Soy milk, an alternative of lactose intolerant people

 

When she visited a nutritionist, she was told that her condition was a result of deficiency in an enzyme called lactase that breaks down  sugar known as lactose  found in milk.

 

She was told that this condition can be genetical or the body can reach a stage and develops it.

 
Kyeyune says she was given advice to take alternatives of fermented milk products and soy milk because they do not contain lactose.

Peter Kato Kikomeko, a nutritionist at Kyambogo University who  is  also the Secretary of the Nutritionist Association of Uganda   says that  in normal circumstances when a person eats anything containing lactose, an enzyme found in the small intestine  called lactase breaks it down into small sugar forms called glucose and galactose, which are then easily absorbed into the  bloodstream and turned into energy.

 

He says that milk has a benefit of calcium and proteins therefore, if a person does not take it, they miss out on this yet their bodies need them.

 

Kikomeko however, said that a person who is lactose intolerant can have an option of taking fermented milk products like cheese, yogurt, and ghee and diluted milk because the lactose percentage will have been reduced.

 
Charlse Nsubuga, the managing director of SESACO Limited, the manufacturers of various Soy products says that people who are lactose intolerant have another option of Soy milk.

 

He adds that Soy milk is made from Soy beans and can be made at home with available local tools both for consumption and for sale.

 

Nsubuga says that drinking Soy milk on a regular basis reduces the risk of prostate cancer because of the presence of phytoestrogen, which reduces the formation of testosterone in men.

 

He says that during menopause, a woman’s estrogen level can drop significantly which puts her at a risk of developing diabetes, heart disease and obesity but regular consumption of soy milk can lower this problem.

 
Nsubuga adds that the above benefits are those among many which are found in soy milk.

 

He says soy milk can be made using local tools including a mingoling stick, a manual grinding machine or blender and a sieve made from polyester cloth in a pillow cover like shape. Ingredients include; one kilogram of soy beans, six liters of water and  soy milk  solution.  

 

Nsubuga says with only sh200, 000, one can start processing soy  using  a kitchen blender  or a manual grinding machine to make soy milk.

 

 

“With this much,  one can process more than 30 litres of soy milk per day because in one kilogram of Soy beans, one can process 6 litres of soy milk and sell  it at  sh4,000 per litre,  reaping sh120, 000 per day ,which  translates into sh3,600,000m a month,” said Nsubuga.

 

One kilogram of yoy beans costs sh2000.

 

Nsubuga took us through the process of making soy milk along with his staff who were demonstrating to over 200 participants from the districts of Mubende, Masaka, Jinja, Kalangala and Mpigi who attended a seminar dubbed   Triple F (Faith, Food and Finance) to kick out  poverty and malnutrition from homes, organised by SESSACO  Limites.

 

Soak one  kilogram of  whole soy beans in a clean container filled with water. Broken Soy beans are not recommended because they contain  a chemical  called Aflatoxin that causes cancer to humans.

 

After eight hours, put enough soy beans in a blender with little water or a manual  grinder for 15-20 minutes  to process them into powder form.  Do this until the 1Kg of soy beans is finished.

 

Pour six litres  of water in a clean saucepan and boil the mixture for 30 minutes.

Sieve the mixture using the cloth sieve made from polyester material placed on a bucket where the milk is pouring.   

 

Put three teaspoons of soy milk solution to dissolve the bitterness in the Soy milk.

 

Add sugar of your deserved  amount , two teaspoons of flavour   like Vanilla, strew berry or  any other flavour  of your choice.

 

This milk will now be ready to drink. It does not need any preservatives because most preservatives have chemicals, which are not healthy for our bodies.

 

Soy milk is preserved when put into a freezer and this can take one month without going bad. If you don’t have a fridge, you can preserve it by boiling it every after 12 hours.

 

Nsubuga says that  all bi products from soy beans   after making soy milk  are  used  to make other  products like soy meat, soy chicken food, soy porridge, yoghurt, soy millet, cooking oil to mention but a few, which makes it 100%  use full.

 

He says he got the idea from a training by fellowship programme in the US adding: “ Simple ideas of  feeding  schools can help in fighting against malnutrition,’’.

 

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