White butter is for good health

When we speak about white butter it is but natural for all Bharatiyas to think of the mischievous Balkrushna, His pictures with white butter smeared all over His mouth, seated with the pot of curds in front of Him, relishing the butter and His wholehearted love for the milk-yielding cows and their calves. All these images are indeed so enticing ! In North Bharat He is fondly remembered as Makhanchor (stealer of butter) Nandakishore (son of Nanda). There is a unique connection between butter and God, hence Bharatiyas too share a unique emotional bonding with white butter. If milk products are consumed following dietary regulations then they are beneficial to all, children, youth and the elderly. Yet why has Murlidhar (a name of Shrikrushna playing the flute) given special importance to white butter ?

White butter is also called Navaneet. दिने दिने यत् नवतामुपैति इति नवनीतम् means that which is created daily, appears new. White butter entering the body produces new minerals and increases the beauty of the physical body hence the name navaneet. Through a study in 1930 Dr. Watston Price has stated that white butter plays a major role in the diet of all communities which are healthy and have a long lifespan. In Switzerland in the village churches white butter is labelled as ‘Divine’. White butter also plays an important role in the diet of Arabs. In America the elderly believe that children with white butter in the diet are heftier and stronger.

Qualities of white butter and its benefits

Though white butter is sweet, cold and fatty it is beneficial to the heart. According to the Westerners vitamin A from white butter continues the smooth functioning of adrenaline and the thyroid gland. Hence the circulatory system and heart function optimally. When there is a deficiency of vitamin A it may cause defects in the heart of a newborn. White butter is the most natural, best and absorbable form of vitamin A. Since thousands of years Vaidyas (Ayurvedic physicians) have advised that pregnant women should consume white butter from the 4th month of pregnancy because the heart of the embryo starts developing at that time.

White butter and cholesterol

White butter contains lecithin because of which the metabolism of body cholesterol is maintained excellently. It also has different kinds of anti-oxidants because of which the physical body is protected from free radicals. The covering of white butter protects blood vessels from distress caused by free radicals. Vitamin A and C from white butter provide the physical body with anti-oxidants. The content of the anti-oxidant selenium is more in white butter than in other products. In fact, it is an excellent source of good type of cholesterol for the body.

White butter and cancer

Due to fortified short and medium chain fatty acids in white butter it possesses the potential to fight cancer. Conjugated linoleic acid present in it helps in resisting cancer in the body. Anti-oxidants, vitamin A and C, selenium and cholesterol present in white butter all help in fighting cancer.

White butter is an excellent immunity booster

White butter keeps body immunity in excellent condition hence children from Gokul were fed white butter by God showing them the path to excellent health as future citizens.

White butter is useful for joint pain

With aging, fluid in joints decreases leading to friction between bones in the joint and their erosion. Deficiency of fluid in the joint decreases blood flow to the joint due to hardening of the blood vessels. Calcium is accumulated in cartilage making bones porous. All this leads to joint pain. Regular consumption of white butter can prevent all these problems. Pasteurisation of milk destroys the fat within it. Drinking such skimmed milk causes joint pain later in life but inclusion of white butter in the diet can prevent this.

White butter for the teeth

Nowadays maida products, baked foods, chocolates, junk foods which stick to the teeth, cold and hot water are consumed in large proportions. As eatables are easily available, they are consumed repeatedly and each time they are eaten the mouth is not cleaned with gargling. As a result, dental problems start early in life. Milk of the Indian cow has the potential to fight tooth decay and erosion.

White butter is an excellent source of iodine

White butter is an excellent source of iodine. Importantly, the iodine in it is easy to uptake, digest and utilise it. Since mountainous regions are away from the sea, salt rich in iodine is not easily available there so white butter is a useful substitute.

White butter and digestion

According to Ayurveda white butter activates digestion and is also tasty. According to latest research it protects the digestive system from different micro-organisms. It also possesses very good anti-fungal properties and hence possesses ability to combat fungal infections.

White butter is nectar for children

Now-a-days premature birth of babies in 6 to 8 months of pregnancy has become a grave problem. The physical development of this baby is not completed and the speed of growth outside the womb is not as fast as within it. So, a premature baby develops various illnesses arresting its growth further. Both its physical and intellectual growth is stunted and immunity is lowered. White butter is the best food for this problem as it performs the task of bringing about the holistic growth of the baby, making it strong.

White butter for the eyes

According to Ayurveda white butter is good for the eyes. That is why medicines prescribed for ocular problems are advised to be taken with white butter. Today the number of children wearing spectacles is growing. The visual error grows till adolescence. Till now allopathy has not found a remedy for this. Also problems such as decrease in vision, cataract etc. have started appearing in the forties. Formerly every household reared cattle. So all age groups- infants, toddlers, children, youth and the aged would consume white butter. As a result such problems were less. There is a generation of people in the 90’s who have clear vision without glasses. These people were nurtured with white butter. Even today there is no substitute for white butter !

White butter for fertility

Today the diseases of polycystic ovarian disease in women and low sperm count in men in the reproductive age group, is common. More than 70% of young couples have to take infertility treatment to conceive their first child. If white butter is consumed since childhood then problems like this in youth can be averted.

White butter for stroke

In a stroke there is paralysis of a part of a body or one half of the body. Allopathy has no treatment other than physiotherapy for this. However it gives nothing to strengthen the muscles to be able to do this physiotherapy. White butter performs this function hence in this condition there is a need for white butter in the diet.

Butter is useful for pitta (bile) in the blood

According to Ayurveda the blood flow from any part of the body after an attack of fever is called raktapitta. In this illness white butter maintains a balance between blood and pitta (bile) and helps in controlling blood flow. The fat from white butter also improves strength of the patient and helps in new cell formation.

White butter is important in all age groups but the butter available in the market is not a substitute for this. With a few exceptions most butter available in the market is made from the cream of any cow’s milk (read the contents on the packaging). What we are talking about is white butter prepared from Indian (A2) cow’s milk along with the cream which is first fermented to make curd. Please note that all these benefits are obtained only from that white butter. Let us look forward to the day when children from the country will play with white butter. Many people have already started working to achieve this. Let us also join them.

Ayurvedic physician Ms. Suchitra Kulkarni (Dainik Tarun Bharat, 22.9.2019)