The ritual slaughter in Islam is termed as Zabah. Literally, the term Zabah means to purify as the purpose of Zabah is to purify the flesh of the animal from flowing blood. In Islam flowing blood is impure and prohibited for consumption. Among other reasons of flowing blood being impure, some are:
a) Flowing blood transfers nutrients to the tissue cells and returns with the waste products of the tissue cells. These waste products are harmful and are removed from the blood through the function of the kidneys.
b) Blood contains organisms which are responsible for various diseases.
c) The presence of flowing blood in flesh causes the flesh to putrefy.
It is therefore necessary to purify the flesh of the animal from the impure flowing blood, by extracting maximum blood.
In Islamic Jurisprudence, Zabah is to cut the neck in order to severe the two jugular veins, the gullet and windpipe. It will suffice if any three of the four blood pipes are severed. The spinal cord should not be severed as it maintains connection between the brain and the body which enables convulsion after slaughtering. Convulsion squeezes out the remaining blood in the body.
The Islamic procedure of Zabah enables maximum extraction of blood, within a close circuit. The purpose of extracting maximum blood has been explained. The purpose of rapid extraction of blood is to avoid blood clots. Both aspects, removing flowing blood as well as avoiding blood clots are equally important to health.