When health food turned dangerous

[1]

The road to hell is paved with good intentions. The old adage is never truer than in the context of one’s health. We are forever being advised to do or eat things that will be “beneficial” for our health by people who have absolutely no business to do so and while most of these “advices” are in good faith, one should always consult an expert before following them.
Sixty-year-old scientist Sushil Kumar Saxena recently died and his wife Neeraj was hospitalised after they drank a cocktail of lauki (bottle gourd) and karela (bitter gourd) juices not realising that the lauki juice was toxic. Saxena who was the deputy secretary in the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, died in Rockland Hospital after allegedly vomiting blood. Both he and his wife were diabetics who had been drinking these juices for the last four years after seeing their health benefits on a TV show.
Doctors and dieticians say that following random advice given by “self-proclaimed” health experts is not safe as some health fixes, drinks and foods may not be as safe as we think.
Says Dr Kajal Pandya, chief dietician, Sitaram Bhartiya Institute and Research Centre, “I tell people to read about such juices before going in for them, and they must always follow an expert’s advice before consuming lauki and bitter gourd. You can’t watch something on television and start doing it without appropriate medical advice from a professional.”
Neeraj was quoted saying that they allegedly followed Baba Ramdev’s advice on television to drink lauki juice. Sushil’s son-in-law, Amit Sood explains, “They had been drinking lauki and karela juice for the last four years. But the only mistake that they made this time was mixing the juices together. Which is why they didn’t know that the lauki was bitter. Had they tasted the juices separately, they would’ve known that the lauki was bitter and could have toxins.”
Dr Binu Bhatia, a nutritionist says, “Sometimes lauki can contain a poisonous substance called tetracyclic triterpenoid cucurbitacins, a compound which is a harmful toxin, and even cucumbers can be dangerous for health. All the vegetables and fruits from the cucumber family have some harmful toxins which are responsible for the bitter taste. Vegetables therefore have to be cooked to get rid of the toxins. With fruits, it is better to remove the bitter part and consume the rest. Even I suggest lauki and karela juices to many patients, but we always tell them about the right mix and quantity.”
Yoga expert Nishi Singh says that mixing different vegetables or even fruits sometimes is not very beneficial. “Mixing two vegetable juices cannot harm to the extent that it kills a person. But I still believe that people should not mix two juices together, because we still do not know what the two will add up to, or kill each other’s benefits. I even advice my students to avoid having mixed fruits or vegetable juices.”
Naini Setalvad, a nutritionist in Mumbai believes there could be several reasons for Saxena’s death. “He could have had a bad attack of gastro, or hypoglycemia could have been a reason since he was a diabetic. There could be several reasons why his body reacted so badly to the juice. Nature normally doesn’t kill. But it has its own laws and one must follow them. As a nutritionist, I always ask my patients who want to have vegetable juices to start with just 30 ml a day and gradually build it up. Take a quarter of a glassful and then observe whether there are any changes in your body. Then slowly increase the quantities.” Those who have been consuming these juices are now thinking twice after Saxena’s death. “My mom, who is a diabetic was drinking lauki juice for the last few days as one of her friends had suggested it. After this incident, mom’s been avoiding lauki juice and is also planning to consult her doctor about it,” says 19-year-old Monica Nathani. However, there’s no denying the fact that vegetables like bottle gourd, cucumber, pumpkins and melons are very healthy. Dr Sharma of Rockland Hospital said, “These are considered some of the healthiest vegetables, but they can turn lethal if bitter. Saxena was brought dead to us while Neeraj was in a bad condition. She had ulcers in her stomach. It was a case of bottle gourd poisoning.”