So how beneficial is milk?

[Ursae_Majoris]

Originally Posted By: AlienBug

You are correct that Vitamin D is crucial to bone density, as is magnesium. Excess calcium is actually quite harmful, but adequate vitamin D intake should keep that in check. About 20 minutes of sunlight a day will do ya.

Not really, not at the northern latitudes. We get 3-4 hours of sunlight in winter, and the sun is so low that rays do not do much for vitamin D production. A lot more people live at higher latitudes in US, Canada, Europe and Asia than in Connecticut.

My original post was about your seemingly irrational hatred of milk. I am sorry about your daughter. Nowhere in your post did you indicate that it was a medically-based decision. You came across as someone who made his child pay for the parent's fears. Now I know and I apologize for my zinger.

50 millions out of 6 Billion of people is hardly a crisis. I'd say more people die a year from malnutrition than milk poisoning.

 

[tonycarguy]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
It's not that all cow milk products are bad.
Some yogurts and cheeses are good, and good for you.

BTW, there is a devious mislabeling/advertising/lie on many yogurt containers. It will say 'LIVE' cultures. But all this means is that they were ONCE alive - no guaranties... It has to say live and ACTIVE to be good for you. Watch for this.


+1

I saw some frozen yogurt at the store that said "contains LIVE cultures". I laughed at this because, how can bacteria survive being frozen for weeks? All the bacteria are dead by the time you eat it

 

[AlienBug]

OK, last post on the topic because life moves on.

There is no medical reason why my daughter must avoid milk, in that she does not have any kind of disease. She simply lacks the genetic mutation that would allow her to drink it without gastrointestinal distress. This is very hard for Americans to understand, but the ability to drink milk as an adult is quite rare. According to USA Today just over 30% of adults can digest milk. In fact, lactose intolerance is so common, it is no longer considered a disorder, since lactose-tolerant people are truly the "abnormal" ones.

Note that it is not some sort of insult to call someone "abnormal." Someone can be abnormally smart, tall, athletic or have an abnormal ability to consume a product that most people can't.

Quote:
By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY
SAN FRANCISCO — Got milk? If you do, take a moment to ponder the true oddness of being able to drink milk after you're a baby.
No other species but humans can. And most humans can't either.


Quote:
Instead, people who are lactose intolerant can't digest the main sugar —lactose— found in milk. In normal humans, the enzyme that does so —lactase— stops being produced when the person is between two and five years old. The undigested sugars end up in the colon, where they begin to ferment, producing gas that can cause cramping, bloating, nausea, flatulence and diarrhea.


Quote:
If you're American or European it's hard to realize this, but being able to digest milk as an adult is one weird genetic adaptation.
It's not normal. Somewhat less than 40% of people in the world retain the ability to digest lactose after childhood. The numbers are often given as close to 0% of Native Americans, 5% of Asians, 25% of African and Caribbean peoples, 50% of Mediterranean peoples and 90% of northern Europeans. Sweden has one of the world's highest percentages of lactase tolerant people.


Again, yogurt and cheeses are not a problem for most lactose intolerant people because the live bacteria pre-digest the lactose into lactic acid, which is what makes those products tart.

Anyway, it's a free country, drink what you want. I'll stick to margaritas.

 

[Gary Allan]

Nordics UNITE!!! Eat some ice cream in celebration of your unique mutation!!

 

[jcwit]

Originally Posted By: AlienBug This is very hard for Americans to understand, but the ability to drink milk as an adult is quite rare. In fact, lactose intolerance is so common, it is no longer considered a disorder, since lactose-tolerant people are truly the "abnormal" ones.

[quote
By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY

No other species but humans can. And most humans can't either.


[/quote]

Someone better inform the masses at the supermarkets of this revelation.

 

[Shannow]

Humans weren't designed to eat HFCS either, and it's in everything.

 

[John_Corey]

Hi tonycarguy,

Freezing does not necessarily kill all simple organisms, including bacteria. Raw, previously frozen chicken is a prime source of salmonella outbreaks. Wouldn't it be nice if freezing could kill e-coli?

On frozen yogurt, look for the the LAC (live and active cultures) seal. This guarantees that the frozen yogurt contains at least 10 million live and active bacteria per 1 gram of yogurt. By the way, only bacteria that thrive in an acidic environment can survive the stomach and make it into the intestine.

Cheers,
-J

Originally Posted By: tonycarguy

I saw some frozen yogurt at the store that said "contains LIVE cultures". I laughed at this because, how can bacteria survive being frozen for weeks? All the bacteria are dead by the time you eat it

 

[StevieC]

Originally Posted By: John_Corey
Hi tonycarguy,

Freezing does not necessarily kill all simple organisms, including bacteria. Raw, previously frozen chicken is a prime source of salmonella outbreaks. Wouldn't it be nice if freezing could kill e-coli?

On frozen yogurt, look for the the LAC (live and active cultures) seal. This guarantees that the frozen yogurt contains at least 10 million live and active bacteria per 1 gram of yogurt. By the way, only bacteria that thrive in an acidic environment can survive the stomach and make it into the intestine.

Cheers,
-J

Originally Posted By: tonycarguy

I saw some frozen yogurt at the store that said "contains LIVE cultures". I laughed at this because, how can bacteria survive being frozen for weeks? All the bacteria are dead by the time you eat it



That's not entirely true... While the stomach acid kills lots of the bacteria it won't kill them all in the yogurt. Some will make it to the intestinal tract. That is why brands like Activia Yogurt say "take the 14 day challenge" because it takes that long for enough bacteria to get to your intestinal tract to do any good.

Better way to achieve this and to achieve all the bacterial cultures in your gut that you need is to take a pro-biotic pill supplement that won't dissolve until it reaches the right area.

It also contains over 12 billion of the "little guys" and all the types you need, not just 1 or 2 types.

I'm on this type from my holistic doctor and let me tell you the difference!

 

[Ursae_Majoris]

Originally Posted By: AlienBug
USA Today just over 30% of adults can digest milk.

Somebody better tell Asian nomadic tribes in Mongolia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, China, etc that they should not be drinking camel milk, like they have been doing for the past 5,000 years. Or the camel-milk drinking Bedouin tribes in Africa, or the yak-milk drinking tribes in Himalayas.

 

[John_Corey]

Hi StevieC,

Originally Posted By: StevieC
That's not entirely true... While the stomach acid kills lots of the bacteria it won't kill them all in the yogurt. Some will make it to the intestinal tract. That is why brands like Activia Yogurt say "take the 14 day challenge" because it takes that long for enough bacteria to get to your intestinal tract to do any good.

What I said is exactly true. Please read my previous post again. The probiotic cultures that are used in yogurt are of course of the type that survives the acidic environment of the stomach. The positive effects of those cultures take some time to take hold, because different types of bacteria compete and combat each other in an endless battle. The intestinal flora will flourish with an abundance of beneficial bacteria.

Originally Posted By: StevieC
Better way to achieve this and to achieve all the bacterial cultures in your gut that you need is to take a pro-biotic pill supplement that won't dissolve until it reaches the right area

When I came down with a foodborne illness, my quack wanted me to use probiotic suppositories. I told him there was no way I would shove any supplement up the wrong end and opted instead for a self-prescribed and more natural regimen that included cultured buttermilk and kefir three times a day. My intestinal tract was functioning properly after a few days.

Originally Posted By: StevieC
It also contains over 12 billion of the "little guys" and all the types you need, not just 1 or 2 types.

I imagine it may feel a bit overcrowded!

Originally Posted By: StevieC
I'm on this type from my holistic doctor and let me tell you the difference!

I believe the holistic approach is valuable in treating psychosomatic diseases and in supporting conventional medicine.

Cheers,
-J

 

[StevieC]

I take mine orally and it works a heck of a lot better than the yogurt via the intestinal tract.

I wish you lived near me and could have seen the difference I experienced.

I'm glad that Kefir, buttermilk and yogurt works for you.

I apologize I read the acidity in the stomach acid and yogurt part of your post wrong.

In my mind I will take a holistic doctor any day of the week instead of a medical doctor for most ailments because they fix the root of the problem and don't just treat the symptoms.

Steve

 

[John_Corey]

Hi Steve,

Fixing the root of the problem may require a dentist. But seriously, please explain to me how a holistic healer can treat the root of a non-psychosomatic ailment more effectively than a medical doctor. Please give me an example from your experience, so that I may better understand from where you are coming.

Cheers,
-J


Originally Posted By: StevieC
In my mind I will take a holistic doctor any day of the week instead of a medical doctor for most ailments because they fix the root of the problem and don't just treat the symptoms.

Steve

 

[daves66nova]

Originally Posted By: StevieC

I'm on this type from my holistic doctor and let me tell you the difference!
what's the name of the pills?

 

[saberz]

Can't be that beneficial as I just got ill(Gastroenteritis) for a week because of dairy intake(1 chocolate milk and a bit of icecream) my first in over 2 months and I got rocked.

My Dr. said that we are the only species who pretty much consumes milk past infancy/childhood. Our bodies are not meant to handle breakdown/digestion of it. It needs to be moderated.

 

[greenjp]

Interesting thread. A lot of people are inappropriately extrapolating. That some (possibly most!) humans are lactose intolerant means absolutely nothing to those who aren't. Likewise, that other animals don't drink milk as adults means absolutely nothing to humans.

jeff

 

[tom slick]

Humans don't (but animals do):
Eat feces
swallow rocks to aid digestion
chew a cud
eat raw meat only
eat/kill our young
eat the entrails that come out with birth...

I don't think the "no other animal..." is all that strong.

 

[Gary Allan]

We've adapted to make those practices unnecessary. I would be a different story if animals could domesticate other animals for food sources ..or child bearing females didn't have other stuff to do besides attempt to provide a processed food source while feeding themselves to do it.

That is, we don't do it either. Women aren't hooking themselves up to milking machines to keep the store shelves full of fresh breast milk (though I'm sure there are some who do express milk for feeding infants other than their own) ..and they would be incapable of providing it in sufficient quantities to satisfy our demand for milk as an integrated food source (baking, etc.)

Without that kind of adaptation (leaving enough eggs in the nest so that you can have a perpetual supply of them would be one ) it would be doubtful that we'd have the means to have a high milk diet.

 

[CivicFan]

Originally Posted By: Gary Allan
(though I'm sure there are some who do express milk for feeding infants other than their own)


Incidentally, the number one healthcare provider in our market (and a fierce competitor of ours), has a milk bank where mothers donate breast milk for cases where a child has no access to breast milk. A buddy of mine runs it and whenever I even think about it, it freaks me out.

But it's a necessary service.

 

[CivicFan]

Originally Posted By: tom slick
eat the entrails that come out with birth...


We use it in our hair conditioners.

 

[Shannow]

Originally Posted By: tom slick
Humans don't (but animals do):
Eat feces
swallow rocks to aid digestion
chew a cud
eat raw meat only
eat/kill our young
eat the entrails that come out with birth...

I don't think the "no other animal..." is all that strong.


Could that be the reason that we developed the opposable thumb ?

To be able to milk other animals ?