Milk in your coffee?

The more I read about milk consumption the more confusing it seems to get. Some highly promote dairy and recent research funded by DRINC is looking at adding oilseed into cows diets to lower the saturated fat in our milk. But the founder members of DRINC include Sainsbury, Danone and Nestle. Don't they have a vested interest in supplying us with dairy?

In The Diet Myth, Tim Spector eliminates the China Study findings linking dairy consumption with high blood pressure by pointing out that of the 65 Chinese counties observed, 63 of them didn't eat dairy at all. Spector uses data that links milk consumption to increased height and that the Dutch are statistically the tallest nation and they consume the most milk. Americans stopped growing in the 1960s and milk consumption there has fallen steadily from 1945 onwards. He believes humans have adapted the lactase gene through mutation although those without it can often still drink milk without adverse symptoms. Spector concludes there is enough evidence to support a small health benefit in dairy products, and the less processed it is, the better.

Kris Carr is one of Amazons best selling authors and claims she is keeping her cancer at bay by eschewing all dairy. Ella Woodward (Deliciously Ella) also is enthusiastic about the alternatives. Any google search will find hundreds of anti dairy advocates and just as many promoters.

Then there is the ethical arguments. Milk is produced by cows to feed their calves so they must often be pregnant and the calves are taken away long before natural weaning. In The way we eat why our food choices matter there is a heartbreaking story of a mother cow who never stops looking for her calf after he was taken away (p.58).

Almond milk has it's detractors both because of Almond farming and additives like carrageenan. Soy milk is reputedly highly processed and often genetically modified. They deserve their own post.

So what to do? The 11 year old loves milk and banana smoothies. She is a fickle and frugal eater. Anything other than a tuna or smoked salmon roll in her lunch box comes back untouched. She would happily live on chocolate alone and I have been glad to see her enjoy milk, believing it was healthy. We do have organic from a local milk company (not pictured above).



Diet and Health Research Industry Club (DRINC) - BBSRC

http://medizinische-fitness.org/uploads/tx_frpsimpledownloads/Dairy_products__calcium__and_prostate_cancer_risk.pdf
In conclusion, this report supports and extends previous observations that high intakes of dairy products, and of calcium from dairy foods specifically, are associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer