AL Gondi
Acclimatisation and adaptation to different environmental, nutritional and social situations have been discussed, but it appears most of us take it for granted. However, when it strikes, it is a feeling one detests.
To athletes, it can be devastating during competitions. I fell a victim sometime ago on a trip to West Africa. I took my first meal in Lagos Airport, then took another in Tripoli, and Benghazi in Libya. It took me four days to adapt to the type of oil and meals available in that part of the world.
During the period, I had to adapt and depend on the available types of fruit juices. Unfortunately, the variation was from orange juice to orange juice. My friends Caleb and Bartonjo would have been a perfect substitution in this strange habitat if they knew about weight lifting injuries. I therefore took interest in their nutrition, particularly camel’s milk and its values.
It appears that in Arab countries and most Muslim countries, camel’s milk is now consider a nourishing drink and essential in every component of daily diet. It is also reported that Arabs and Muslims have a special interest in camel’s milk.
Powers to combat
They consider camel milk a high quality drink with special powers to combat certain diseases. This belief is apparently spreading all over the world and athletes are encouraged to use camel’s milk.
Certain western media houses have described camel’s milk as super food that might soon find its place in supermarket shelves, chemists and upper market retail shops. In certain countries and states like California, it is advertised that using current scientific techniques and some natural ingredients, ‘oasis camel milk drinks’ offer an assortment of high quality hand made camel milk soaps.
In Libya, the common population has a high regard for camel milk. It is even documented that camel milk is the favourite of the Libyan leader Dr Mohammed Mummer Al-Qaddafi.
In Tripoli and Benghazi, which are not in the desert area, camel milk is brought from other hotter and drier provinces.
In Libya, it is believed that camel milk cures asthma, diabetes, hepatitis, ulcers, cancer and various other host of diseases. It also makes a person physically fit. Research has proved that camel’s milk has more of a substance called Lacttoferin than is found in cow’s milk.
This substance acts against the bacteria that cause typhoid and diarrhoea. It is also contains double the amount of Vitamin C present in a cows milk. It is also considered richer in minerals and safer than a cow’s milk.
Hot and dry climate
The quantity of water in Camels milk is 84-91 per cent and this is not found in other forms of milk.
This is essential in hot and dry climate where the prolactin pushes water to the camel’s udder so that the baby camel has a lot of water to drink during drier conditions.
Camel’s milk also has a lot of antibodies that boosts immunity. Research is therefore being conducted to determine whether certain vaccines can be developed from the milk.
Camel milk also enhances performance in leisure sports. As for the athlete, more research is being carried to determine whether there are any components that is in the prohibited list from WADA.
In addition, camel’s milk is better than breast milk in terms of the baby’s health and development (hence a future super athlete?).
— Gondi, a medical practitioner, is a member of National Olympic Committee’s Medical Commission and board member of Regional Anti-Doping Organisation.
