Is Milk Good For You? [Science]
2008 Jan 23
I didn't read the whole thing, but there are some myths about Canada's dairy supply which should probably be dispelled... for instance, many people still believe rBGH is an issue with our dairy supply, not true, rBGH has been banned for use in Canada for many years now, after many years of unsuccessful lobbying on the behalf of Monsanto. I guess money couldn't buy that!
2008 Jan 23
Great followup to the other thread!
Keep in mind that milk is a food group because of intense pressure from the dairy industry, not because it's a food group.
It is true that a lot of what you read is based on the US industry, which is far less restrictive. e.g there have been studies which show that the increased rate of breast development in young females in the US is linked to growth hormones in the milk they drink.
I used to know this stuff really well, but that was 20 years ago now. I don't recall much other than exactly what has been stated : be careful what you read because there are big differences in the US and Canadian industries. That having been said, I think you can still find lots of reasons here in Canada not to drink milk.
Keep in mind that milk is a food group because of intense pressure from the dairy industry, not because it's a food group.
It is true that a lot of what you read is based on the US industry, which is far less restrictive. e.g there have been studies which show that the increased rate of breast development in young females in the US is linked to growth hormones in the milk they drink.
I used to know this stuff really well, but that was 20 years ago now. I don't recall much other than exactly what has been stated : be careful what you read because there are big differences in the US and Canadian industries. That having been said, I think you can still find lots of reasons here in Canada not to drink milk.
2008 Jan 23
Marketplace had some interesting coverage on exactly this topic a long time ago, check it out!
www.cbc.ca
www.cbc.ca
2008 Jan 23
I'll write a bit more of what I recall ...
Milk is a very good source of calcium and protein. It's an "easy" source of both. Protein is however very easy to make up for elsewhere if you come to understand a bit about it. I strongly recommend the first 100 pages of "Diet for a Small Planet" to understand protein very well.
There are other good sources of calcium as well : fish with edible bones (canned salmon, sardines), some nuts (almonds, Brazil), sesame seeds, some dried fruit (figs, apricots), dark green leafy vegetables
Milk is a very good source of vitimin B12, which is easy to get otherwise if you eat even a small amount of meat, but not very easy if you don't.
The production of milk even in Canada has some ethical issues connected with it. I'd suggest you do some simple googling if you care about this.
The part I don't recall is just what is allowed to be fed to / injected into dairy cows in Canada (and google is not helping). I do know that feeding them ground up meat is very common, and very unnatural. This is of course a cause of mad cow. I seem to recall that feeding them ground up bovine has now been disallowed, but it's still allowed to feed them ground up other animals (and those other animals may have been feed ground up cows). I know that some of the stuff that's allowed in the US is not allowed here (e.g. the growth hormone mentioned above), but I suspect that most of it is allowed.
Here is a good page I found but of course it does not discuss any of the controvoursial sides of milk :
www.actnowbc.ca
Milk is a very good source of calcium and protein. It's an "easy" source of both. Protein is however very easy to make up for elsewhere if you come to understand a bit about it. I strongly recommend the first 100 pages of "Diet for a Small Planet" to understand protein very well.
There are other good sources of calcium as well : fish with edible bones (canned salmon, sardines), some nuts (almonds, Brazil), sesame seeds, some dried fruit (figs, apricots), dark green leafy vegetables
Milk is a very good source of vitimin B12, which is easy to get otherwise if you eat even a small amount of meat, but not very easy if you don't.
The production of milk even in Canada has some ethical issues connected with it. I'd suggest you do some simple googling if you care about this.
The part I don't recall is just what is allowed to be fed to / injected into dairy cows in Canada (and google is not helping). I do know that feeding them ground up meat is very common, and very unnatural. This is of course a cause of mad cow. I seem to recall that feeding them ground up bovine has now been disallowed, but it's still allowed to feed them ground up other animals (and those other animals may have been feed ground up cows). I know that some of the stuff that's allowed in the US is not allowed here (e.g. the growth hormone mentioned above), but I suspect that most of it is allowed.
Here is a good page I found but of course it does not discuss any of the controvoursial sides of milk :
www.actnowbc.ca
2008 Jan 23
BTW, for a good eating guide check out the revised food pyramid from Harvard U.
www.hsph.harvard.edu
It's from the book "Eat, Drink and Be Healthy" by Walter Willett. Very good book.
www.amazon.ca/dp/0743266420
www.hsph.harvard.edu
It's from the book "Eat, Drink and Be Healthy" by Walter Willett. Very good book.
www.amazon.ca/dp/0743266420
2008 Jan 24
This blog has a good series of posts on the issues surrounding Big Dairy and milk consumption. And it's local!
This link goes just to the entries tagged 'milk'
bmimedical.blogspot.com
This link goes just to the entries tagged 'milk'
bmimedical.blogspot.com
2008 Jan 25
I have a comment about the original link. I followed it, read it, and randomly tested (websearch) the hypothesis it was putting forward, and most of them have very little scientific merit (Doesn't mean they are wrong, but the sources are NOT scientific). Also, it's hard not to make a little fun of the author of the article a one "Dr. George J. Georgiou, Ph.D." whose credentials, although listing Ph.D.. does not list the faculty it was earned from. I suspect it was psychology (not disrespecting.. but if it's not some form of research biology.. I have very little faith in their predictions). His other credentials include 'Master Herbalist', 'Naturopath', and my favourite 'Clinical Sexologist'. Zymurgist has a good point about it's questionable health benefits, which admittedly are pushed pretty hard by the industry, but it would seem there is very little evidence that it is 'bad' for you... barring the extra fat you get from it. I admit I'm 'pro milk' (I love it).. but it's just another food in my diet, not some super food I eat for crazy wild health benefit.
2008 Jan 25
Oh.. and one more comment for ZYM: "there have been studies which show that the increased rate of breast development in young females in the US is linked to growth hormones in the milk they drink."
Lots of these links have been proposed, but none of them proven (not the larger breasts.. but the causality). I had also read a study, that started with similar thoughts, because Afro-American girls were developing earlier, and Afro-Americans drink more milk etc etc. The study ended up finding that a MUCH larger source of hormones to the young girls was from... HAIR PRODUCTS. Apparently the hair straigteners that are/were used a lot were loaded with hormones (female presumably)... Once again.. no causality, but a straighter (forgive the pun) path. There is also credible evidence that girls develop earlier when there are no adult men (i.e. fathers) 'around'. They don't know why, but suspected it was an evolutionary trait meant to help 'boost' the population after mass death of males (war?).
I apologize to the foodies for straying so far from 'food'....
Lots of these links have been proposed, but none of them proven (not the larger breasts.. but the causality). I had also read a study, that started with similar thoughts, because Afro-American girls were developing earlier, and Afro-Americans drink more milk etc etc. The study ended up finding that a MUCH larger source of hormones to the young girls was from... HAIR PRODUCTS. Apparently the hair straigteners that are/were used a lot were loaded with hormones (female presumably)... Once again.. no causality, but a straighter (forgive the pun) path. There is also credible evidence that girls develop earlier when there are no adult men (i.e. fathers) 'around'. They don't know why, but suspected it was an evolutionary trait meant to help 'boost' the population after mass death of males (war?).
I apologize to the foodies for straying so far from 'food'....
Magic Kitchen
www.worldwidehealthcenter.net