Do You Believe Dairy Products Are Necessary for Good Health?

Dairy products have been the subject of brainwashing of Americans, starting as little children in school being taught to believe that milk is a necessary part of a healthy diet. Research is now offering a divergent viewpoint.

Here are 10 good reasons to shun this animal product:

1. Protect your child from developing insulin-dependent diabetes. Ingrid Newkirk in Making Kind Choices writes that the rate of this disease in children under the age of five is rising dramatically. “According to a recent study, milk may be the culprit in children’s being predisposed to developing insulin-dependent diabetes.”

2. Prevent heart disease. Dairy products have been found by researchers to be a leading cause of atherosclerosis, heart attacks and strokes.

   Finland has the highest death rate from heart disease in the world and it has one of the very highest rates of dairy product consumption.

3. Keep from developing osteoporosis. This may sound counterintuitive to some. After all, we’re constantly being bombarded by ads that forcefully remind us to drink our milk to ensure we’re getting enough calcium so we won’t get osteoporosis. It’s just not that simple. In fact, this borders on just plain deceit.

   John Robbins in Healthy at 100 writes:

   Americans consume more cow’s milk and its products per person than most populations in the world. So Americans should have wonderfully strong bones, right? Unfortunately not. A recent study showed that American women aged fifty and older have one of the highest rates of hip fractures in the world. The only countries with higher rates are in Europe and in the south Pacific (Australia and New Zealand) where they consume even more milk than in the United States.

   These researchers explained that animal protein, unlike plant protein, increases the acid load in the body. An increased acid load means that our blood and tissues become more acidic. The body does not like this acidic environment and begins to fight it. In order to neutralize the acid, the body uses calcium, which acts as a very effective base. This calcium, however, must come from somewhere. It ends up being pulled from the bones, and the calcium loss weakens them, putting them at greater risk for fracture.

4. Avoid autoimmune diseases. Autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus may be related to cow’s milk consumption. In The China Study, T. Colin Campbell, PhD, writes that one of the more extensive studies demonstrated that cow’s milk was found to be as good a predictor of MS as latitude (i.e., getting or not getting adequate sunshine).

5. Protect yourself from cancer. Today’s cows produce much, much more milk than they did in the past. This is due in great part to drugs, antibiotics, and artificial hormones. Many studies have shown connections between the hormones in dairy products and the formation of hormone-related cancers. By avoiding animal milk products, you have a better chance of avoiding breast, prostate, colon, and other cancers.

6. Get rid of congestion. Dairy products are very mucus forming, leading to congestive problems of the sinus, throat, bronchi and lungs.

   Robert Morse, ND, in The Detox Miracle Sourcebook writes, “Their proteins are so abrasive, concentrated and harmful to us that ingesting them creates excessive mucus production….causes you to lose your sense of smell, taste, and hearing, and impedes your breathing.”

   Respiratory or lymphatic conditions, including colds, the flu and mumps, can largely be blamed on congestion due to ingestion of dairy foods.
   
   
   
   

7. Safeguard iron absorption. Cow’s milk tends to interfere with iron absorption and it has virtually none of its own. In fact, it’s so low in iron that you’d have to drink gallons of it to get an amount of iron equivalent to that in one serving of any dark green leafy vegetable.

8. Prevent or clear up food allergies. Dairy products are the leading offender in food allergy problems. If you think you’re helping yourself by using the lower fat versions, think again.

   The lower fat variety is actually more allergenic than the high-fat form. This is due to higher levels of protein in the low-fact versions. It’s the protein that induces allergic reactions in humans.

9. Help the environment. Howard F. Lyman in Mad Cowboy says that cattle are the second most significant contributor to the greenhouse effect (right behind carbon dioxide) due to their production of methane gas. If everyone stopped eating beef and drinking milk, this would make the world a healthier place.

10. Animal welfare. Did you know that the veal industry is a direct byproduct of the dairy industry? Kind-hearted people who would never think of eating veal might be shocked and think twice before eating ice cream and cheese.
    
    
    Male calves are removed from their dairy-cow mothers right after birth, sometimes within hours, causing great distress to mother and baby. These day-old calves are then chained and tethered by the neck in crates so small that they can’t even turn around.

    The mother cows lead pretty sad lives, too. Lacto-ovo vegetarians may not realize how dairy cows are treated. They are milked for 10 months out of the year. When their worn-out bodies begin to give in, they’re slaughtered. About 15% of the hamburger in the US comes from “spent” dairy cows. Even though they can live 15 years or more, they’re usually slaughtered at around four years of age.

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    Protect your health. Protect your family’s health. Be kind to Mother Nature and animals. Don’t eat animals and their products.

    Return to Nutrition Facts from this Avoid Dairy Products page.