The dairy industry has spent mountains of money to convince us that “milk does a body good.” Their main selling point: milk gives your body the calcium it needs. The message the dairy industry has sent is that no other food quite compares to the unique ability of cow milk to give humans this essential nutrient.
The “Humans Need Cow Milk” Deception
Any internet search for “Calcium” will reflect just how entrenched this myth is as almost all articles begin with describing dairy products as the main source of calcium. It is true that dairy products contain significant levels of calcium, but is it the right source for human bodies?
Dr. John McDougal, one of the leading doctors promoting a plant based diet for optimal health, insists that calcium deficiency is a problem largely manufactured by the dairy industry. He writes:
“In my youth, living in the Mid-west, I learned about the importance of “milk for building strong bones” from Elsie, the cow. Lani Moo took over my education on “never out growing my need for milk” when I moved to Hawaii as a young doctor in the early 70s. In the mid 80s we settled in Northern California where Clo, the cow, provided dairy-friendly advice from billboards lining Highway 101. These cows are innocent participants in the enormous marketing efforts to sell products to correct a non-existent problem: dietary calcium deficiency.”
Research Shows Dairy is Scary
Milk ads are, well, ads, not science, and they certainly are not public service announcements as the industry would like you to believe. So what does the unbiased science say on the subject?
- BONE & HEART HEALTH: Researchers in Sweeden found dairy consumption did not prevent bone fractures and linked consumption of dairy to increased risk of death by cancer and cardiovascular disease. The study included more than 61,000 women and 45,000 men in Sweden who previously filled out dietary questionnaires and were all over age 39.
- OSTEOPEROSIS: In 2005 the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine published this review of the science on dairy consumption and bone health. Their review concludes that milk consumption “does not improve bone integrity.”
- A Harvard Nurse’s Health Study followed 72,000 women for 18 years and concluded that milk consumption offered no protection against bone fractures.
- ACNE: A study of 47,355 high school women published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology in 2005 found a positive correlation between dairy consumption and teenage acne.
- CANCER: Dr. Campbell’s China Study also showed the same correlation between consumption of protein from milk and cancer growth. In Dr. Campbell’s studies, rats fed increased amounts of dairy protein would see cancer tumors grow. When protein levels were reduced in the diet, the tumors shrunk. Dr. Campbell describes it as almost an on-off switch with completely predictable cancer growth or recession depending on level of milk protein in the diet.
This is only a fraction of the research that supports the conclusion that cow milk is most certainly not a healthy food for humans. Consumption of dairy is linked to increased incidence of obesity, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease – the biggest killers of humans today. Luckily, a whole foods plant based diet has been shown to completely reverse obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and many types of cancer.
The simple cure has been suppressed by a giant pharmaceutical and medical industry that profits more the more people are sick. One person cured is one customer lost in the medical business. But thankfully more researcher and doctors are speaking out against the grain in hopes of truly helping people. Dr. Kim Williams, President of the American College of Cardiology says,
“Wouldn’t it be a laudable goal of the American College of Cardiology to put ourselves out of business within a generation or two?”
Now there’s a doctor with our hearts at heart.
Here at Healing With Plants I am collecting stories of real people who have healed themselves with a plant based diet, and the research that backs up this simple cure. Follow me on social media and subscribe to stay tuned into a channel that’s all good news.
Sources: 1. Dr. Mcdougall, When Friends Ask: Where do you get your calcium? 2. BMJ, Milk intake and risk of mortality and fractures in women and men. 3. Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine: Protecting Your Bones 4. American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Calcium, vitamin D, milk consumption, and hip fractures 5.Journal American Academy of Dermatology, High school dietary dairy intake and teenage acne 6. Cornell University, The China Project: Studying the Link Between Diet and Disease 7. Portland Press Herald, Medical champion of vegan diet touches off debate about its benefits 8. T. Collin Campbell, PhD, and Thomas M. Campbell, MD, The China Study
