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Dairy Isn't The Only Answer
Pasteurised milk is something we need to look out for, the same goes for any pasteurised dairy products. Chances are that if you’re buying milk from a supermarket in a carton, it’s been pasteurised, some milk companies will even say that the milk has been pasteurised and homogenized on the carton, like it’s a good thing(?)
Pasteurised milk destroys and denatures the milks structure, it’s denatures the proteins and destroys active enzymes, kills beneficial bacteria and dramatically reduces the vitamin content. The milk now is far from its original form, it has been processed to the stage where its structure looks nothing like what it would if it came straight from the cow. Most yogurts will go through this same manufacturing process and to make it worse will have substantial amounts of sugar added into it as well. The high amounts of sugar added to yogurt will generally out weigh any beneficial bacteria (like lactobacillus acidophilus) and any good qualities that it may still contain.
If you are drinking fresh milk from a grass-fed cow, without it going through processing factors, milk could be a beneficial addition to your diet as it will still be nutrient rich. But if you’re not, then you need to eliminate or reduce your milk consumption in order to improve your health.
Too many people tout milk as a healthy food, and it’s easy to see why with all the marketing going on saying how milk is such a fantastic calcium source. In fact the marketing for milk and dairy products is so high that many people don’t even know what other food sources contain calcium. Here is a small list;
- Sesame seeds, Flax seeds
- Almonds, brazil nuts, walnuts, pecans and most other nuts
- Green leafy vegetables i.e. spinach and broccoli
- Salmon, sardines
The food sources mentioned above are a far superior source of calcium for our bodies than milk and other dairy products. Yes, dairy contains a high amount of calcium, but that doesn’t mean it’s bio-available in the body, in-fact research shows calcium from plant sources are absorbed much better than that of calcium in milk. The reason why is that calcium is a mineral that needs an alkaline environment in the body to be absorbed effectively, un-fortunately dairy as a food is acidic. The result is our bodies search for ways to balance up the acidity of the dairy with something alkaline, and if you haven’t eaten anything with an alkaline Ph level at the same time (fruits and vegetables) your body will go to the best source, which is the calcium in your bones. This same problem occurs with any other foods we consume that are of a high acidic level, the body will find balance by leaching calcium from our bones in order for it to correctly digest the meal you have consumed. Osteoporosis, anyone?
This is extremely important to know, as the best way you can assure that your body is going to keep as alkaline as possible is to eat lots of fruits and vegetables, pretty much the only real source of alkalinity for the body. Also keep in mind that other factors contribute to an acidic environment in our bodies, stress and breathing in chemical fumes are only a couple of things the majority of us are faced with on a daily basis.
There are lot of people who are finding out they are lactose intolerant, and this is actually a normal intolerance for all humans (with exception to some groups of Central European people), it just depends on whether your body shows signs such as feeling lethargic, coughing, acne, or getting a skin rash. This is similar to gluten allergies, research shows that amongst all species of animal life, everyone has a gluten intolerance, whether you notice that now and decide to discontinue eating those food sources, or do that in 20years when you get diagnosed with something serious (caused by a gluten allergy), it doesn’t change the fact that your body has an intolerance.
People don’t need huge amounts of calcium everyday, even if you consume relatively small amounts of green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds and fish, you will be consuming enough calcium for the body to run effectively.
There is also evidence showing that certain cells in our body play the roll of bringing calcium into our bones, and other cells which play the roll of taking calcium out of our bones. There is a limit for how many cells responsible for bringing calcium into our bones stay around for. If during our lives we begin to consume too much calcium, these cells will be used up a lot faster due to the fact more are needed to transport the calcium into our bones. If say after 10years you have no more calcium transporting cells, your body is no longer going to be able to replenish our bones with calcium to stay strong. This may help explain why Eskimos who consume a high amount of calcium, up to 2000mg a day through sea animals, have a high rate of osteoporosis.
For a more detailed explanation of this, I recommend reading the well researched article ‘Excessive Calcium Causes Osteoporosis’.
What to use instead of milk in cooking:
- Coconut Milk
- Nut milk (almond milk)
- No milk!
Note: Soy milk is not good! It is also heavily processed, denatured and full of sugars.