Milk: It Does a Body Good... or Does It?

On our weekly trips to the grocery store, my husband and I always end up in front of the milk, thinking about whether we need one or two gallons, Horizon (organic brand), Silk (soy milk) or just the plain old Kroger brand. Sound familiar? A question remains, though: Why are we thinking about which kind to buy? The answer is because the milk industry has a multi-million dollar advertising budget. That money is spent to remind us that ‘milk does a body good,’ that the only way we will get the calcium we need is from milk. These statements are not entirely true, yet we still drink it.

Drinking cow’s milk is something our society has done for generations, so why should it change now? One reason is the use of rBST, a genetically engineered growth hormone that is given to dairy cows to make them produce more milk. In 2003, over 30 percent of U.S. dairy cows were injected with rBST. With it, cows produce about 10 to 25 percent more milk than they would on their own. Another reason for change is because of our pasteurization process; it destroys the enzymes in the cow’s milk that are necessary for human digestion. Without those enzymes available, many side effects have been connected to drinking cow’s milk.

Side effects of drinking cow’s milk have been linked to triggering allergic responses such as sinusitis, asthma, earaches, congestion, runny nose, skin rash, eczema, fatigue, lethargy and irritability. It is a growing problem in our society, especially in our children.

There is extensive research on this topic, and it shows why we can relate the many allergy issues our society encounters to drinking cow’s milk. In our clinic, we offer services other than just chiropractic and acupuncture. By offering our patients nutritional information, we are able to further help in improving their overall health. Allergies are a huge topic of discussion with all patients and can be addressed with a variety of different therapies and treatments.

If you or someone you know believes they are lactose intolerant, they probably are! Test your theory by completely eliminating all dairy products for several weeks. Monitor how you feel and what has changed in your overall health during that time. If you thought you were experiencing health issues due to dairy, this simple trial should prove you right or wrong. TPW

*Statistics and information from www.mercola.com and the book You Are What You Eat were used in this article.