Milk and dairy
"MILK" Just the word itself sounds comforting! "How about a nice cup of hot milk?" The last time you heard that question it was from someone who cared for you--and you appreciated their effort.
The entire matter of food and especially that of milk is surrounded with emotional and cultural importance. Milk was our very first food. If we were fortunate it was our mother's milk. A loving link, given and taken. It was the only path to survival. If not mother's milk it was cow's milk or soy milk "formula"--rarely it was goat, camel or water buffalo milk.
What is milk?
Milk is a maternal lactating secretion, a short term nutrient for new-borns. Nothing more, nothing less. Invariably, the mother of any mammal will provide her milk for a short period of time immediately after birth. When the time comes for 'weaning', the young offspring is introduced to the proper food for that species of mammal. A familiar example is that of a puppy. The mother nurses the pup for just a few weeks and then rejects the young animal and teaches it to eat solid food. Nursing is provided by nature only for the very youngest of mammals. Of course, it is not possible for animals living in a natural state to continue with the drinking of milk after weaning.
Is all milk the same?
Then there is the matter of where we get our milk. We have settled on the cow because of its docile nature, its size,
and its abundant milk supply. Somehow this choice seems 'normal' and blessed by nature, our culture, and our customs. But is it natural? Is it wise to drink the milk of another species of mammal?
Consider for a moment, if it was possible, to drink the milk of a mammal other than a cow, let's say a rat. Or perhaps the milk of a dog would be more to your liking. Possibly some horse milk or cat milk. Do you get the idea? Well, I'm not serious about this, except to suggest that human milk is for human infants, dogs' milk is for pups, cows' milk is for calves, cats' milk is for kittens, and so forth. Clearly, this is the way nature intends it. Just use your own good judgement on this one.
Milk is not just milk. The milk of every species of mammal is unique and specifically tailored to the requirements of that animal. For example, cows' milk is very much richer in protein than human milk. Three to four times as much. It has five to seven times the mineral content. However, it is markedly deficient in essential fatty acids when compared to human mothers' milk. Mothers' milk has six to ten times as much of the essential fatty acids, especially linoleic acid. (Incidentally, skimmed cow's milk has no linoleic acid). It simply is not designed for humans.
Food is not just food, and milk is not just milk. It is not only the proper amount of food but the proper qualitative composition that is critical for the very best in health and growth. Biochemists and physiologists -and rarely medical doctors - are gradually learning that foods contain the crucial elements that allow a particular species to develop its unique specializations.
Clearly, our specialization is for advanced neurological development and delicate neuromuscular control. We do not have much need of massive skeletal growth or huge muscle groups as does a calf. Think of the difference between the demands make on the human hand and the demands on a cow's hoof. Human new-borns specifically need critical material for their brains, spinal cord and nerves.
The above text is an excerpt from the MILK LETTER, by Dr Robert M. Kradjian, MD. To read the entire text, please click here!
Cows produce milk for the same reason that humans do: to nourish their young.
In order to force the animals to continue giving milk, factory farm operators typically impregnate them using artificial insemination every year. Calves are generally taken from their mothers within a day of being born—males are destined for veal crates or barren lots where they will be fattened for beef, and females are sentenced to the same fate as their mothers.
After their calves are taken from them, mother cows are hooked up, several times a day, to milking machines. Using genetic manipulation, powerful hormones, and intensive milking, factory farmers force cows to produce about 10 times as much milk as they would naturally.
Animals are often dosed with bovine growth hormone (BGH), which contributes to a painful inflammation of the udder known as "mastitis." (BGH is used widely in the U.S. but has been banned in Europe and Canada because of concerns over human health and animal welfare.) According to the industry's own figures, between 30 and 50 percent of dairy cows suffer from mastitis, an extremely painful condition.
A cow's natural lifespan is about 25 years, but cows used by the dairy industry are killed after only four or five years. An industry study reports that by the time they are killed, nearly 40 percent of dairy cows are lame because of the intensive confinement, the filth, and the strain of being almost constantly pregnant and giving milk. Dairy cows' bodies are turned into soup, companion animal food, or low-grade hamburger meat because their bodies are too "spent" to be used for anything else.
The Veal Connection
If you drink milk, you're subsidizing the veal industry. While female calves are slaughtered or kept alive to produce milk, male calves are often taken away from their mothers when they are as young as 1 day old to be chained in tiny stalls for three to 18 weeks and raised for veal. Calves raised for veal are fed a milk substitute that is designed to make them gain at least 2 pounds per day, and their diet is purposely low in iron so that their flesh stays pale as a result of anemia. In addition to suffering from diarrhea, pneumonia, and lameness, calves raised for veal are terrified and desperate for their mothers.
Environmental Destruction
Large dairy farms have an enormously detrimental effect on the environment. In California, America's top milk-producing state, manure from dairy farms has poisoned hundreds of square miles of groundwater, rivers, and streams. Each of the more than 1 million cows on the state's dairy farms excretes 18 gallons of manure daily. Overall, factory-farmed animals, including those on dairy farms, produce 1.65 billion tons of manure each year, much of which ends up in waterways and drinking water. The Environmental Protection Agency reports that agricultural runoff is the primary cause of polluted lakes, streams, and rivers. The dairy industry is the primary source of smog-forming pollutants in California; a single cow emits more of these harmful gasses than a car does.
Two-thirds of all agricultural land in the U.S. is used to raise animals for food or to grow grain to feed them. Each cow raised by the dairy industry consumes as much as 40 gallons of water per day.
990 - 1,000 litres of water are used to produce 1 litre of milk.
Because cows' milk is a secretion that oozes from the udder, it's filled with a "somatic cell count," commonly known as pus, with the national average hovering around 350 million pus cells per liter. Basically, this means that each glass of milk in America can have around an eye-dropper full of pus. Over the years, The Hoard's Dairyman and other dairy industry trade journals have run a few articles about the pus content in milk.
When machines are hooked up to the udders three times a day to suck the cows dry, the machines, and the countless drugs and myriad injections of Bovine Growth Hormone, cause mastitis, and irritate and infect the udders. Pus, mucus, and infections are sucked out with the milk, and pasteurization—which cleans the pus, but does not eliminate it from the milk—creates a concoction of sanitized pus. Organic, chemical-free cow milk is not pus-free either. It actually has more pus than non-organic milk because when cows come down with infections, as they always do, chemicals are not being used to treat the infection. Thus, more pus accumulates in the system. Soy, rice, almond, hemp, coconut, oat and hazelnut milks (the vegan ones)—along with human breast milk—are the only pus-free milks.
Dairy and human health
Dairy and Osteoporosis
If you think milk builds strong bones, why do Americans—the largest consumer of dairy products worldwide—have astounding rates of osteoporosis and bone fractures (and cancers)?
More than ten years ago, the Harvard University Nurses' Health Study, with over 120,000 subjects, found that the consumption of milk and other dairy products does not protect against the bone fractures of osteoporosis (the bone-thinning disease that the dairy industry wants you to believe is related to too little milk in your diet). In fact, those in the study who drank three or more servings of milk a day actually had a slightly higher rate of fractures than women who drank little or no milk (American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 87 (1997), pp. 992-997).
In Western societies, we're told that calcium is the answer to preventing bone loss. However, it's not a lack of calcium that causes osteoporosis. Excessive intake of animal-based protein (which is always acidic) and a lack of exercise, magnesium and vitamin D cause osteoporosis. The Lancet, The U.S. Department of Health, and Harvard University call the link between meat and dairy based diets and osteoporosis "INESCAPABLE". Tobacco, salt and caffeine contribute to bone loss as well.
Animal protein contributes to the acceleration of osteoporosis because keeping blood at a neutral Ph balance always takes priority over keeping calcium-phosphate in the bones. Bones can hold out for years with insufficient calcium, but blood cannot because it needs phosphate to offset the acidity. When blood becomes acidic with animal protein, the body withdraws calcium-phosphate from the bones and uses the alkaline mineral phosphate to keep the blood's Ph level balanced. The calcium is then excreted through our urine. Animal products are the only sources of acidic protein. Plant protein is not acidic. People who consume the least amount of animal protein, always have the lowest rates of osteoporosis, bone fractures and cancers because of their non-acidic protein diets. Cancer can only thrive in an acidic environment. Here are some studies that discuss the negative impact of animal protein: http://notmilk.com/o.html and www.thechinastudy.com/la-timesarticle.html .
The best sources of calcium are found in açaí, alfalfa sprouts, almonds (234 milligrams per 100 gram serving), apricots, avocados, beans, brazil nuts, broccoli, cabbage, carob, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chickpeas (150 milligrams per 100 gram serving), chlorella, coconut, cornmeal, dandelion greens, dulse, figs, filberts, grains (all), green vegetables (leafy), hazelnuts, hemp (milk/oil/powder/seeds), hijiki sea vegetable (1,400 milligrams per 100 gram serving), kelp, lemon, lentils, lettuce, lucuma powder, maca powder, mango, mesquite powder, millet, miso, nuts, oats, onions, oranges, parsley (203 milligrams per 100 gram serving), prunes, raisins, seaweed, sesame seeds (1,160 milligrams per 100 gram serving), soy (226 milligrams per 100 gram serving), spirulina, sprouts (all), sunflower seeds, watercress, wheatgrass, and yams.
The best sources of vitamin D/calciferol are found in alfalfa sprouts, avocados, basil, carrots, chlorella, fenugreek (powder/seeds), garlic, green vegetables (leafy), mushrooms (shiitake), papaya, parsley, seeds (all), spirulina, sunflower seeds, SUNLIGHT, sweet potato, watercress and wheatgrass.
The best sources of vitamin D2/ergocalciferol are found in alfalfa sprouts, chlorella, spirulina, SUNLIGHT, yeast.
The best sources of magnesium are found in açaí, alfalfa sprouts, apples, apricots, artichokes, avocados, bananas, beans, beets, broccoli, cacao/chocolate, cantaloupe, carrot, cauliflower, celery, chlorella, coconut, corn, dandelion greens, dates, dulse, fenugreek (powder/seeds), figs, garlic, grains (all), grapefruit, grapes, green vegetables (leafy), hemp (milk/oil/powder/seeds), lemon, lentils, mango, mesquite powder, mushrooms, nuts, oranges, paprika, parsley, peaches, pears, peppers, pineapple, plums, prunes, rice (brown/wild), seeds (all), sesame seeds, spirulina, sprouts (all), squash, strawberries, sunflower seeds, sweet potato, tomato, watercress, watermelon, wheat and wheatgrass (Genuine cacao/chocolate is naturally vegan. It's a bean.)
Dairy and Cancer
Statistics show that death rates due to breast cancer are considerably higher in areas with a high dairy consumption (British Journal of Cancer 24, 633-43). And a 2004 study showed that for every glass of milk a woman consumes each day her risk of dying from ovarian cancer goes up by 20 percent (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2004). Countries that have low milk consumption have much, much lower rates of these and other hormone-related cancers, including prostate cancer (American Journal of Epidemiology, 2007; 166: 1259-1279).
Children who consume high levels of dairy products may have a greater risk of developing colorectal cancer in adulthood, according to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (December 2007; 86: 1722-1729). Among nearly 5,000 individuals followed for an average of 65 years, those who grew up in families reporting the highest levels of dairy consumption—nearly two cups per day—had close to three times the risk of colorectal cancer compared with those from families reporting the lowest intake (about 1/2 cup per day or less), reports Dr. Jolieke C. van der Pols of the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia and colleagues. The level of milk consumption in the high-dairy group was similar to the estimated average daily intake of children in the United States, noted van der Pols and colleagues. Links between colorectal cancer risk and childhood exposure to dairy products had not been previously evaluated, the researchers said.
Using data from a study of weekly food consumption in families living in England or Scotland, researchers estimated the daily dairy intake ranged from less than half a cup at the lowest to nearly two cups at the highest. Nearly all (94 percent) of the dairy products came from drinking milk. An increased risk of colorectal cancer among those who consumed the highest amounts of dairy during childhood was still seen after the investigators adjusted the data for potentially influential factors such as meat, fruit, and vegetable consumption, and socioeconomic status.
Dairy, ADD, and Autism
Florida researcher Robert Cade, M.D., and his colleagues have identified caso-morphin, a natural form of morphine found only in cows' milk, as the probable cause of attention deficit disorder (ADD) and autism. They found Beta-caso-morphin-7 in high concentrations in the blood and urine of patients with either schizophrenia or autism. (Autism, 1999, 3) Eighty percent of protein in cows' milk is casein. It has been documented that casein breaks down in the stomach to produce the peptide caso-morphin, an opiate. Another researcher observed that caso-morphin aggravated the symptoms of autism. (Panksepp, J., Trends in Neuroscience, 1979, 2) A third scientist produced evidence of elevated levels of endorphin-like substances in the cerebro-spinal fluid of people with autism. (Gillberg, C., Aspects of Autism: Biological Research (London: Gaskell, 1988), pp. 31-37)
Other research papers that suggest a possible link between dairy consumption and the autism spectrum of disorders include the following:
Hemmings WA. The entry into the brain of large molecules derived from dietary protein. Proc R Soc Lond (Biol) 1978;200:175-192.
Knivsberg AM, Wiig K, Lind G, Nodland M, Reichelt KL. Deitary intervention in autistic syndromes. Brain Dysfunction 1990;3:315-327.
Knivsberg AM, Reichelt KA, Nodland M, Hoien T. Autistic syndromes and diet: a follow-up study. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research 1995;39:223-236.
Linstrom LH, Nyberg F, Terenius L, Bauer K, Besev G, Gunne LM, Lyrens S, Willdeck-Lund GJ, Lundberg B. CSF and plasma beta-casomorphin-like opioid peptides in post-partum psychosis. Am J Psychiatry 1984;141:1059-66.
Reichelt KL, Knivsberg AM, Nodland M, Lind G. Nature and consequence of hyperpeptiduria and bovine casomorphine found in autistic syndromes. Brain Dysfunction 1994;7:71-85.
Swedberg J, de Haas J, Leimanstoll G, Paul F, Teschemacher H. Demonstration of beta-casomorphin immunoreactive materials in vitro digests of bovine milk and in small intestine contents after bovine milk ingestion in adult humans. Peptides 1985;6:825-831.
Umbach H, Teschemacher H, Praetorius K, Hirschhauser R, Bostedt H. Demonstration of beta-casomorphin immunoreactive material in the plasma of newborn calves after milk intake. Regul Pept 1985;12:223-230.
Whiteley P, Rodgers J, Savery D, Shattock P. A gluten-free diet as an intervention for autism and associated spectrum disorders: Preliminary findings. Autism 1999;3:45-65.
Zioudrou C, Streaty RA, Klee WA. Opioid peptides derived from food proteins. J Biol Chem 1979;254:2446-9.
Robert Cohen performed research in the 1970's on the hormonal effects on the brain and behavior. Twenty-five years later, this father of three became concerned about the most controversial drug approval in FDA history, the genetically engineered hormone that is now in our milk supply. Along the way, Cohen discovered that milk is implicated in causing breast cancer, osteoporosis, heart disease, and chronic childhood illnesses. Cohen's skills as a researcher, and his passion for the safety of his family, led to his single-minded pursuit to expose the truth about milk.
Based on his exhaustive and comprehensive research over the past six years, Cohen predicted the Mad Cow Disease outbreak. His dogged determination has set the American dairy industry on its ear.
To insure that all citizens of the world learn the truth, Cohen founded and is executive director of America's Dairy Education Board, a group of nationally prominent doctors dedicated to dispelling the myth that milk is nature's perfect food.
This is a 1998 Hard Copy Special on MILK. What the government doesn't want you to know about milk. Don't drink milk, we know it contains fat and cholesterol but did you know it contains the protein CASEIN (which is basically a glue which leads to a lot of mucous build up and other health problems like asthma and congestion), milk also contains powerful growth hormones, viruses, a host of deadly chemical and biological bacterial agents, bovine proteins that cause allergies, insecticides, antibiotics, all this can trigger the growth of cancer and contributes to today's problem of obese children (ever notice why young girls breasts develop faster?).
Cow's milk is the number one allergic food in this country. It has been well documented as a cause in diarrhea, cramps, bloating, gas, gastrointestinal bleeding, iron-deficiency anemia, skin rashes, atherosclerosis, and acne. It is the primary cause of recurrent ear infections in children.
It has also been linked to insulin dependent diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, infertility, and leukemia. Milk and refined sugar make two of the largest contributions to food induced ill health in our country.
Human Bodies Fight Cow's Milk
Besides humans (and companion animals who are fed by humans), no species drinks milk beyond infancy or drinks the milk of another species. Cow's milk is suited to the nutritional needs of calves, who have four stomachs and gain hundreds of pounds in a matter of months, sometimes weighing more than 1,000 pounds before they are 2 years old.
Cow's milk is the number one cause of food allergies among infants and children, according to the American Gastroenterological Association. Most people begin to produce less lactase, the enzyme that helps with the digestion of milk, when they are as young as 2 years old. This reduction can lead to lactose intolerance. Millions of Americans are lactose intolerant, and an estimated 90 percent of Asian-Americans and 75 percent of Native- and African-Americans suffer from the condition, which can cause bloating, gas, cramps, vomiting, headaches, rashes, and asthma. A U.K. study showed that people who suffered from irregular heartbeats, asthma, headaches, fatigue, and digestive problems "showed marked and often complete improvements in their health after cutting milk from their diets."
Calcium and Protein Myths
Although American women consume tremendous amounts of calcium, their rates of osteoporosis are among the highest in the world. Conversely, Chinese people consume half as much calcium (most of it from plant sources) and have a very low incidence of the bone disease. Medical studies indicate that rather than preventing the disease, milk may actually increase women's risk of getting osteoporosis. A Harvard Nurses' Study of more than 77,000 women ages 34 to 59 found that those who consumed two or more glasses of milk per day had higher risks of broken hips and arms than those who drank one glass or less per day. T. Colin Campbell, professor of nutritional biochemistry at Cornell University, said, "The association between the intake of animal protein and fracture rates appears to be as strong as that between cigarette smoking and lung cancer."
Humans can get all the protein that they need from nuts, seeds, yeast, grains, beans, and other legumes. It's very difficult not to get enough calories from protein when you eat a healthy diet; protein deficiency (also known as "kwashiorkor") is very rare in the U.S. and is usually only a problem for people who live in famine-stricken countries. Eating too much animal protein has been linked to the development of endometrial, pancreatic, and prostate cancer. Consuming too much protein may also put a strain on the kidneys, causing them to compensate by leaching calcium from the bones.
Infectious microbes found in cow’s milk
- Bacillus cereus: These bacteria produce a toxin that can cause diarrhea and another that causes vomiting. Bacillus cereus spores are heat-resistant and may survive pasteurization. There have even been very rare cases linked to dried milk and dried infant formula.
- Brucella: Brucella is a bacterial microbe that is found in unpasteurized dairy products.Brucella infection, or Brucellosis, has also been called “Undulant Fever” because of the regular recurrence of fever associated with the disease.
- Campylobacter jejuni: Campylobacter jejuni is the most common bacteria to cause diarrheal disease in the U.S. and is found in raw milk and poultry. It has an increased chance of causing disease when consumed in milk, because the basic pH of milk neutralizes the acidity of the stomach.
- Coxiella burnetii: Coxiella infects a variety of animals, including livestock and pets. The microbe can be found in cow’s milk and is resistant to heat and drying. Infection by Coxiellaresults in Q fever, a high fever that may last up to 2 weeks.
- E. coli O157:H7: This particular strain of E. coli has been associated with a number of food-borne outbreaks and is the cause of bloody diarrhea. Frequently associated with dairy cattle, microbial contamination of raw milk and soft cheeses can result in disease.
- Listeria monocytogenes: Listeria is a common bacterial pathogen that is found in soft cheeses and unpasteurized milk. It can even survive below freezing temperatures and can therefore withstand refrigeration. It is particularly dangerous to individuals who have weakened immune systems, including pregnant women, AIDS patients, and the very young and very old.
- Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis: This strain of mycobacteria can withstand pasteurization and has been associated with the development of Crohn’s disease, also known as inflammatory bowel syndrome. However, whether or not these bacteria can actually infect humans remains controversial.
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis: The cause of “consumption,” a horrific wasting disease that first affects the lungs, Mycobacterium bovis is associated with consumption of raw milk and was one of the most common contaminants prior to the practice of pasteurization. M. bovis causes tuberculosis in cows and can be passed to humans via unpasteurized cow's milk, causing a disease that is very similar to M. tuberculosis.
- Salmonella: Salmonella contamination of raw milk and milk products has been the source of several outbreaks in recent years. Symptoms include diarrhea and high fever.
- Staphylococcus aureus: Staph aureus produces a toxin that causes explosive vomiting. The disease may be considered a consequence of actual food poisoning from simply consuming the toxin, rather than from an actual infection.
- Yersinia enterocolitica: Associated with raw milk and ice cream, among other foods, contamination is believed to be a consequence of a breakdown in sanitization and sterilization techniques at dairy processing facilities.
Dairy and children
July 19, 2012 - The nonprofit Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine calls milk an “ineffective placebo” and says a large body of research shows that consuming milk does not improve bone health and does not prevent bone fractures and injury in children and adults.
Milk is also the number one source of saturated fat in children’s diets.
“Milk doesn’t make children grow taller and stronger, but it can make them heavier,” says PCRM nutrition education director Susan Levin, M.S., R.D. “We are asking Congress and the USDA to put children’s interests above the interests of the dairy industry. Focusing on milk as the single most important source of calcium in children’s diets distracts schools and parents from foods that can actually build bones, like beans and leafy greens.”
The petition, filed July 19, asks the U.S. Department of Agriculture to issue a report to Congress recommending an amendment to the National School Lunch Act. The amendment would exclude dairy milk as a required component of school lunches. Milk, the petition argues, does not improve bone health or reduce the risk of osteoporosis and can actually create other health risks, especially later in life.
“The promotion of milk ingestion in children is, in effect, the promotion of an ineffective placebo,” the petition states. It adds that other products, including calcium-enriched soymilk and rice milk, contain calcium but, unlike dairy milk, are low in sodium and free of animal protein that can cause calcium to be excreted from the body.
One in eight Americans is lactose intolerant. More than 1 million U.S. children struggle with milk allergies, the second most common food allergy.
The federal government spends more money on dairy than any other food item in the school lunch program.
What You Can Do
The best way to save cows from the misery of factory farms is to stop buying milk and other dairy products. Discover the joy of soy! Fortified plant-derived milks provide calcium, vitamins, iron, zinc, and protein but do not contain any cholesterol. Soy, rice, oat, and nut milks are perfect for cereal, coffee, and soups and also work well in baked goods and other recipes. Many delicious nondairy products are available in grocery and health-food stores.
Sources and references:
1) http://www.notmilk.com/kradjian.html
2) http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/dairy-industry.aspx
3) http://www.adaptt.org/veganism.html
5) http://infectiousdiseases.about.com/od/g/a/milkborne.htm
6) http://www.pcrm.org/media/news/petition-usda-remove-milk-required-school-lunches