THE GREAT AMERICAN MILK MYTH

Forwarded message from Fidyl <fidyl@yahoo.com>

[ Subject: The Great American Milk Myth
[ From: Fidyl <fidyl@yahoo.com>
[ Date: Thu, 9 Jun 2005

The Great American Milk Myth

Parents who want to reduce saturated fat and animal
proteins in the family diet have understandable concerns.
They've read that both may increase the risk of heart
disease and certain cancers but worry about calcium
deficiencies if milk is discontinued. I often find it
necessary to reassure them that some bowing of their
child's legs may be normal up to the age of three, and is
not due to a calcium deficiency.

Dental decay, during infancy and early childhood, causes
the same concern. But ironically, tooth decay can be
caused by too frequent bathing of the teeth with milk.

- - -

False Promises

Why is there so much fear about not drinking milk? The
milk myth has been created and perpetuated by the dairy
industry's intense lobbying throughout the lifetimes of
most adults. The fact is, during most of our kindergarten
and grade school years, nutrition teaching aids were
supplied by the National Dairy Council. As a result,
Billy and everyone around him, from his parents and
teachers, to his doctors, lawyers and Congressional
representatives, grew up thinking that milk is wholesome
and necessary for strong bones and teeth. Never mind that
milk wasn't consumed before the agricultural revolution
10,000 years ago, and still isn't by 75% of the world
population.

Further confusing the consumer are milk and infant
formulas claiming to be fortified with vitamin D, which
is necessary for proper calcium

absorption. Though vitamin D can be obtained by eating
sardines, herring, salmon, tuna, egg yolk, and fish oils,
none of these high-fat foods is really necessary. Anyone
can get adequate amounts simply by being outside in the
sunlight for as little as 10 to 15 minutes three times a
week. Disabled children and others who cannot get out in
the sun can avoid Vitamin D deficiencies and rickets by
taking vitamin D supplements rather than fortified dairy
products.

- - -

The Protein Puzzle

The true connection between milk and strong bones and
teeth isn't exactly what the dairy industry has been
telling us all these years. It's calcium balance-the
relationship between the intake and loss of the mineral-
that determines bone density. Good bone density attained
by the age of 18- 25 usually lasts a lifetime for people
who consume a balanced plant-based diet and remain
physically active. The problem with milk and other dairy
products is that they are not only rich in calcium but
they are also high in protein, which has been shown to
create calcium loss through the urinary tract.

A 1994 National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference
concluded that calcium balance and bone density depended
on the ratio of intake to loss, not on calcium intake
alone. This evidence is supported by Dr. Walter Willet of
Harvard, who found no relationship between calcium intake
and hip fractures. Moreover, Professor T. Colin Campbell,
editor of this newsletter, referring to a study covering
16 countries, concluded that "the association between the
intake of animal protein and fracture rates appears to be
as strong as the association between cigarette smoking
and lung cancer."

Elderly South African Bantu women don't have
osteoporosis, despite having a large calcium drain from
nursing an average of 10 children. Their diet contains
only about 440 mg of calcium, less than half what
Americans consume. It appears they are protected by their
low intake of protein (50 g daily, compared with 91 g by
Americans). Eskimos, on the other hand, who consume a
very high protein diet (250 - 400 g) and far more calcium
than Americans (2,000 mg daily), have the highest rate of
osteoporosis in the world.

Now, let's take a new look at milk and dairy products as
a calcium source, regardless of their protein content.
When calcium is expressed as milligrams per 100 calories
instead of milligrams per serving, milk and cheese sink
to the bottom of the list and green vegetables rise to
the top.

- - -

A Better Way to Get Calcium

At first glance, you might be tempted to conclude that
you would have to eat huge servings of spinach or turnip
greens to get adequate calcium. Not so. If you eat a
plant-based diet, generally speaking you'll get as many
total calories as if you ate meat and dairy products. In
other words, calorie for calorie, vegetables are better
sources of calcium than milk and cheese. It's the whole
meal that counts. Also, consider that a cup of cooked
spinach contains about the same amount of calcium as a
cup of milk. Even though we've been told that many green
vegetables contain oxalic acid, which reduces calcium
absorption, this too, has been exaggerated by the dairy
lobby. A 1990 report in the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition concluded that greens such as broccoli have
high levels of calcium and that calcium in kale is
absorbed at least as well as that in milk.

Now it begins to make sense. In cultures like Billy's,
where the most protein is consumed, the calcium
requirement for good bone density and protection against
osteoporosis may be unattainably high, without
supplements.

It's a Catch-22 situation. But for the majority of the
world population, and among those consuming a plant-based
diet in Western countries, calcium requirements for
normal bone density are easily obtained without milk or
other dairy products. Milk, it now seems clear, is not
the solution to poor bone density. To the contrary, it's
part of the problem.

Charles Attwood, M.D., is a physician and writer based in
Crowley, Louisiana. He is the author of Dr. Attwood's
Low-Fat Prescription for Kids.

End of forwarded message from Fidyl <fidyl@yahoo.com>

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