Lauki juice turns killer

Lauki juice turns killer

The road to hell is paved with good intentions. We are forever being advised to do or eat things that will be “beneficial” for our health 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 one shouldn’t follow random advice given by “self-proclaimed” health experts. 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 TV and start doing it without appropriate 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, “This time, they mixed the juices together and didn’t realise that the lauki was bitter and could be toxic.”

Dr Binu Bhatia, a nutritionist says, “Sometimes lauki can contain a poisonous substance called tetracyclic triterpenoid cucurbitacins, a compound which is a harmful toxin. In fact, all the vegetables and fruits from the cucumber family have 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 before consuming it. I suggest lauki and karela juices to many patients, but we always tell them about the right mix.”

Yoga expert Nishi Singh says that mixing different vegetables or even fruits sometimes is not beneficial. “It’s not safe because we still do not know what the two will add up to, it can also kill each other’s benefits. I advise that mixed fruits or vegetable juices should be avoided.”

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 which one must follow. As a nutritionist, I ask my patients who want to have vegetable juices to start with just 30 ml a day, check the reaction and then build it up.”

Those who consume lauki juice are now thinking twice. “After this incident, my mom, who is a diabetic, is now avoiding lauki juice and is 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 healthy. Dr Sharma of Rockland Hospital said, “These are considered some of the healthiest vegetables but they can turn lethal if bitter.”