I drink milk, and after few minutes, my stomach is so sick. Diarrhea symptoms are increased, loose stools full of sour or foam. All kind of milk, such as, 2% reduced fat, fat free, vitamin D, or whole milk hurt me.....Can you help me?

The symptoms show that you may be having lactose intolerance. That means you have no or very little lactase to metabolize lactose.  Undigested lactose stays in your stomach and intestine to give problems and this also results diarrhea.

60% of the world population has lactose intolerance or milk protein allergy. If you avoid milk completely the symptoms disappear very quickly. After that, try with very small quantities of milk or dairy products to find out the amount that may be acceptable for your body. If there is no lactase present in your body look for soy milk.

You must be careful in taking processed food as most of these contain milk powder or dairy products. In extreme cases all the food must be avoided with milk or dairy products. This is applicable to ice cream too.

If you have further problems after avoiding milk and dairy products go to your doctor for a complete check up.

Can you tell me about the hormones present in our food?

More than 4000 chemicals are used by the food processing industry and it is better to avoid processed foods. If it is not possible use only a minimum of this.

What about hormones? We have natural hormones and synthetic hormones which are used to increase the growth and weight of our domestic animals. Hormones help also to increase the milk production many fold.

The hormones used to increase the meat and milk production include:

• Estradiol
• Testosterone
• Progesterone
• Melengestrol acetate
• Trenbolone acetate
• Zeranol

Estradiol, testosterone and progesterone are natural hormones and melengestrol acetate, trebolone acetate and zeranol are synthetic hormones. These hormones in food can lead to severe health problems including ovarian cyst and cancer.

Diethylstilbestrol (DES), a synthetic form of estrogen is no more used to fatten the cattle and chicken as it has cancer causing properties.

In 1981, the European Union prohibited the use of substances having a hormonal action for growth promotion in farm animals. This prohibition applies to Member States and imports from third countries alike.

The genetically modified bovine growth hormone is injected in the cows to increase the milk production. The side effects of this hormone is udder infection causing pus which can later get into the milk. Affected cows are treated with certain special antibiotics which brings more problems.

These hormones cause also environmental problems. The undigested hormones are excreted and in course of time they reach the ground water. Ground water is mostly our drinking water and the devils cycle starts.

Many processed foods contain milk powder and it is very difficult to find out the origin of this. The dairy products from Australia, Japan, European Union and Canada are hormone free. In many countries it is impossible to check whether hormones are used or not.

If you are not sure of the origin of the meat or milk avoid it. Eat processed foods if it is not avoidable. Vegetarian food is a wonderful food and it is worth to think about this.

The farmers are using hormones for their profits only without thinking about the health of millions of people. Only we must be careful to live healthy.

Can you explain me the peptic ulcers?

A peptic ulcer is a sore on the lining of the stomach or on the beginning of the small intestine or at the end of oesophagus. If the peptic ulcer is in the stomach it is called a gastric ulcer. The ulcer in the small intestine is duodenal ulcer. One can have both ulcers at the same time and can develop these more than once in his/her lifetime. Peptic ulcers are common in the world.

The stomach produces acid to help to digest the food. The lining of the stomach and the beginning of the small intestine have a layer of mucus which protects them from the acid. If there are problems in this protection mechanism the acid can eat into the stomach or intestine linings and can cause an ulcer.

The causes of peptic ulcers include:

• Stomach infection by a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori. About half of the world’s population is infected, but it does not cause always ulcer
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can cause peptic ulcers. Examples include aspirin, ibuprofen, diclofenac and naproxen
• Smoking tobacco products
• Drinking excess alcohol
• Stress can also increase the production of acid in the stomach
When the mucus lining is damaged the acid can cause inflammation which can lead to peptic ulcer.

The symptoms of peptic ulcers include:

• Pain when the stomach is empty
• Pain can be relieved by eating food
• Difficulty in swallowing food
• Weight loss without dieting
• Nausea
• Bloating
• Heartburn
• Bitter taste in the mouth
• Regurgitating food

The alarm symptoms include:

• Blood in the vomit
• Bloody or black stools
• Sharp, sudden, persistent and severe abdominal pain

The alarm symptoms can be noticed when acid or the peptic ulcer breaks a blood vessel or

The peptic ulcer blocks the way of food trying to leave the stomach to the small intestine or

The ulcer may eat very deeply into the wall of your stomach or small intestine making a hole.

When there is a blood loss the chance of anaemia is there.

You must go to your doctor immediately. He will do the necessary checks and treat you.

Do not have foods or drinks which give you more severe symptoms. The spicy food can give problems, but hot chillies helps to prevent peptic ulcers. Milk increases the symptoms by producing more acid. Avoid alcohol and it is good to stop smoking. Your doctor can advise you which pain killers are better.

With medicines your doctor can cure your peptic ulcers today.

What are the right foods for a pregnant?

There is no need to eat for two during the pregnancy. It is recommended that for the first trimester the food intake should remain about the same as it was prior to the pregnancy. During the second and third trimesters the food intake should be increased upto 30%. It is easy to achieve this with more fruits intake.

It is important to eat variety of foods to ensure the nutritional needs of both mother and the baby. The recommendations include:

• Fruits and vegetables very generously
• Whole grain products and cereals, but not milled grain products
• Milk and dairy products should not be eaten in excess
• Lean meat, chicken and fish in moderate amounts
• Avoid excess intake of fats, sugar and salt
• Beans, pulses, nuts and seeds
• Drink enough water

Do not diet if you are a pregnant. This bad for you as well as to your baby. Green leafy vegetables are very important for the intake of folic acid. Folic acid supplement is recommended for the health of your baby. It is better to consult your doctor before you take a supplement.

With proper food it is possible to manage the iron content of your body also. Iron supplement could be taken only if your doctor recommends it.

Avoid excess of vitamin A intake and vitamin A supplements are not required. The excessive intake of vitamin A may cause birth deformities.

Is taking more milk and milk products correct?

Milk and milk products are healthy if we eat them in small quantities.
In Western countries they used to take too much milk and milk products which cause a lot of problems with calcium metabolism. Too much of protein makes more calcium to excrete from your body and the same is the case with the sodium present in cheese. The milk industry is powerful and their advertisements make us think like this. Moreover their lobby is very big.

Too much of milk and milk products make one very tired. I have asked women to sacrifice milk and milk products for 14 days to show them that excess food based on milk make them very tired. The results are always good. 60% of the world population have problems with milk and milk products.

Milk has also cholesterol.

Milk is a balanced food. But I do not like taking milk. Does it lead to unhealthy condition?

Milk and milk products are very good foods as long as you have no milk allergy or lactose intolerance.

More than 60% of the world population have any one of these problems. In Western countries their main calcium source is milk and milk products. When they eat excess of milk products, particularly cheese, these can bring problem in calcium metabolism. The problems include:

• Too much calcium excretes more calcium from the bones
• Too much of salt from the cheese makes more calcium excretion from the body
• Too much of protein makes the body acidic which in turn increases the excretion of calcium

If somebody is having unexplainable gas problems and no medicines help, ask them to avoid milk and milk products for few days. If they have lactose intolerance the problems will disappear immediately.

The villain for the milk allergy is a protein present in milk.

Food & Fertility: Food rich in vitamin B6, Folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium and zinc

Food rich in Vitamin B6

• Vegetables
• Whole grain products
• Nuts
• Legumes
• Fish
• Poultry
• Meat
• Milk

Plant food loses less Vitamin B6 than meat and milk during cooking. Milling reduces vitamin B6 and so white flour (Maida) has very little vitamin B6. All the processing techniques including freezing, cooking, canning etc. can make vitamin B6 loss.

Food rich in Folic acid

• Meat and inner organs like liver, kidney etc.
• Nuts
• Beans and legumes
• Leafy vegetables
• It is present in all vegetables in small quantities and it is very difficult to take the necessary amount from the food or from raw food. The loss in cooking is always very high. Here we have to think about the supplement.

Food rich in Vitamin C

• Citrus fruits like oranges, grape fruit and lemon
• Vegetables with dark green leaves
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower
• Strawberries
• Kiwi
• Spinach
• Cabbage
• Potatoes
• Tomatoes
• Capsicum
• Liver
• Oyster

Vitamin C is unstable. Losses occur from exposure to air, light, heat and copper.
Also dissolves in cooking water and is mostly wasted.

Food rich in vitamin E

• Edible vegetable oils such as sesame oil, coconut oil, groundnut oil
• Unprocessed cereals
• Unprocessed nuts
• Seeds
• Green leafy vegetables
• Fish
• Poultry
• Fruits and vegetables contain small amount of vitamin E

Vitamin E is relatively stable except at deep frying temperatures.

Food rich in Selenium
• Meats
• Seafood
• Poultry
• Eggs
• Nuts and seeds, particularly nuts from tropical countries including coconut
• Whole grains are rich in selenium

The problem is in most countries the soil is poor in selenium and the local food contains almost no selenium. That is why in most of the developed countries it is added in bread or in other food stuff. Or they must eat nuts imported from tropical countries. If nothing helps supplementation is the last step.

Food rich in Zinc

• Onion
• Garlic
• Nuts including coconut
• Milk, yoghurt and cheese
• Meat
• Liver
• Fish
• Eggs
• Seafood

Fruits and vegetables contain only little zinc. The vegetarians must be careful in their food. Nuts, pulses and milk and dairy products may be the rich sources.

Seafood contains poisonous metals like mercury, cadmium, lead etc. and one must be careful to eat them.