Section: Questions Category: Halacha | Halacha - Pesach - Vitamins | | Submitted by sharon kay Answered by Rav Peretz Moncharsh | | Question: | | Answer: Generaly speaking only Kosher for Pesach vitamins may be taken on Pesach. However, if you suffer from a serious condition that can only be treated efficiently with not Kosher for Pesach vitamins then they would be considered like medicine that is permitted.
| | posted:2008-04-14 06:36:53 |
Visitor Comments: 2
Rabbi Peretz Moncharsh, 2008-04-16 06:07:06
Many poskim permit all vitamins because they are swallowed not derech achila. Furthermore, while I am no fan of alternative medicine and it is true that vitamins do not undergo the rigorous testing the FDA requires of drugs, but it is clear from real medical research (and I read the Harvard Medical Review regularly) that many vitamins do have real effects. Also, when it comes to medical knowledge the Rav must submit his personal opinions to the professional knowledge of the doctor. So, if a competent knowledgeable physician who is familiar with the patients medical condition determines that vitamins are essential for the patient's health, that is the starting point from which the Rav derives his ruling. If the question is based on inaccurate facts, the psak will inevitably not be precise.
Anonymous, 2008-04-14 23:45:10
This sounds like a dangerous psak that can cause a great kilkul. Vitamins are considered by many authorities to have no medical value. In fact you can not make any claims when advertising vitamins in the UK. Very often the poor uninformed soul taking them think that is pikuach nefesh when in fact it does close to nothing.
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