|
Q And A Clearinghouse
2nd Quarter, 2000
Updated July 5, 2000
This page answers the
questions that arrived in the second quarter of 2000.
Send your questions to me, Steve Carper, at SteveCarper@CS.com.
Remember, I personally answer all questions that you send me, no
matter what. The ones that are of sufficiently general interest
get posted here, where I hope they can do the most good.
If you don't spot your question here, be sure to check my
Q and A Quick Finder Index.
Q. Could
you please deliver information to me concerning how ghee is
produced/processed/manufactured?
Ghee is a semiliquid form of butter that has been heated and
strained so that all milk solids other than the fat have been removed.
Theoretically, all the lactose is also gone, although this is of
course subject to the extent and care of the straining.
Ghee may be kept at room temperature for several months, or
almost indefinitely if refrigerated.
Q. I get LI-like symptoms
from eating peanuts. Is this possible?
Two different things may be happening. One is simply that
you have a common
reaction to nuts and that's what you are feeling.
However, I've been told that shelled peanuts may be sprayed
with whey powder to keep them fresh. I don't know if all peanuts
are treated in this fashion, but if they bother you either try
taking some lactase or avoid them altogether.
Q. I occasionally
get LI symptoms after eating at a salad bar and had heard that it may
be because some of the vegetables (such as
green peas and beets) make galactose as an intermediate digestive product.
Is some other food intolerance at work, or is this just another facet
of LI?
LI deals exclusively with the problem caused by undigested lactose.
Foods that have been digested to another sugar are not part of it.
Lactose itself is converted to glucose and galactose when properly
digested. Other than a few congenital diseases, which you would definitely
know if you have, I know of no problems from galactose.
But peas are legumes and many people do have trouble digesting the
sugars in legumes. Try taking Beano with the peas. Can't help you
with the beets, though.
Q. I sometimes
see lactase pills in a dollar store. Is there a chance that these
pills have lost some of their potency?
Yes, lactase pills, like any other, will lose potency the longer
they sit. Although most pills have conservative expiration dates,
I would never take a chance on pills that are that old.
Q. Can someone
who is highly lactose intolerant consume aspartame? I am afraid
to use it because I read it may be taken from milk sugar.
Aspartame is composed of two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine.
You're not going to derive amino acids from a sugar. Both amino
acids are naturally found in milk, but then so is almost everything else
in the world, including necessary vitamins and minerals. Nor does the
manufacturing process does get them from milk.
Q. Is milk acidic
and is it good or bad for ulcers?
Milk used to be the drink of choice for ulcer sufferers to reduce
acidity. Now no one recommends it because milk can actually slow
the healing process. Ulcers are now known to be associated with
the heliobacter bacteria and there are drugs that will combat it successfully.
Q. I
have severe lactose intolerance. I always experience LI problems
when eating products with mayonnaise. I also know other LI people who have
the same problem. Is it the caseinate in it that is giving me problems?
I always thought that all regular mayonnaise was lactose free. This
turns out to be almost, but not quite true. At the supermarket I found
a couple of Kraft fat free products that contained a tiny amount
of dried cream and a correspondant found a variety of Helman's that does
contain caseinate.
So is lactose the problem here? Probably not. Very few people would react
to a tiny amount of dried cream or to the usually lactose-free caseinate.
It is much more likely that if anything is bothering you about mayonnaise
it is the eggs, especially the yolks, to which many people are sensitive.
Some fat free mayonnaise has egg whites but no yolks. And there are
egg-free mayonnaises in health food stores. You might try
them just an as experiment.
|
