Yoga? Is it Avodah Zarah?
If it is problematic, are there methods of doing it where it would be ...
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Are there any sources that prohibit childhood vaccinations?
The consequences of depressed childhood vaccination rates in some American communities, in the form of a building measles outbreak, have been in the news lately.
All public schools and most private ...
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Is Exercise on Shabbos Allowed?
Is one allowed to do exercises on Shabbos?
Are any types allowed? Some examples of different types:
Lifting weights or heavy items
Jumping jacks
Taking a walk (long, but without Techum issues)
Doing ...
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Should one induce vomiting upon realizing s/he just ate non-kosher?
I've heard several stories of people who ate something, realized it was non-kosher, and therefore induced vomiting. Is this halachically required? Recommended? Does it accomplish anything? (If not, ...
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Mouthwash on a public fast day?
Is it permitted to use mouthwash on a public fast day? Would a sensitive mouth, due to medical reasons be a good reason to be lenient?
(I can see it being less problematic than brushing one's teeth, ...
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Saying "Laberiut" "God bless you" or "Gesundheit"
Is there are source for saying "Laberiut" "God bless you" "Gesundheit" or any other response to a sneeze? In other words, are there posekim who mention it in Halacha?
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Is Metzitzah B'peh a must?
There is a lot of talk in the news, etc., about Metzitzah B'peh that employs direct oral contact being dangerous.
First: If it is dangerous, shouldn't pikuach nefesh push it off?
Second: How ...
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Is one allowed to drink alcohol on regular weekdays?
Is it permissible to drink alcohol in any circumstance other than Holidays and Shabbat? Please cite sources.
CYLOR.
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Sneezing during davening
I have read in the Gemara (Berachoth 24B) that sneezing during the Shemonei Esrei is a sign that your tefillot have been accepted. "Just as you have been granted relief below, so you have been granted ...
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Can I choose not to violate Shabbos for "pikuach nefesh"?
According to the Gemara (Yoma 85a-b) and Poskim (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 328, Rambam, Hilchot Shabbos 2 [English Rambam]), one is allowed to violate Shabbos in order to preserve his life. This is ...
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Tahara procedure for a body with an infectious disease
I've heard that one vector for the spread of Ebola is ceremonial contact that family members have with the body of their deceased relative. That led me to think about how Judaism deals with this issue....
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Does Beis Din have the authority to quarantine?
In light of the recent discussions about the legality of quarantining potential Ebola patients, I was wondering if Halacha has the mechanism for such a thing.
In an autonomous Jewish society, in ...
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How do I avoid thirst when fasting?
I started fasting on Yom Kippur as an adult, about 10 years ago.
A couple times I had to drink a glass of water either after Kol Nidre or before Shacharit, because I felt completely dehydrated (I did ...
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What is the best way to break a fast?
There are six official fast days in the Jewish calendar. After a fast often people get sick when they eat. What type of food or drink is the best way to break the fast and avoid becoming ill?
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Who is counted in an "outdoor minyan" defined? How should the minyan be run?
An outdoor minyan is one possible attempt to deal with a public health instruction aimed at preventing spreading infections, such as keeping 6 feet from another person and avoiding indoor gatherings.
...
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How far do I have to go to take care of myself?
The mitzvah of V'nishmartem (Devarim 4:15) requires a person to take care of their health (Shulchan Aruch C.M. 427:8, Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 32:1). How far does this go? Do I have to exercise daily? ...
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If you take a COVID "smell test" every day, do you say a blessing on the scent?
Background
Some experts recommend that everyone test their own sense of smell once daily. This can help to screen for the novel coronavirus disease. This is because COVID often (but not always) ...
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How should one dispose of cut finger nails? Is it dangerous for a pregnant woman to walk on them?
Is there an Inyan of pregnant women walking over cut nails ex: a nail salon? Also, can I just vacuum up the cut nails from the floor?
user362
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Can we violate Shabbos to inject a vaccine?
Vaccines save lives. I'm not here to argue about that, take it somewhere else. If you don't agree, for the purposes of this question just imagine I'm talking about some medicine that accomplishes ...
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Eating fish and meat together
The reason given for not eating fish and meat together is due to Sakana. In current times it does not seem to be a Sakana, (Nishtanu HaTeva). Would you be allowed to eat them together? If not - why ...
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What can a pregnant woman do if she already stepped on nails?
A pregnant women is advised by the gemara (Nidda 17a) to avoid stepping on cut human nails out of fear of miscarriage. What can she do if she has already stepped on them? Is there a way to "fix" ...
user1552
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Does kosher mean healthy?
What is the relation between kosher and healthiness? G-d wants us to eat properly but also to be healthy. For example, it is better to try not to eat too much meat (even if it's kosher), and more ...
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May we violate Shabbos to administer morphine?
Morphine has been widely used as a pain reliever for a very long time (according to Wikipedia, it's been in use at least since 1804!). It's even listed (twice!) on WHO's list of essential medicines. ...
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Can you daven with minyan when you have the flu?
Are you allowed to go daven with a minyan when you have the flu or other highly contagious illness? Is it considered potentially damaging someone else's health, or are the chances of someone else ...
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Halakha and Spiritual Healing?
What are the halakhic guidelines and limitations for using psukim from the Torah to heal illness? Does it make a difference if the psuk is being used to heal a "spiritual" malady which is believed to ...
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Having children when both parents are Tay-Sachs carriers
This is an obvious CYLOR question, but I am interested in whatever halachic information is available out there.
Suppose a couple got married without ever getting genetically tested for Tay-Sachs. ...
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Is metzitzah b'peh required when an adult is circumcised or in the case of hatafas dam bris?
As we've discussed in a general question regarding the requirements for metzitzah b'peh (MBP), the direct-oral-contact technique to draw blood from the penis of an 8-day old infant at his bris milah ...
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Are bushes acceptable for elevations that require a maakeh, a fence?
If evergreen bushes span the entire length of a side of a porch, at about waist-height for someone on the porch, do the bushes remove the need for a railing? The difference being that a railing can be ...
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Leaving cities during plagues
Over the Yomim Tovim I happened to skim through a copy of Rav Hirsh's sefer "Horeb". In one section he discussed a directive from Chazal to leave a city struck with plague. With Ebola having been ...
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Does the existence of insurance affect end-of-life Halacha?
Consider the following case:
A baby is born with severe congenital defects. The doctors say that if nothing is done to address them, the baby will die within days. They also say that there's a series ...
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Things that halacha prohibits because of danger
What are things brought down in Halacha that we do not do because of danger?
Although we cannot define the resultant danger in terms of medical science, we accept and adhere faithfully to our Sages' ...
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R' Akiva Eiger and the epidemic
A rav mentioned it to me that R' Akiva Eiger got an award from the Prussian king, because during an epidemic in Posen he, in accordance with the doctors and the authorities, required the strict ...
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May a Brit Milah be performed by a (non-Jewish) doctor?
Some friends would feel more comfortable having their newborn circumcised with a regular doctor and in a hospital setting where the environment is more sterile, maybe better pain management options ...
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Does one need to perform a delayed brit milah at the first possible time?
If a baby is sick on the 8th day, the brit is pushed off until the baby is healthy. Once the mohel and doctor determine that the baby is healthy, does the brit need to be performed right away (on that ...
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List of resources for halachot concerning celiac disease
A friend has recently been diagnosed with celiac disease. This is where individuals develop intolerance to gluten, present in foods such as wheat, rye and barley. This will impact a number of halachic ...
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Heating non-food items on Shabbath
Is it permissible to heat non-food items on Shabbath? Assume the method of heating is to use an existing heat source (a blech, or the top of a crockpot or hot water urn).
Would it matter if it is ...
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What height porch requires a railing?
What are the different opinions of heights (in American or metric units) that requires a railing for the side of a porch?
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Is one allowed to be fat?
Is one halachically allowed to be fat (overweight or obese), or must a fat person take steps to reduce their weight and maintain a reasonably healthy body (and likewise, a healthy person must not ...
user5540
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Covering containers of water
In the Talmud (Chulin 10a), Chazal taught that one should not drink water, wine or milk from containers that were left uncovered because a snake and its venom might have gotten into the drink and it ...
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Is it possible that Judaism would one day allow eating pork?
As far as I understand, pork was originally banned from consumption since it was hard to maintain a clean enviroment for pigs in a desert climate (as summarized in the Wikipedia).
Since nowadays ...
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Kissing a Sefer Torah as it passes
Some people in shul mark it as a sign of respect, as the Torah makes its way to/from the Aron Kodesh, to kiss it, and rush to get as close as possible. Others, given the cold season, think that this ...
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Headache remedy on a fast day?
Even with proper pre-fast hydration and caffeine reduction, I almost always get a headache starting around hour 20-22 of a fast and growing from there. Taking a nap is sometimes possible and ...
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Choking on a Fish Bone
I remember learning once that the גמרא says to perform a certain procedure / say certain words when someone is choking on a fish bone. I also remember hearing that this is the one cure mentioned in ...
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Are Jews permitted to work out?
Are Jews allowed to pump their muscles?
What if the intent is to make yourself look good?
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What are the opinions regarding eating small-bits-at-a-time ("leshiurin") on Tisha B'Av when necessary?
I know on Yom Kippur, if someone is medically required to eat, s/he should do so with only a bit of food every few minutes, to avoid the full severity of eating "a full serving in one sitting."
On ...
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Why "מַה שֶּׁשָּׁתִינוּ יִהְיֶה לִרְפוּאָה"?
Some Sephardim have this toward the end of the after-meal prayer:
מַה שֶּׁאָכַלְנוּ יִהְיֶה לְשָׂבְעָה וּמַה שֶּׁשָּׁתִינוּ יִהְיֶה לִרְפוּאָה
In my own, loose translation:
May what we ate be ...
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Laws pertaining to dress for men during fitness activities
What are the rules pertaining to a male doing a physical activity:
If the kipa keeps falling off, is it necessary to wear it?
What about modesty? If in the comfort of your own home, can you go ...
- 13k