Summary or Abstract Page This page should provide a short summary of the disease and the most important aspects of it (cause, pathways affected, possible treatment, etc)

In an easy-to-read Web-Page format, the summary is riveting from beginning to end and contains revealing statistics from the scientific literature and catchy graphics and graphs. With bold persistence, Gordon challenges long-held beliefs and goes toe-to-toe with the big boys of the dairy and milk industries! A must read for all who desire the facts as they are.

Author(s):
         Watts, G. W.

Title:
         ~- 110% - Hypolactasia -~

FOUND IN:
         The Register, found online at: http://garnet.acns.fsu.edu/~gww1210

COPYRIGHT 2001 The Register

Abstract:
        Hypolactasia, also known as lactose intolerance, is a common genetic disorder worldwide, affecting perhaps 90% of the world population in varying degrees. The affected individual cannot digest lactose due to insufficiently low levels of the enzyme, O-Beta-D-galactopyranosyl(1-->4)Beta-D-glucopyranase, a galactosidase, known commonly as lactase.

Objective: The author sought to determine the cause and effects of primary hypolactasia. I also inquired as to possible treatments - be they genetic modifications or environmental alteration (e.g., in the diet).

Methods: There was much research done on the causes and effects in addition to the results on human consumption of lactose-containing foods and drinks. I reviewed all the relevant literature and research done on this topic.

Results: Although three forms of the disorder exist, only one involves a deficient catabolic genetic pathway, namely "Primary lactase deficiency." The other two are either congenital in nature or induced by environmental factors such as illness or medication. Hypolactasia is associated with other conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome, in a cause-and-effect relationship, and for easily obvious reasons. Most surprisingly, there is a negative correlation between hypolactasia and female decline in fertility. (I.e., the greater the proportion of persons allergic to lactose in a given country, the less fertility problems the women experienced - according to linear regression - and at *very* statitsically significant levels!) This was presumably due to the toxic nature of galactose to the female ovarian egg germ cells. In addition, there is a positive correlation between lactose consumption and many illnesses, with p-values usually less than 0.001, and sometimes much less. R-squared values are typically moderate or high. There are many chemical properties of lactose-containing milk, including high levels of IGF-II (Insulin-like growth factor II) due, in part, to injection in cows of rBGH/rBST (recombinant bovine somatotropin also called "Bovine Growth Hormone"). Other processing of dairy milk, such as pasteurization and especially homogenization, play a large part in the delivery of these powerful growth hormones in acceleration of nascent cancer cell in vivo in humans. The basic (alkaline) nature of the milk counteracts the HCl (hydrochloric acid) of the stomach in denaturing the proteins and hormones involved.) Some research even showed a negative correlation between milk consumption and bone density! This was presumably due to two factors: 1. The high protein (methionine) content in milk promotes acidic conditions, which tend to leach calcium from the bone reserves; 2. The low content of the Magnesium 2+ ion (a necessary cofactor) in bovine milk prevented proper metabolism (and thus, absorption) of much of the contained calcium, probably precipitated out of the urine as Ca3P2 (Calcium Phosphate aka Tricalcium Diphosphate).

Conclusion: The results demonstrate the following:
1. Primary hypolactasia prevents lactase production and the resultant inability to metabolize lactose;
2. Hypolactasiac individuals consume much less milk due to the adverse heath effects from gastrointestinal flux and general discomfort; and,
3. For this reason, these individuals have less incidence of many lactose-related illnesses.

Various techniques have been applied to treat lactose intolerance, including gene therapy, treatment of food with enzymes to breakdown lactose, building up tolerance, and attempts at adjustments in the amount and type of food ingested with dairy products- to regulate the speed of digestion and other factors. There were even proposals to selectively breed cows for low-lactose milk and substitution of other dairy products with less lactose than milk. Much work has to be done to fully understand the parameters and potential to treat this condition, but it is unlikely that a dispassionate reading of the research and literature will result in any less than a full and complete mindset in favor of avoidance of (human) consumption of lactose-containing dairy products.

Below are links to word documents I am using for sources. CAREFUL: One is BIG, at about 560 kilobytes in size!
| hypolactasia.doc |
| XABSTRACT.doc |