Patient/Healthcare Professional letter templates
(to request information about ingredients/excipients in medicines)
Introduction
Before using this template, please ensure you have carefully reviewed our step-by-step guide: ‘How to find out if a medicine contains harām ingredients and/or excipients and its permissibility‘. That guide will help you determine whether contacting a manufacturer is the right step for you. It covers steps such as:
- How to identify possible harām ingredient(s) or excipient(s) in your medicine
- Situations where reaching out to a manufacturer may be necessary
- How to find the contact details of the relevant manufacturer.
Please proceed with a template if you have gone through the steps in our guide and find that you will need to contact the manufacturer. You can contact the manufacturer yourself or ask for the support of a healthcare professional (HCP).
Template one: for products that may contain harām excipient(s)
Please ensure you have read the introduction of this page before proceeding with this template.
This template is intended for individuals (including patients and healthcare professionals (HCPs)) who have identified that their medicine(s) may contain excipient(s) that are harām or potentially questionable. It is designed to help you request further clarification from the manufacturer, enabling you to determine whether the medicine is permissible to take or use.
Instructions
Please tailor what is in italics in the square brackets [] for your relevant product and details. Select only the excipient(s) relevant for your product and delete the remaining categories. (Please keep, and do not delete the general question at the end).
Subject: Request for Information on Excipients in [Medicine Name and PL number in section 8]
Dear [Manufacturer/Medical Information Department],
I am writing to request further information about the excipients used in [Medicine Name, strength, formulation and PL number].
This information is important for religious, ethical, and dietary reasons. Please provide written confirmation of your responses for accuracy.
After reviewing the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC), particularly Section 2 (Qualitative and Quantitative Composition) and Section 6.1 (List of Excipients), I would be grateful if you could clarify the following:
Gelatin
– What is the source of the gelatin? e.g. porcine (pig) or bovine (cow) or other (please state)?
-If bovine, is it from dry bone or hide?
-If bovine, is it halal-certified, and if so, by which certification body?
Ethanol
– What is the source of ethanol (e.g., dates, grapes, raisins, synthetic, herbal)?
– What percentage of ethanol is present in the final product? (Is it less than 1% or more than 1%?)
Lactose
-Is the lactose derived solely from bovine milk, or is calf rennet used during production?
– If rennet is used, do any remnants remain in the final product?
-Is the lactose halal certified, and if so, by which certification body?
Polysorbate
What is the source e.g. animal or plant-derived?
Magnesium Stearate
What is the source e.g. animal or plant-derived?
Conjugated Oestrogen
What is the source of the oestrogen? E.g. horse urine, synthetic or other?
Collagen
-What is the source of collagen? e.g. porcine (pig) or bovine (cow) or other. Please state.
-If bovine, is it from dry bone or hide?
-If bovine, is it halal-certified, and if so, by which certification body?
General question
Aside from the above, please confirm whether any excipients are derived from animals and whether the finished product contains ethanol (if not declared).
Yours sincerely,
[Full Name]
[Contact details]
Template two: for products with no identified harām ingredient(s) and/or excipient(s)
Please ensure you have read the introduction of this page before proceeding with this template.
If you have assessed your product according to our guides and feel confident that it contains no harām or questionable ingredient(s) and/or excipient(s), then you do not need to proceed with emailing the manufacturer.
This template is intended for individuals (including patients and healthcare professionals (HCPs)) who have identified that their medicine(s) does not contain ingredient(s) and/ or excipient(s) that are harām or potentially questionable, yet still wish to clarify and seek reassurance from the manufacturer.
Instructions
Please tailor what is in italics in the square brackets [] for your relevant product and details.
Subject: Request for Information on ingredients/excipients in [Medicine Name and PL number in section 8]
Dear [Manufacturer/Medical Information Department],
I am writing to request further information about the ingredients and/or excipients used in [Medicine Name, strength, formulation and PL number].
This information is important for religious, ethical, and dietary reasons. Please provide written confirmation of your responses for accuracy.
After reviewing the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC), particularly Section 2 (Qualitative and Quantitative Composition) and Section 6.1 (List of Excipients), I would be grateful if you could clarify the following:
Please confirm whether any ingredients or excipients are derived from animals and whether the finished product contains ethanol (if not declared).
Yours sincerely,
[Full Name]
[Contact details]
You are welcome to copy, modify, and use the email templates in the “Contact pharmaceutical companies for clarity on your medicines” section of this site solely for the purpose of contacting manufacturers.
This permission applies only to the templates in this section. All other content on this website is protected and may not be reproduced, distributed, or used without prior written permission.
