November 3, 2014
Children's cow milk consumption has long been a concern of mine regarding the negative health effects of excess intake and sensitivities. We have seen an unbelievable rise over the past decade in cow milk protein intolerance in infants fed formula or human breast milk containing bovine milk protein.
These children present in the first few weeks of life with eczema, reflux, colic, green diarrhea and colitis(inflammation of the colon). Removal of the cow milk protein from the child's diet rapidly resolves the disease. This disorder commonly was called colic syndrome and parents were told that the child will outgrow the illness and that NO intervention was needed. This was the party line during my training at the University of Virginia Medical School. Hard to swallow all of the bad advice given in my early career.
I bring this up purely as a discussion point of potential issues with food and disease that is pushed under the rug by the current nutrition and medical experts.
In the British Medical Journal from October 2014, a group of researchers from Sweden looked at the correlation between cow milk consumption and mortality in a large cohort population.(editorial) They found that women and men had an increased risk of mortality if they consumed three or more glasses of milk daily. Higher milk intake also correlated with increased fracture incidence in women (contradicting the current milk dogma). The authors also looked at inflammatory biomarkers of oxidative stress and found significant elevations.
(Scientific hypothesis: unpasteurized or pasteurized milk contains D-galactose, a sugar molecule that in animal studies has been found to induce inflammation, gene expression alterations and oxidative damage the culmination of which is advanced aging.)
This study is by no means conclusive of milk = death earlier than expected, however, it raises many questions about our current recommendations of milk consumption according to the ADA. I have long contended that milk is not all that good for us in volume and we are still the only animals that consume it after we wean from our mother. If the research is correct, then we have a lot to be concerned with from the current ADA guidelines.
The biggest argument that people make for milk consumption is to benefit our bones. Bone health is related to vitamin D, calcium, magnesium and other minor minerals. These are well sourced from fish, greens and nuts. Milk is unnecessary to fulfill this goal. To date there is no evidence that a diet high in these foods is bad for us (except maybe large mercury laden fish). As we have witnessed in children of our clinic who are sensitive to and avoid dairy while consuming these other foods, their health is positively impacted by reduced illness, improved bowel function and excellent bone health.
I had a 3 year old patient once that presented with profound anemia that was caused by the ingestion of 50 ounces of milk daily. I initially thought that he had leukemia until the history answered the question. The excessive milk intake caused malabsorption of iron in his body leaving him fatigued and pale. Milk has a well known negative influence on iron stores when taken in large volumes. 1 or 2 - 8 ounces glasses of milk has minimal negative effects on iron absorption.
I currently favor the argument that milk in large volumes as directed by the ADA is not necessary and that humans would do well to consume lots of vegetables, fruits, fish and other anti-inflammatory foods to improve their health. The studies showing negative health effects of milk seem to be related to excessive consumption. Further research will prove whether this belief is right or wrong. As always read the article and editorial. Make your own conclusions knowing that this is just my opinion based on my readings to date.
My wife and I do not recommend cow milk for our children. High quality organic cheese and yogurt are consumed in moderation.
With great respect for the calves that are better served by the milk that we consume,
Dr. M
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