Chris Hafner-Eaton posted: "There is a strong connection between the Mg, Ca and K balance and constipations, so I think this is a fairly reasonable connection although I suspect that the midwife doesn't know why (just my guess)." Chris, could you elaborate more specifically on the mechanism of this strong connection? This midwife (not the same one as the midwife claiming a connection between constipation and mastitis) is having trouble understanding if and how dietary supplements of these electrolytes could correct this kind of problem, when according to the theory of homeostasis being taught at the U of Washington when I studied physiology there, the ranges of serum electrolyte values which are compatible with life are quite narrow. This meant that if you got too much of them in your diet, you started making expensive urine, and if you got too little, you supplemented by borrowing minerals from your skeleton and putting them into circulation. When your diet changed, you reversed the process, all regulated by the mechanisms which keep us in the 'alive' state of which we are so fond. In order for muscle contractility to be affected, the electrolyte levels (again, as I was taught it aeons ago in Seattle) would be so disturbed that the organism's overriding problem would be one of intractable seizures, leading to death if uncorrected. But that theory could be completely outdated for all I know, so if anyone has an understandable explanation for the effects of the electrolytes mentioned, I'd love to learn about it. Rachel Myr Kristiansand, Norway *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html