It may be the media, dairy farmers or just the fact that as babies we grow thanks to our mother’s milk , but for some reason we have been convinced that dairy is essential in our diets, but is it really?
I have recently read a book by Kimberley Snyder called The Beauty Detox Solution. In this informative novel, nutritionist Kimberley Snyder discusses her world-wide travels and discoveries regarding diet and healthy lifestyles. She advocates an animal-free lifestyle, although, she is lenient with consuming lean proteins if you desire. Dairy however, is one thing she is completely against.
According to her book, this is why…
First, we are weaned off our mother’s milk within a first few years of our life and slowly convert to whole foods, just like other animals, cows included. Once baby cows grow up, they too stop drinking milk and shift to eating grass. We are the ONLY species on planet earth that drink milk of another species.
Second, the chemical composition of cows milk is much different from breast milk and therefore, our bodies have much more difficulty to break it down. We use an enzyme called lactose to break it down, but our bodies diminish the production of production of lactose by the time we are two or three years old. This can only indicate that nature did not intend for us to consume dairy.
Third, there is a protein that makes up 87% of all dairy, it’s called casein. Although there is some casein in human breast milk, cows milk contain 300% more because it aids in the development of their strong bones. Once again, we do not posses the enzymes needed to break down this protein down. In fact, it is such a strong binder that is has been used as an ingredient in wood glue. A long-term research project called The China Study which was founded by the American Cancer Society and the American Institute for Cancer Research found a strong correlation between dairy and the promotion of cancer cell growth when exposed to carcinogens.
Fourth, in our stomachs, dairy is a very acid forming and mucus-forming food. We do naturally produce mucus to protect the surface of membranes when food is digested but excessive mucus from dairy can cause build up that hardens against the walls of our intestines.
Fifth, non-organic dairy is filled with hormones and drugs which are harmful to the body but even with organic dairy, all milk is pasteurized. This process removes natural enzymes making the dairy even more difficult to digest.
Finally, you may think that dairy is necessary for strong bones, but statistics from Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman that in population were dairy consumption is higher, osteoporosis and hip fractures are more frequent. Even in dairy products where calcium levels are high, when digested calcium binds to phosphorus making it impossible to absorb, so really, your final intake of calcium would be very low.
Now, there is good news! Calcium can be found in so many other foods like leafy greens and there are many non-dairy alternatives that are delicious like unsweetened almond milk, hemp, and even coconut milk!
Give it a try, see how you feel and stay healthy,
Proteen Queen
For more information check out The Beauty Detox Solution by Kimberley Snyder and the award winning movie Forks Over Knives