Got milk?

Anne-Sophie Bertrand (annesophie@rede-verde.org)

10/2009

Keywords: cow milk, vegetal milk, health, calcium, dietetic, nutrition

Did you know that on this planet, you were the only animal to drink the milk of another?

Can you think of anything better than milk for a highly healthy and
nutritional break? It has been pointed out by researchers that, for being
phosphorus-rich, cow milk could actually enhance calcium loss (excretion),
canceling the benefits. Low fat or de-fat dairy products are even worse for
they prevent absorption of our needed soluble nutrients such as Vitamin A
or D, the latter being crucial to calcium uptake. I do not look at a glass of
milk thinking it is healthy any longer.

Most of us were raised hearing that it was important to drink cow milk to
grow strong bones. I was stunned to learn that actually one thing had little
to do with the other. There is a name for that! It is calcium brainwashing.
We are told that we should consume dairy products because we need
calcium to grow strong bones. Calcium deficiency of a dietary origin is
unknown in the entire history of the human race. Nowadays in the United
States, diary industry claims that most of us (8 out of 10 kids) have calcium
deficiency, and that we can easily fix this problem by increasing our dairy
consumption. Why would this be in the richest nation of the planet if it is not the case in less privileged
nations that cannot afford the same diet? The Japanese have half their rate of fractures and consume
only one-third the dairy products Americans do. Chinese rarely fracture bones and consume very little
dairy products. Over ten million Americans have weak bones while they consume the most dairy-
originated calcium on the planet. In addition, bone loss does not occur with age as doctors would tell
you, it occurs when you become less active.

Hm.

And you know why those people do not have weak bones? It is because they have all the calcium they
need from their plant-based food. But we are talking about an illusion that has cost millions to dairy
lobbies to make sure you think the “right thing” about dairy products. They even set your calcium
requirements. It is promoted by our governments. Does this sound like “1984” or some regime repressing
individual rights?

A 12-year Nurses Health Study from Harvard University concluded that calcium was not an important
nutrient for bone density, try strontium instead.

And if you want strong bones, the best way is to exercise. Nature is simple: you only loose what you do
not use.

Rede Verde Conservation Network Inc. BN: 845495613NP0001

st
York street, 8 - 1 floor Moncton, NB E1C2X9 Canada
URL : www.rede-verde.org Email: info@rede-verde.org
Moreover, dairy products present another problem. Unless you have your own organic-fed cow, the milk
you are buying from the supermarket is far from the image on the carton. It will come from confined
cows, fed with unhealthy industry-processed food (when there are no dead animals in it) and antibiotics
(and even sometimes, steroids!). Excess progesterone from lactating cows can disrupt human hormone
balance. All those elements are found in the milk we are buying at the market and eventually cause
allergies and antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

"Unless you have your own organic-fed cow,

the milk you are buying from the supermarket

is far from the image on the carton. "

The milk carton that you buy has been pasteurized and homogenized.

 The first damages the protein structure of milk which results in a limited
absorption (= low nutritional value).

 The second expands the milk lifetime on the shelf but has been proved to
cause heart disease due to an enzyme called xanthine oxidase.

For those who still want to have cow milk, start looking for organic cow milk. They are at least antibiotic-
free, agro-chemicals and homogenization.
Buy to small-scale organic production, they are more environmentally-sound (less transport, less
pollution, etc.).

For those who would quit the cow milk if something natural, as good and rich as cow milk, was available,
I say: “then quit now because there is!”

Have you ever tried almond or cashew milk? You can do milk with many nuts and
seeds: try hazelnuts, hemp seed, and rice. You would be amazed how delicious
and nutritious those milks are! They are easy to make (soak nuts overnight, add 3-
4 cups of filtered water in the blender). Mix well and add water if you want a very
thin milk. Use a strainer to separate the milk from the solid part. The solid part is
sometimes called “tahine” when the seed is sesame or peanut butter when it’s
peanut.

Vegetal milks represent an outstanding nutritional but also dietetic potential:

 Vegetal milks are particularly rich in proteins and carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.

 They have anti-cholesterol effect and are free from lactose.

 They decrease high cholesterol rates and cardiovascular illnesses among others (studies have
indeed shown that the daily consumption of 47 g of soy protein can lead to a drop of up to 25 %
in the cholesterol rate after only a few weeks).

Rede Verde Conservation Network Inc. BN: 845495613NP0001

st
York street, 8 - 1 floor Moncton, NB E1C2X9 Canada
URL : www.rede-verde.org Email: info@rede-verde.org
  They have a positive impact on osteoporosis and some forms of cancer because they contain
natural hormones.

 They foster the suppression of the allergic reactions to animal origin proteins and to lactose
contained in milk, which affect 10 % of all babies.

Why don’t you give it a try?

If you want to switch to plant milk, just switch!

Rede Verde Conservation Network Inc. BN: 845495613NP0001

st
York street, 8 - 1 floor Moncton, NB E1C2X9 Canada
URL : www.rede-verde.org Email: info@rede-verde.org