Myths and Truths about MILK
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| Does this look right? |
I was discussing the topic of cow
milk vs. almond milk with a friend recently.
She is already a convert to almond milk, but was wondering how she can
still get enough calcium to help keep her bones strong.
I decided to do a little research, and found
an excellent excerpt from the book “Never Be Sick Again”.
The information was delivered so
well in this book, that I copied it here for you to read, and it is well worth the read!
Upon hearing that they should not
drink milk, people invariably ask, “How will I be able to get enough calcium if
I don’t drink milk?” My response is, “Where does a cow, a horse, or an elephant
get its calcium?” They get it from plants, which are rich in all kinds of
minerals – including calcium. Dark green
vegetables such as broccoli, chard and kale are rich sources of absorbable
calcium.
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| Kale and Spinach |
Cow milk is also rich in calcium,
containing about 1200 mg of calcium per quart while human milk contains about
300 mg.
However, an infant absorbs far
more calcium from a quart of human milk than from a quart of cow milk, even
though human milk contains less calcium.
Cow milk contains a lot of phosphorous, which prevents calcium
absorption.
Also, cow milk is low in
magnesium, which humans need in order to utilize calcium.
In short, your body is not able to use the
large amount of calcium present in cow milk.
You do not use the calcium, so instead it can build up and form kidney
stones, bone spurs, gout and atherosclerotic plaque.
Milk robs calcium from
bones.
The protein in cow milk
metabolizes to strong acids, which can be harmful, so instead the body used the
calcium to neutralize those acids – thereby robbing your bones and other
tissues in the process.
The U.S., with
only 4 percent of the world’s population, consumes more dairy foods than the
other 96 percent combined.
If milk is
really good for our bones, then we should have the strongest bones in the
world.
Instead, we have one of the
highest osteoporosis rates in the world.
We are not alone; all other countries with high diary consumption also
have high levels of osteoporosis.
A large percentage of the
population is allergic to milk and dairy products, regardless of whether they
realize it.
Allergic reactions tax the
immune system and lower resistance to infections and diseases.
Milk allergies are the primary cause of ear
infections in children.
Given that
constant allergic responses shorten your life (and constant use of allergy
medications will too); the answer is to avoid things you are allergic to in the
first place.
For most people, this means
avoiding milk products.
According to Dr.
Oski, “At least 50% of all children are allergic to dairy.”
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| Weird, right? |
Milk is harmful to young children
for another reason:
It may trigger
childhood diabetes in genetically susceptible children.
Milk has been linked to multiple sclerosis as
well.
Milk also causes localized
inflammations in an infant’s intestines and can result in low-level bleeding and
iron deficiency anemia.
Our hunter-gatherer ancestors
nursed their young for an average of three years, as compared to modern
Americans, who nurse for an average of only three months.
Introduction of infant feeding formulas has
had a negative effect on children’s health.
Breast-fed infants are less likely to develop inflammatory bowel disease
when they become adults than bottle-fed infants.
Adults who were breast-fed as infants develop
fewer allergies throughout life (even among people whose parents had a history
of allergies).
"Never Be Sick Again"
Raymond Francis, M.Sc.
