Dear Hillary,
Help! My 9 year old daughter is addicted to mustard. She tops everything with it. Sausages, meet, vegetables, cheese and even pure on a piece of bread.
My husband believes it can’t be healthy. He came up with the old saying: “Mustard makes people stupid”. Now he is very angry with me for, ‘I don’t take care of her’. I tried to hide it. I didn’t buy it for a while - yet my daughter always finds a way to supply herself with it. My question is; is mustard really detrimental and how can I convince my daughter not to eat it anymore?
Concerned mother.
Dear Concerned Mother,
Be assured, mustard is not detrimental. On the contrary, it’s very important for peoples’ health. Mustard-oil accelerates circulation, stimulates the salivary gland and activates the stomach and gall-bladder. It also helps digest fat and starch. The natural immunity system in the bronchia is fortified by mustard. Low blood-pressure can be cured with it.
You see, your daughter is probably doing the right thing, for the ideal daily dose of mustard would be two tablespoons a day. Children, though not always conscious of it, know most of the time what’s best for their health.

Dear Hillary,
My husband and I have a grown up son, 20 years of age. He lives in Australia and only comes to visit us once a year because he still has to finish University.
During his last visit, he told us about his new girlfriend - his first one. He lives with her and has to support her. To do so, he needs to work, besides his studies.
This woman is 6 years his senior. She has already been married twice and is currently undergoing her second divorce. She has 3 children, aged between two and seven years, all of whom have different fathers. She has also spent 6 months in jail, after which she was on probation for three years.
After we learned the truth, we tried to talk to our son and warn him - to no avail. Can’t he see that this woman is only using him? I don’t want to watch, with open eyes, my son living in misery. How can I solve this problem?
Mary-Ann
Dear Mary-Ann,
Even though I understand your anxiety, there is nothing you can do about it. As you’ve mentioned, your son is a grown-up man. Everything you try to do will push him more and more away from you - into his lovers arms. The times when you were be able to control your son’s friendships are over. Your son is aware that his parents are against his love affair. I am sure he will be thinking about it, even though he doesn’t admit it.
Please realize that a young person still has got ideals. Your son probably believes he can help this woman with his love. He probably has the feeling that she is all alone, helpless and needs his protection. The more you condemn her the more you corroborate his feelings to take care of her and her children.
By the way, you don’t know this woman. You’ve just heard about her. She must have her good points - otherwise your son wouldn’t have fallen in love with her. Besides that, he’s had his first sexual experiences with her. Right now your son “learns”, gives and receives love. Maybe one day he’ll be disillusioned and find out his girlfriend was only using his youth and loving care for her own benefit. He sure will take his consequences. This will probably be a very painful experience for him and this will be the time when he needs his parents help the most.