|
Yogurt is a popular food for Ramadan as well as Eid.
However, much controversy has surrounded the consumption of cow's milk
and milk products for some time.
Fortunately, though, this controversy only pertains to
commercially produced cow milk and milk products. As one of the oldest
foods known to man, yogurt is a product of pure milk. "…We give
you to drink of what is in their bellies ... pure milk, easy and
agreeable to swallow for those who drink" (Surat ul Nahl, 16:66).
It is said that Rasulullah, the Prophet Mohammad (saw), fed his
followers with yogurt when they became ill (Eltean, p.2.). Now yogurt
has become one of the essential foods used to break the Ramadan fast and
is also a traditional addition to the "First Day of Eid"
breakfast.
For centuries, yogurt has been popular for traditional
reasons. But recently, science is finding out that this tradition has
many health benefits as well. The main benefits of yogurt are in the
digestive tract, where the friendly bacteria found in live yogurt can
aid in digestion as well as help to clean the intestines and digestive
tract.
In the Balkans, they testify as to the medicinal effects
of yogurt, believing it to have therapeutic qualities as well as
providing a strong constitution (Roden, p.21). During the early 1900's,
Dr. Ilya Metchnikoff proposed the widespread use of acidified
(fermented) milk, similar to yogurt, and proposed that the beneficial
bacteria be used in producing fermented milk. She stated that the
bacteria, still present in the yogurt, upon entering the intestinal
tract would prevent other bacteria in the intestines from forming
harmful toxins. Further investigation revealed that undigested and
unabsorbed carbohydrates in the small intestines produced three effects:
a)
Carbon dioxide, hydrogen and methane gas as well as alcohol.
b)
Microbial by-products like lactic acid.
c)
Energy for microbial growth which leads to damage of the small
intestines resulting in carbohydrate malabsorption, bacterial
overgrowth, water drawn into the intestines increased metabolic
by-products and chronic diarrhea (Gotschall, p.15 -18).
One of the first digestive enzymes to suffer damage is
lactase. It has been found that most African-Americans, Latinos, Asians
and Southern Europeans lack the ability to digest lactose, a milk sugar
(Rangwani, p.1). Deficiencies in the enzyme lactase includes celiac
disease, malnutrition, cholera, gastroenteritis, infant diarrhea,
irritable colon, soy protein and cows milk intolerance, parasitic
infection of the intestines, cystic fibrosis, Crohn's Disease and
ulcerative colitis. Former Chairman of Pediatrics at John Hopkins
University Frank Osko blames a multitude of other health problems on
hormone-riddled commercial milk containing lactase (Rangwani, p.1).
Unfortunately, lactase can be found in most milk
products such as liquid milk, dried milk, commercial yogurt, fermented
homemade yogurt, processed cheese, cream cheese, ice cream, some sour
creams, whey and even in some vitamins (Gotschall, p.25). Lactase,
however, is not present in fully fermented live yogurt. The standards
set by the Food and Agricultural Organization for yogurt state that it
must have undergone lactic acid fermentation through the action of the
friendly bacterias lactobacillus bulgaris, and streptococcus
thermophilus, which comes from milk.
The real yogurt culture, lactobacillus and
streptococcus, should ferment the real 'live' yogurt, which must be
alive at the time of consumption (Eltean, p.1). Researchers at the
Pediatric and Adolescent Gastroenterology of the Women's and Children
Hospital in Adelaide, Australia have found that yogurts and other
fermented drinks contain more than one type of bacteria from the
lactobacillus family, which promote digestion. This is very important in
the breaking of a fast -either during Ramadan or during any breakfast
throughout the year.
Additionally, researchers have found that fermented milk
plays a large role in the prevention and management of serious
gastrointestinal conditions including inflammatory bowel disease. A
urine test was used to check the permeability of the intestines and a
breath test to measure the metabolic activity of bacteria in the
intestines. Healthy adults were given yogurt for two days using the
urine test. They found that the intestines had become less permeable.
Diarrhea is a result of excess permeability (Reuters p.1, 2).
Microbiologists at the University of Ontario found that
a strain of lactobacillus not identical to that in live yogurt and
checked the spread of the dangerous bacterium, staphylococcus aureus.
The laboratory research involved rats. All were given staphylococcus
aureus through implantation under the skin. Half were given
lactobacillus. Those that didn't receive lactobacillus developed sores
filled with pus whilst those that did had clean healthy wounds. It is
still unknown as to why this occurs, but it has shown that friendly
bacteria in yogurt can slow down staphylococcus instead of destroying it
with antibiotics, which causes the strain to become resistant to
treatment like those found in British general hospitals. This would
benefit patients with weakened immune systems due to illness or surgery
whereby antibiotic treatment would endanger their lives (BBC, 1,2).
These friendly bacteria become an intrinsic part of real
live yogurt, when homemade and fermented for no less than 24 hours. The
bacteria contain a non-complex single-sugar (monosaccharides), which
requires no further splitting to be transported from the intestines to
the bloodstream (Gotschall, p.3, 27, 44). As a custom, many Middle
Eastern countries have enjoyed homemade live yogurt as a condiment,
often adding salt, mint and garlic. It is enjoyed with a variety of
vegetables and meat. Naturally sweet yogurt (curd) is more nutritious
than ghee or milk, so the wisest decision if one has a limited choice of
alternatives to commercially produced yogurts is to cherish the benefits
of making yogurt at home.
|
