First thing is an acid called Oxalic acid. This is a naturally-occurring substance found in some foods that binds with important nutrients, making them inaccessible to body. Oxalic acid may combine with calcium, iron, sodium, magnesium, or potassium to form less soluble salts known as oxalates. Oxalates also occur naturally in plants.

Foods generally found include: apples asparagus, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, most berries (especially strawberries and cranberries), most nuts (especially peanuts), beans, beets, beet greens, bell peppers, black pepper, parsley, rhubarb, spinach, swiss chard, summer squash, sweet potatoes, and tea.

Plant foods with high concentrations of oxalic acid (over 200 ppm) include (but are not limited to): lamb's-quarter, buckwheat, star fruit, black pepper, purslane, poppy seeds, rhubarb, tea, spinach, plantains, cocoa and chocolate, ginger, almonds, cashews, garden sorrel, mustard greens, bell peppers, sweet potatoes, soybeans, tomatillos, beets and beet greens, oats, pumpkin, cabbage, green beans, mango, eggplant, tomatoes, lentils, and parsnips.

The good news is that cooking destroys oxalic acid therefore asparagus, beets, beet greens, chard, cranberries, green peppers, rhubarb, and spinach are all best eaten cooked.

Although spinach has a lot of calcium, it also contains a substance -- oxalic acid -- that binds up its calcium and prevents absorption of all but about 5 percent of it. However, oxalic acid in spinach and other foods does not interfere with absorption of calcium from other foods eaten at same time.

The second is a substance called Phytate. Phytic acid, found in bran of whole grains, nuts, and skins of legumes, can bind to calcium to form and insoluble complex, thereby decreasing absorption of calcium. Phytic Acid binds with calcium (and iron, magnesium, phosphorus, and zinc) in intestinal tract preventing absorbtion. Phytates/phytic acid are storage form of phosphorus bound to inositol in fiber of raw whole grains, legumes, seeds, and nuts. Although these foods have a high phosphorus content, phosphates in phytates are not released through digestive process. Phytates, particularly in such raw foods as bran, are a concern because they can bind a portion of iron, zinc, and calcium in foods, making minerals unavailable for absorption.

If one looks back at traditional cultures you will see that for thousands of years whole grains have been prepared by soaking or fermenting them prior to cooking. Phytic acid which occurs in unsprouted grains, seeds, and legumes, is particularly rich in bran. When bread is leavened by yeast, enzymes degrade phytic acid and phytates pose no problem. Phytic acid is also destroyed during baking and food processing.

Enzymes, called phytases, destroy phytates during certain food processes such as: yeast-raising of dough, sprouting of seeds, grains, legumes, roasting of nuts, presoaking beans, cooking, fermentation as in tempeh, miso, and natto, combining acidic foods with zinc-rich foods, etc.

Soybeans contain high levels of phytates; some researchers say more than other beans. Additionally, soy's phytates are so stable that many survive phytate-reducing techniques such as cooking. (The phytates in whole grains can be deactivated simply by soaking or fermenting. It is possible that only long periods of soaking and fermenting - as are used in making miso, natto, shoyu, tamari, and tempeh (but not tofu, soymilk, texturized soy protein, or soy protein isolate) - significantly reduce phytate content of soybeans.

Ms. L wrote me:

Hello Dr. Kavokin, I was reading some of your literature and found it to be quite informative. I have a question that perhaps you may be able to answer: If a woman's ovarian cyst ruptures, (especially multiple cysts from PCOS) can these ruptured cysts become an infection? ...

Hi, MS. L Short answer: anything can become infected. Though I do no think ruptured ovarian cyst becomes infected very often, did not hear about that. I will look more literature and probably place answer on my website. Sincerely, Alex … OK. I looked literature. I didn't do very extensive literature search. Should admit. Anyway, some available books mention that ovarian cyst may become infected. However infection is not described as main complication in ovarian cyst rupture. Also, I don't remember that anybody told me otherwise. Maybe there is some specialized article that says: condition happens in one point three percent of cases with Standard Deviation of half percent. I don't know exact percentage. Need to look more. PubMed service did not give many abstracts on PCOS + infection.

Anyway. So how would it look alike?

A young woman comes to ER. She is premenopausal. She complains on mild (or maybe severe) pain in her belly. ER Doctor takes history. The woman also mentions changes in her menstrual interval. Let's say regular is 28 days. Last one was delayed.

Physician puts gloves, puts jelly on gloves. Then he puts his two fingers into female vagina. The other hand is on belly. Then he starts to palpate.

It is named pelvic exam. Modest name. Though in Russia it is named vaginal exam, which it is.

Is it a common type of exam? Depends. They usually send you to CT (computer tomography) scan if there is severe abdominal pain. Charge 1000. Boom. Done.

Exclude price. Exclude delay in reading (somebody should look and interpret what is going on). Exclude radiation. CT scan gives better picture than just poking your belly. CT scan helps to diagnose abdominal pain of uncertain origin. You can really image what is going on. Though, there are cases when physical exam gives more clues. Physical exam must be performed always. Pelvic exam is somewhat a special one. I remember how I performed a pelvic exam in medical school. It is actually difficult even just to insert two fingers into vagina first time. Female Gynecologist asks me: "So, what do you feel?" Patient goes same, encourages me: "What do you feel, what do you feel, do you feel it?" I guess she felt a sort of museum artifact. Heck, I did not feel anything.

Well. Actually I felt something - aside from uterus - something round. I would say 5 cm in diameter (would it be less I probably would not feel it at all) and semi-solid on touch. Also I saw that patient grimaces. It is tender when I push hard.

It's it. How to say that it was tuboovarian abscess (that it was) for sure, I don’t know. You really need experience to perform this type of exam. Experienced gynecologist can tell almost precisely what is going on.

Let's discuss that woman in ER. She will have tenderness on one side. Physician should be able to feel a mobile cystic mass. (Cyst or rather cystis is Latin for bubble. Palpate is Latin for touch. It means you touch something and feel what it is). What if pain is severe? It often means that cyst ruptured. My impression is that modern ER orders CT scan right away. If you are not very sure what is going on, you will go from less expensive methods to more expensive and end up with CT anyway. Ruptured cyst causes significant pain. Here CT is indicated.

Alternatively they may order Ultrasound Exam. Transvaginal ultrasound uses probe inserted into vagina. Ultrasound is cheaper than CT. Ultrasound visualizes cysts clearly. Though, ultrasound gives less information for excluding other pathology. Ultrasound is also safe from radiation point of view.

In PCOS ultrasound shows increased number of small cysts in both ovaries. Usually more than five confirms diagnosis.

Culdocentesis may give some useful information too. The name came from cul-de-sac. It's French I guess. Cul-de-sac is one of pouches in pelvis. Centesis means: stick a needle and draw. These days it is considered an outdated method. But if you do not have other machines, it is very useful.

If content is blood, ruptured cyst was probably Corpus luteum cyst. If content is purulent ruptured thing was probably a tubo-ovarian abscess or other pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). Other abnormal masses can rupture as well. Teratoma gives oily fluid, endometrioma gives "chocolate" old blood.

What is a follicle?

Female body is created for reproduction and childbearing. Oocyte is start for a new human being in ovaries. Several layers of specialized membranes surround an oocyte.

The membranes protect oocyte, help in feeding and nurturing of this small cell. One of layers has a beautiful name Zona pellucida. Pellucida means shiny in Latin.