Which digestive conditions are more difficult to treat?

Generally, congenital diseases, that is conditions that run families, prove harder to treat than acquired ones. Therefore, the sooner you visit a holistic practitioner after your symptoms appear, the better the prognosis.

My doctor says I'm not lactose intolerant, but every time I drink milk or eat ice cream I experience cramping or diarrhea. If I do stop eating dairy foods, how do I maintain adequate calcium intake?

Although you may not be intolerant to lactose, you may be intolerant to one or more of the other constituents in milk. Therefore, it may be prudent to stop all dairy products. To assure adequate calcium intake, consider taking a calcium supplement, preferably in absorbable form such as citrate or aspartate. If you want to use magnesium to aid in the absorption of calcium, take half as much magnesium as calcium; if you suffer from stress, hypertension, or constipation, take equal amounts of calcium and magnesium. Start out at a reduced dosage and slowly increase. If you have problems with one brand or form of calcium, try another. There are additional cofactors which may help bone density; they are zinc, copper manganese, vitamin K, boron, and folic acid. Foods rich in calcium include soy products (if you can tolerate them), turnip greens, kale, black-eyed peas, sesame seeds, okra, bok choy, figs, dried apricots, almonds, broccoli, and amaranth.

What do you mean by dairy products?

Milk, cream, cheese, butter, and ice cream. Yogurt is also a dairy product, however homemade yogurt or brands which have acidophilus and probiotics ("live cultures") are frequently the most easily tolerated.

What are the drawbacks of bread?

Many types of bread contain wheat, which is a common allergen, and yeast, which many persons are sensitive to. Bread is often associated with unhealthy foods. For example, butter, mayonnaise and margarine are usually spread on bread. The first two contain excessive fat, and margarine contains trans fatty acids which should not be consumed at all. Additionally, bread is ordinarily used to make sandwiches which contain foods like cheese and luncheon meat which are high in fat, salt, preservatives, and additives. To avoid these unhealthy foods, substitute crackers or muffins that are wheat free for bread, and instead of luncheon meat, use meat that you cooked from scratch. This is much healthier, more delicious and easier to digest than cheese and luncheon meat.