The BRAT Diet Made Liquid

The BRAT Diet is named after its ingredients, Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, and Toast, four foods that are so mild for most peoples' digestive tracts that they can be used to soothe troubled tummies.

Toast is a problem for those with celiac disease, of course, and many breads also include milk.

And some children have such severe problems that getting them to eat solid foods is itself an issue.

That was the problem with the children of Greg and Ilsa Toepfer. So, in a familiar tale, the couple worked to find a solution for their children. Which they are now marketing nationally.

The story by Mike Hodgson of The Adobe Press talked about the long process they went through.

Greg said. “We got the basic formula, and it tasted OK. Then we worked very closely with their scientists and designers and came out with something we really, really liked.”

The process took a year.

“It took a long time, but it’s a good thing it did because we found all these other things we could put in it that really help calm the digestive tract,” Greg said.

Some of those things include electrolytes to aid absorption, vitamins, calcium and other minerals, but to make the product gluten- and lactose-free, they removed toast from the formula.

“The ‘T’ now stands for ‘tummy-soothing,’” Greg said, noting the drink comes in four flavors — chocolate honey, vanilla, cinnamon toast and original. ...

In September, Organic B.R.A.T. was among the products showcased by some 3,500 vendors at Natural Products Expo East in Boston, where it won the New Products Showcase Award for the Most Innovative Product.

For more information visit their website at www.bratdiet.org.

Goats Get Lactose Intolerance

Remember the old joke in which a teacher gives a class assignment to write about a pet peeve and some future delinquent writes about his pet, Peeve?

It's not very funny. I know.

Not funny. Just relevant. To me, at least. You can't imagine how many times I go on the Internet and find people dumb or oblivious or self-interested enough to proclaim that goat's milk is acceptable for people with lactose intolerance.

Here are some examples I pulled off of Google News, just this month.

FoodBizIntel: Meyenberg Goat Milk Products

Goat milk has a delicious, gourmet taste, is easily digested, and is a real milk alternative to lactose sensitivity.

Tabbouleh Chavrie Salad

Healthy tips about our all-natural cheese include goat cheese contains 30% less fat than sour cream and many cow’s milk cheese. It is gluten-free and is easily digestible for those who are lactose intolerant.

Editors' Picks: Automaker offers goat with purchase

Goat's milk, he added, "provides a nutritious alternative for the growing number of lactose-intolerant people ...

Milk, it was good for you as a kid, it is good for you as an adult

There is goat’s milk which has slightly different properties than cow’s milk. Those who are lactose intolerant may be able to drink goat’s milk.

Not just kidding around

Goat's milk contains a different protein base than cow's milk and so can often be tolerated by people who are lactose intolerant or have other digestive sensitivities, Heather said.

That would be no, no, no, no, and no.

Goat's milk has almost exactly as much lactose as cow's milk. Some people who are allergic to cow's milk can drink goat's milk because it contains a different set of proteins. But that is almost exactly opposite to what these nitwits claim.

How do I know that goat's milk will affect the lactose intolerant?

How about a lactose intolerant goat?

J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2000 Aug 1;217(3):372-5, 340.
Secondary lactose intolerance in a neonatal goat.

Weese JS, Kenney DG, O'Connor A.

Department of Clinical Studies, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Canada.

A 2-week-old Toggenburg kid was evaluated for persistent diarrhea and poor body condition. The herd had high morbidity and mortality associated with diarrhea in neonatal kids. Lactose intolerance was diagnosed on the basis of results of a lactose tolerance test and glucose absorption test. Clinically normal herdmates were used as control animals. The kid responded to lactase supplementation. Cryptosporidium organisms were detected in feces of several affected kids during episodes of acute diarrhea. Lactose intolerance was presumed to have developed secondary to intestinal cryptosporidiosis.

In other words, this poor baby goat got an intestinal ailment, and developed secondary lactose intolerance, in exactly the same way that so many humans, especially infants and babies. do when their intestines are attacked by something like the "stomach flu," actually a gastrointestinal ailment. The cure was also exactly like that of a human: use lactase to digest the lactose and reduce the symptoms.

Everybody. Please stop saying that goat's milk is for people with lactose intolerance. That's not true. Even the goats know better.

Galactosemia, the Most Serious Lactose Problem

Lactose is what's called a disaccharide, a complex sugar made out of two simpler sugars, in this case glucose and galactose. Lactose intolerance occurs when the body doesn't make sufficient lactase, the enzyme that splits lactose into the simpler, and therefore digestible, sugars.

Glucose is the primary energy source for the body. All carbohydrates digest down to glucose and we must maintain a supply of it to live even for a very short time. There's really no such thing as a glucose problem.

What about galactose? Well, galactose is a carbohydrate and the body will convert galactose to glucose shortly after it is absorbed into the intestines. If this doesn't happen, a variety of awful symptoms appear. These appear much more slowly than a glucose problem, however.

Occasionally, therefore, a baby is born with the inability to convert galactose and lives long enough for the doctors to figure out the problem. This is called galactosemia. It's pretty rare, which is why I talk about so seldom. I last did so in 2007, with the posts Galactosemia: the Other Lactose Problem and Sarah's Cure about a nonprofit organization to fund research for a cure.

I was reminded of my need to periodically mention galactosemia by a very good article on the subject by Dr Vandana Rao on DNA India.com.

Dr Rao said that:

Some of the common symptoms are jaundice, vomiting, poor feeding (baby refusing to drink milk-containing formula), poor weight gain, lethargy, irritability and convulsions.

Infants with Galactosemia will develop most of the above symptoms within days of drinking milk.

Milk includes both breastmilk and a milk-containing formula, which means that virtually every baby in the world with galactosemia will start showing symptoms within days of birth. Doctors today will recognize the problem and move the infant onto a nondairy formula immediately. Lactose must be avoided for life.

Now for a complaint. I keep mentioning that the people who write articles for newspapers or magazines, or just about any publication that they don't control, normally never also write the headline for that article. That is the job of an editor.

Now if you were an editor and you read that list of symptoms above, what title would you put onto this article? Could any of you be so thoroughly dense as to title it "Lethargic? It could be Galactosemia"?

Lethargic? Who among us not named Richard Simmons isn't lethargic at times? Wouldn't that word draw you to the article? Wouldn't you think that you yourself might be suffering from galactosemia?

You aren't. I guarantee that no adult suddenly stumbles upon the knowledge of being galactosemic. You know it from before you can talk or not at all, because you simply don't live long enough to talk if you don't find it out.

That is probably the most boneheaded headline I have ever come across, and you regular readers out there know that I complain about headlines with bile-spewing frequency.

My apologies to Dr Rao for having her excellent article spoiled by some ignorant clod. You deserved better.

For more information on galactosemia, go to Parents of Galactosemic Children Inc.

Premature Babies and LI

Here's a question I wish I could have been more help with.

my baby was born at 28wks 5 wks ago and is not tolerating his breastmilk via tube feeds - this is why i am following up the LI lead

This was my reply:

The research I have says that premature babies develop the ability the manufacture lactase very rapidly and so normally do not have LI.

Here's one mention of the problem that may be of some relevance.

"Early initiation of half-strength lactose-containing formula or breast milk results in rapid induction of lactase activity in the brush border and less feeding intolerance. A recent study suggests that full-strength lactose formula resulted in more feeding intolerance than low-lactose formula in premature infants; thus, the precise lactose concentration of lactose for inducing lactase activity is still undetermined."

A little-known fact is that lactase-production does not reach full strength in the intestines until almost the last week before birth. Foodreactions.org gives this chart:

> 23rd week ------------------------- 10% of full term
> between 25th and 34th is ------ 30% of full term
> between 34th and 35th week -- 70% of full term

Therefore all premature babies are born lactose intolerant. Although some sites suggest that the lactase-making ability is still lacking until the baby achieves what would have been a full term, this is not supported by most experts. Babies may need non-dairy liquids or lactose-free milks for the first feedings, but should regain their ability to drink breastmilk of a proper formula shortly thereafter.

Non-Allergenic Weaning Product Announced

Nutricia, the big pharmaceutical house, announced a new product of great interest to parents of children with milk allergies.

Nutricia, the European market leader in advanced medical nutrition, announces the launch of Neocate Nutra, the first and only weaning product made from 100% non-allergenic amino acids. Neocate Nutra has been specifically developed for weaning infants and older children with cows' milk protein allergy (CMPA) and multiple food protein intolerance (MFPI). Unlike many weaning products, Neocate Nutra contains no hidden allergens and is designed to provide children with the key essential nutrients they need for development. With its unique format, Neocate Nutra is suitable for taking infants through the various stages of weaning and also for older children on very restricted diets who are looking for convenient and varied food options.

Neocate Nutra represents a groundbreaking advance in the management of CMPA, a condition which affects between 2 to 7.5% of infants worldwide.(1) With the launch of Neocate Nutra, parents of CMPA infants of a weaning age and above can, for the first time, choose with confidence a weaning product that is made from 100% non-allergenic amino acids, ruling out any possible allergic reactions caused by an exposure to any trace of cows' milk. Neocate Nutra contains key essential nutrients potentially missing from a dairy-free diet and contains a child's full dietary requirements of calcium and two thirds of their daily requirements for iron and vitamin D*. This helps to ensure valuable nutrition for healthy bones, growth and development throughout the weaning stage and beyond. ...

Neocate Nutra is a versatile and convenient product. When water is added to this powder-based product, a smooth, spoonable "yoghurt style" consistency is formed which can be adjusted by adding more or less water as desired. With its neutral taste, Neocate Nutra is perfect on its own or can be combined with a variety of sweet or savoury "safe" foods. Neocate is manufactured in a cows' milk protein-free plant. Neocate Nutra is suitable for infants from 6 months and young children.

National launches of Neocate Nutra will be taking place across the world during the course of 2009 and 2010.

The Nutricia North America website already has an order page for the product for the U.S. and also one for Canada.