Galctorrhea, Milk Consumption and
Fertility
from the book Fertility, Cycles and Nutrition
by Marilyn M. Shannon
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New research provides evidence that in some women milk consumption
may be related to decreased fertility as they age as well as early menopause. This
is because a sugar found only in milk, galactose, is harmful to the ovaries. When
the original milk sugar, lactose, is digested, two smaller sugars, glucose and galactose,
are produced.
The liver quickly takes up the galactose and converts it into glucose, so that what we
call "blood sugar" is all glucose. However, some women cannot make this
conversion well, and they ahve galactose circulating in their blood. the galactose
apparently is harmful to the unfertilized eggs, which must coninue to develop before
ovulation.
Should you restrict milk products?
If you have unexplained infertility or cycle irregularities, especially sccondary
infertilty in your thirties, idealy you could have you blood tested for the present of
galactose. A negative test after drinking milk would conclusively show that ths is
not your problem. If you cannot find a physician willing to test your blood, in
addition to the other nutritional suggestions here, you may wish to avoid all milk
products except or butter for six to nine months, charting your cycles so that you can
observe any improvement in mucus and temperature patterns.
Butter is purely fat and is an essential fatty acid of sorts - important to note
that many women believe it is best to drink skim or 1% milk. This is not true
because that makes it more milk, less fat and the fat is not what people have a problem
with. After all, we are not cows and do not need to "nurse" our whole lives.
Even cows stop drinking cows milk. (Something to think about.)
This is from another section in the same book:
Galactorrhea, or milk in the breasts of non-nursing women, is not uncommon among those who
have been pregnant. It most often indicates excessive prolactin secretion, or it can
be a symptom of hypothyroidism, or more rarely hyperthyroidism. End of article from
Fertility, Cycles and Nutrition.
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