Is Milk really Healthy?
Is milk really necessary for an effective weight loss plan? Do we have to drink our milk each day to get a sufficient amount of calcium?
The answer to both of these questions is NO. We do not need to drink milk as part of a healthy weight loss plan or to obtain a healthy amount of calcium each day.
Consider the following facts:
1. Americans drink the most milk of any other country, yet we still have the highest rate of osteoporosis.
2. Pasteurization kills off all the necessary digestive enzymes in the milk (This is why so many people are now suffering from lactose intolerance).
3. Pasteurization also makes the major part of the calcium contained in milk insoluble, in other words making 50% of milk’s calcium unusable by the body (This contributing to the high rate of osteoporosis).
4. Milk sugar (lactose) converts into sugar your body uses very quickly, leading to blood sugar highs and lows and an up and down energy rollercoaster ride for you.
How could this all be true? Isn’t milk supposed to do a body good? Well, yes it does, but milk was really only intended to be consumed in its natural state (unpasteurized). Sound scary? Many states in the US and most organic farmers will ONLY drink milk if it’s unpasteurized and they are extremely healthy.
The other fact we need to consider is that most cows are being given an excess of growth hormone just to keep them producing massive amounts of milk. This, in turn, makes them sick, at which time they are given antibiotics. The growth hormone and antibiotics get into their blood stream and then into the milk they produce. Who drinks this chemical laden milk? We do! (Actually, I don’t and maybe you’re starting to consider whether you do).
The next big concern is “How will I get enough Calcium?” As mentioned above, most of the Calcium in milk is not absorbed by the body. More calcium is absorbed from foods such as green leafy vegetables, broccoli, sardines (with bones preferably) and salmon. This makes sense that more calcium come from greens since cows preferably eat grass and they have a lot of calcium inside their bodies (Please don’t eat grass. This really only works for cows).
If reducing your risk for Osteoporosis is your goal, do the #1 activity that prevents this debilitating disease: Exercise! Weight bearing exercise has been shown to be the #1 way to prevent osteoporosis. Putting small stresses on your bones via strength training helps to re-build them stronger. No one, and I mean no one, should be neglecting some exercise into their life.
Here are my tips on drinking the right kind of milk, calcium and preventing osteoporosis:
1. If you consume dairy on a regular basis, try to find raw (unpasteurized) milk. www.realmilk.com is a great resource for this.
2. If the thought of raw milk scares you, purchase the next best thing: certified organic milk products. They will be free of antibiotics and hormones.
3. Since most of milk’s calcium is not absorbed by the body, make sure to get your calcium from these other sources: leafy green veggies, broccoli, sardines (with bones) and salmon.
4. Commit to a strength training routine on a consistent basis. Not just for your muscles and for the way you look in the mirror (although this does help) but for your bone’s sake.
Milk and dairy do not have to be a staple in your diet in order to absorb adequate amounts of calcium and achieve an ideal level of health. You can establish and extremely healthy way of eating, reach your weight loss goals, and feel great each day without drinking milk.
To get started on your own Heatlhy Meal Plans right away, read this eye opening Fat Loss Report.
the information is very organised and interesting.thanks
Amen! Succinct and to the point. Important information that the dairy-lobby certainly does not want the consuming public to have. Next time you see an ad for milk — including those annoying “got milk” ads — think of the information in this brief article.
One option I would add: An alternative that comes close to milk (with a little transition time for the taste buds) is almond milk. Unlike soy milk, it is not “thick” and, when well-chilled, tastes great. Be sure to buy the unsweetened versions or, better yet, make your own at home. Cheers!
the information is interesting.i also want to know which milk full fat or fatfree milk is good for health.
If you choose to have milk, organic full-fat milk would be best because it’s less processed.
What about Organic Yogurt? Like Greek Yogurt.
Plain organic Greek yogurt is a great thing to eat on the DSP.
Sadly, in a number of states, it’s actually against the law to buy/sell raw milk. Wisconsin just passed a law making raw milk sales illegal; the governor signed it after caving to pressure from the dairy lobby. He had promised the small raw milk producers he would NOT sign that law but changed his mind at the eleventh hour. I have two cows so we have all the fresh, raw, organic milk we want and I make our butter, sour cream, yoghurt, cheese and more from that wonderful milk. Good luck finding a safe source of raw milk in your area. I am a veterinarian who is working to change that law in our state.
I drink horizon organic milk with my protein shakes post workout, and for breakfast. When is it okay to drink and not okay. How often? when there is no food in the fridge just milk, milk it is.
Thank you,
Albert Mascheroni
While Horizon milk is organic, it is still pasteurized – I wouldn’t recommend drinking it.
How about colostrum (bovine early milk)? It is supposed to enhance immune system and has so many benefits.
Colostrum can be good and can even contribute to helping fight off infections as long as it is from healthy grass fed cows.
Is it ok to eat yogurt and put milk in your tea on this diet?
Beth, yogurt is okay to eat and can actually be a really healthy choice. Make sure you choose an organic brand, though. As for milk, try to buy raw (unpasteurized) certified organic.
What should be done when your weight loss comes to a complete standstill???
Gin, it may be time to try cutting out grains and dairy altogether – a lot of people find that they are intolerant of these products, and eliminating them from their diets results in greater weight loss.
Is Coconut milk and Rice milk okay?
Is Coconut milk and Rice milk okay?
Es increible el impacto tan grande que sufren muchas personas incluyendome a mi, cuando nos dicen no, no, a la leche, pero he aprendido con tu estilo de comer, que no es importante, siempre he pensado que todos los dias aprendemos unpoco de todo el mundo, te felicito porque no habia encontrado una persona tan honesta como tu explicando la mejor forma de comer, te dire que disfruto cada dia mis comidas organicas, y cada vez voy agragando algo que no tenia a la lista, que el Senor te bendiga, y cuando puedas dale un vistaso a mi pagina, te va ha gustar, sinceramente. Alina Lenz.
Milk is not a diet aid. It will make you bigger, faster, stronger and even with 50% of calcium locked (really??) will give you latte a better boost than coffee and kale. Your argument that “milk was meant to drink unpastuerized” , meant by Whom? should we apply this same argument to meat?
Renee, I think that both coconut milk and rice milk are OK as long as:
1. There is no sugar added, or anything else for that matter;
and
2. They are organic.
However, even with organic and no sugar added, they are still a bit high in their own sugars, so I would use moderate quantities.
BTW, speaking of coconuts, I recommend as much organic coconut oil as you want. It is almost impossible to overeat this food. It is great at room temperature, and it is safe and good for stir frying veggies and the like. It is one of the very few oils that is safe and stable even when heated. Almost all other oils are not.
Hope that helps.
What about for kids who like to eat cereal in the morning? My boys don’t drink much milk anymore (kind of like they grew out of the desire to have it – they are 12 years old now), but one boy loves to have cereal for breakfast. In fact, he doesn’t like much other food for breakfast and does NOT like to drink milk at all otherwise. Is him having milk with his cereal a bad thing? (Oh, and he is genetically thin and probably will be all his life, based on my brother and my dad’s side of the family.)
I’m curious of what you think of various protien powders that contain whey or casiene or the designer type protiens like Musclemilk. I imagine you not liking them because of a lack of knowledge of the source history, but I find it really convenient to blend a shake with berries, maybe pineapple & put it in a container to drink after my workout to hold me over until I can get my hands on some healthy food.
Cindy, the cereal is actually a bigger deal than the milk for your son. Cereal is something I recommend staying away from altogether. As for drinking milk, if your son is going to consume it in any way, it should be raw organic milk.
Raw organic goats milk & cheese is even better, because our bodies digest the the sugars and proteins much easier. I’ve read that if you can’t breast feed your baby that it’s better to give it raw organic goats milk over any formula.
Thanks Isobel! Very think worthy article and I must say it’s an eye opener. I have milk with my porridge or oat meal but try to reduce it to a minimum. I don’t think I can find unpasteurized milk over here but I will for sure look for it.
Excellent article! I’ve never been a big milk drinker, but I do exercise daily and have a normal bone density. Since reading your articles, I have switched to organic meats and vegetables, as well as organic dairy. I appreciate your insight to better and improved awareness about nutrition.
Another, perhaps even bigger issue than pasteurization, is homgenization. Almost no one ever talks about this anymore, but homogenization (permanently breaking the fat down so it stays mixed in with the rest of the milk and doesn’t float on top, as it would naturally and did in the old days) creates a fat molecule, or form of fat, that is very difficult for your body to handle. Some would even say it’s toxic and builds up. Finding raw, unhomogenized, organic milk would be the best of all, and good luck with that. The best I’ve been able to find here in Denver is a lower temperature pasteurized, organic non-homogenized milk. It’s delicious, though I rarely use it even in that form. Unfortunately, due to our skittish culture, many now don’t want to have to shake their milk everytime before they use it, or get a small lump or two of cream out the top of the bottle when they poor it. They think their milk is bad or there’s something wrong with it. Please talk about homogenization, too. Thanks!
Hey Isabel! My cousin lives in the countryside and has her own cows and hen… Few days ago, she said that she can give me completely organic milk that came straight from her cow.. Plus, she doesn’t give her cows chemicals, etc, in fact we dont have any in Pakistan where I live.. Is that milk OK?
Stacey, that’s more than okay! That’s what I recommend if you’re going to have dairy. That’s awesome!
I have been drinking almond milk and loving it.
I usually have it in a smoothie. I find cooking with the almond milk or coconut milk no different.
Thanks for spreading this info. There is a lot more to the topic if anyone really care to research it. I agree with all she say….though I will also say that I have been RAW goats milk for the past year and have found many health benefits. Those benefits come from the fact that the protein structure of goats milk is MUCH easier for us to digest that cows milk. More importantly the milk is raw. Like all other foods, processing and pasteurization not only strip nutrients away, but they destroy the basic structure of the food in ways that cause health problems….not save us from them. There are more than 200,000 documented cases of human illness from pasteurized cow milk over a 15 year time-frame. Similarly, the raw goat milk industry has not had any reported cases. Goat milk has been medically proven to help those with cancer, and stomach diseases. Some doctors recommend goat milk to their patients, especially those with lactose intolerance problems.
Interesting info about milk.
Hi
Thank you for the post ! I heard that the goat milk is very good.. what is your opinion? Thank you
Josye
Josye, goat milk is allowed, but I would still look for raw and organic.
I have fat free Vanilla Yogurt mixed with Stevia and milled Flax seed blended with ice and water for breakfast with a mixture of sunflower,pumkin and sesame seeds to chew. I used to add splenda and cut that out and today I can see I’m going to change the Yogurt. I have to say that this is a really filling breakfast so I’d be reluctant to cut it out but for the first week on following your plan I lost 8lbs with no hunger pangs. Thanks for that !
Jan in London
Is rice milk ok for my kids to drink?
If we have 1 serving of either broccoli, salmon, etc. each day, is that enough calcium?
Great article. My todller constantly had a runny nose. I now notice that he gets it whenever he drinks cow’s milk, even organic. My youngest was diagnosed with a milk allergy at 3 months (blood in stool).
We’ve had our baby on hypoallerginic formula (Alimmentum) for the first year. It’s expensive but better than other’s. Do you have any alternative suggestions for between the ages of 1 and 2? I figure she can get fat from sources like oil and avacodo, but does she need some type of milk?
Stop with all this silly talk about should I or should I not be eating dairy. None of it is good for you. It causes obesity, heart attacks ,sick children and the so called benefits really do’nt exist. It makes us fat and unheathy and doesn’t prevent osteoporis. So what’s the point .Most doctors have no clue about rthe negative affects of dairy. Dairy is bad, bad, bad.It contribues to bedwetting and other problems.
Excellent article …I must add that I am in total agreement with you regarding looking elsewhere for bone-strengthening solutions! Weight-bearing exercise, calcium-rich veggies, sardines and calcium-rich water have reduced my clinical osteoporosis to osteopenia levels….without dairy! Alas, the only thing I miss is something in my coffee to make it healthily white and creamy …”café au lait” …without the “lait”….Any ideas or suggestions?
Idaho has a small herd exemption that allows small farms to produce raw, unpasturized milk that is licensed. Basically that means that the cow or goat owner has their animals tested for Tubercolosis and Brucelliousis and then the milk is tested every month (or so) . You can only have 7 lactating goats or 3 cows (I think it’s three, I don’t have cows so I wasn’t paying attention) The dept of Ag doesn’t even charge you for the license! Too cool for school in my book. Any way, all we drink is goat’s milk from the girls out back. Warm right out of the goat mixed with coffee is the BEST!
Good points.
I have always thought it strange that humans would collect and drink milk from a different species.
I was born and raised in Europe,grew up on a farm. my Diet mainly consisted of Raw Unprocessed foods. Everything that was eaten was in its raw state then cooked,Directly from the source and not from the refrigerator section of your local super market. Obesity in European countries is almost non existent. Everything that i ate was grown/raised/milked right on the spot, if not purchased from a local farm market. and i can tell you i was the healthiest active kid. I arrived in the US at the age of 8 and boom exploded into obesity within a few months. These “laced” foods are addicting and dangerous. no wonder why 2/3 of the US population is obese with a plethora of health problems. a little tip, if you buy food and it doesn’t rot its not food. so stay clear of anything that does not rot within a reasonable amount of time. and shop around the perimeter of the supermarket. if it takes less then 4 mintues on high to cook it basically lacks vital nutrients. oh and raw milk was never a problem i drank it daily coming right from the cow. and i was healthy as can be. cheers
The doctor my wife worked for always said -” Man is the only animal that doesn’t have enough sense to stay off milk once he is weaned”.
I have to speak clearly:
Cow’s milk is definitely the best nutrient there is,
For the cow’s offsprings, of course.
In Australia dairy cows are not given growth hormone! ( I’m an ex dairy farmer )
Hi
I really need some advice I have found raw cows milk,raw cows butter,raw goats yogurt and raw goats cheese!
However we don’t like the taste of the raw goat yogurt and cheese!
My question is it seems from the above the only thing that needs to be raw is milk and yogurt,cheese,and butter can been eaten if organic!
Isabel is that right because I would think all these need to be raw as they are all made from milk?
If I am wrong then please explain as my children love yogurt and like cheddar cheese but hate the raw alternatives I found!
Thankyou so much
I have always thought that milk was only for babies!
I used to use it in cooking, but now use only coconut milk.
Also, a friend of mine loved milk and after a visit to his doctor, found that his prostate was very large (apple sized) and painful..
I read an article that said that milk was bad for the prostate. He quit except for on his morning cereal and the pain went away in a couple of days.
What about Lactose free milk? Is that healthy?
Thanks.
B
interesting artical about milk, i will be changing my habit WOW…..
I appreciate all of this information, and enjoy reading about the healthier options that you have provided. Where I live, I can buy raw unpast milk (although it’s very hard to find). However, at $7 for half gallon, it can break a budget, especially with 3 growing children in my household. For many people nowadays, money is tight, and buying all unprocessed and organic, raw forms of food can become very costly (esp with large families). Maybe in the future, you can post an article about which organic foods would be the best foods to buy/eat and get the biggest bang for your buck. This would help many people who just can’t afford to switch their entire diet to an organic one.
Okay folks,raw, unpasturized dairy is prefered, for those of us with dairy intolorence and allergies we need to be off dairy. My agonizing bit is cheese, I also have a soy allergy which in my book is worse than most everything else giving it’s natural source of estrogen that is not processed properly by the human body unless properly processed beyond recognition. I use coconut milk for cooking, coconut, yogurt, and kiefer in my smoothies.
Finally just a thought for the vet who can not sell her milk anymore. Is there any law against giving it away and having a free will donation jar?
Just a thought, your friends and family would probably be glad to make a small donation.
THANK GOODNESS!!! People look at me like I have 5 heads when I tell them I don’t drink milk, that my children don’t and still don’t into adulthood. I tell them… cows milk is for baby cows! You don’t see a calf drinking human breast milk, do you? I believe that the less one drinks of cows milk, the better! Nut milks are so much more flavor full and better for you too. This just makes so much sense, Isabella! Keep up the good work!!
Where can I get raw milk
thank god i didnt like milk
Thank you for having this discussion. My son is highly allergic to the entire beef protein and I have noticed that my husband and I are sensitive to dairy. My son has never eaten dairy…if he did, it would cause a life threatening (anaphalactic sp) reaction. My husband and I have pretty much changed our diets and are now dairy free and we both feel much better. Many people just cannot understand how we would choose to go dairy free. I appreciate you have this discussion about just unhealthy dairy products are for human consumption. You are absolutely correct, milk is for calves and look at how big they grow just on their mother’s milk…but just for one year. Enough said!
Years ago, I went to an allergist after a severe reaction after eating dairy. After testing, He concluded I was allergic to milk. he went on to explain that in the dairy industry, cows are given large quantities of penicillin to kill bacteria in their milk. This is passed along in their milk. Most people whom have allergic reactions (not lactose intolerance) to dairy, are having a reactionto the penicillin. A year later I was perscribed penicillin. No surprise, I had an allergic reaction!
I now use almond milk. I have gotten lactose intolerant as I have gotten older. At 53 I don’t need anything else to “bloat” me!! LOL I really like the almond milk, regular and vanilla flavored. If I do eat any dairy, the less processed the better, I don’t have such bad reactions when I eat/drink whipping cream, or half and half, and forget about me using 2% or less milk! They really hurt my system. Thanks for the artical!
My kids and I have been consuming raw milk for over 2 years now! We have never felt better!!!!
Though our state government keeps trying to shut down our raw dairy farmers, we, the consumers, just keep fighting them. (We live in MN.) I even testified at an Ag Committee hearing trying to get them to ease the access laws. We will take up our fight again next session. No one ever said eating healthy was going to be easy!
Thanks for all your info! I love your site!
What you say makes a lot of sense, but I’ve looked back at some of your other articles and I’m a little confused. I am a huge cottage cheese addict, so to be honest this article was a little horrifying. But I have noticed that you’ve mentioned / suggested cottage cheese and yogurt in your other articles, so exactly how necessary do you think it is to give up dairy? Thanks!
YES! I have my own dairy GOAT in the backyard- Butter, cheese, raw milk no prob:)
what about soy milk? I don’t like cow milk as it bloated me so i swapped to soy milk which i got used to………………..
Jude, soy products are not allowed on this program, including soy milk. When it comes to dairy, your best bet is going to be raw milk. You are also allowed to have almond, coconut, rice, and spelt milk. Be sure you are paying close attention to the ingredients, several of these milks contain a lot of added sugars. Also if you are going to use these milks, in your everyday diets, it would be highly beneficial to make your own. Beyond Diet, offers the recipes for almond and coconut milk!