Dairy May Not Really Be "Good" for Bones
There was a (referenced below) 1980-1992 Harvard Nurses study of 77,761 women. It showed no reduction in fractures for those drinking at least 3 glasses milk/day; in fact, the fracture rate was higher for those drinking more than 3 glasses milk/day vs. those who didn’t drink any milk. This is consistent with international data of Canada, Scandinavia, UK, India vs. Pacific Rim, Africa, and China. Just from a common sense point of view, it doesn't make sense to take mother's milk for an adult - especially from another species.
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Read The China Study to see the correlation between dairy and cancer:
http://www.thechinastudy.com/about.html
Furthermore, the production of dairy is an incredibly cruel industry:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhlhSQ5z4V4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUJmytzUVUc
Yes, it is evident that conventional dairy production practices are cruel. Many cows receive little space to roam and may even suffer abuse. Also, the majority of conventional farmers feed their animals (not only dairy cows) crap like wheat, soy, etc. instead of grass, the food best suitable for many ruminants' digestive systems. The animals' health deteriorates as a result.
Even worse, antibiotics and hormones may be given to the animals. The meat, fat, milk, etc. of the animals may then become contaminated due to these harmful chemicals.
In addition, most of the milk you find in markets has undergone some form of pasteurization and also homogenization. Although pasteurization may kill bad bacteria and other nasties, it may remove some of the nutrients (UHT especially).However, there would be no need for pasteurization if all cows were raised organically and fed grass. Healthier cows translates to better milk.
Homogenization is another harmful process. It prevents milk from separating into cream on top. Yet studies show it may also reduce nutritional value, just like pasteurization.
Therefore, I would say that the china study probably has some validity judging from the widespread use of conventional dairy practices
However, how about organic milk from cows that are fed grass? Unhomogenized, preferably raw or least low-temperature pasteurized milk? (and of course full-fat...)
Healthier! More Humane! and much Tastier IMO!
Just look at traditional peoples who consumed raw, organic milk. They tended to be healthy and did NOT suffer from raw-milk-food poisoning (check out www.westonaprice.org /)
Well, that's all for now. I could go on but my fingers ache. Here's some stuff:
Real Milk
Milk, Does It Do A Body Good?
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And remember, the fat in milk isn't harmful! Rising consumption of polyunsaturated fats and trans fats are some of the culprits (starchy carbs too ;), but let's not go off-topic) behind rising rates of degenrative diseases like cancer. On the other hand, the body needs saturated fats and monounsaturated fats to function properly. Check out this:
Dear Mark: Saturated Fat
were you weaned from your mother's breast? most humans were and most calves are also weaned at an early age. humans are odd creatures who 1) continue to 'nurse' all their lives and 2) drink the milk of another species.
go on a dairy-only diet for a few weeks. you will soon see and feel the effects dairy has on the body. do your research. your body is a laboratory. experiment, but don't abuse it. it's a precious gift.
Negative effects of dairy-only diet? If one consumes tons of processed, unpastured dairy products, of course his/her health will be negatively impacted. As stated before, many dairy cows receive the wrong nutrition and may be treated with harmful chemicals.
And who goes on a dairy-only diet anyways? It's common sense that too much anything can be harmful, not just dairy. If I ate only ate grains for breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday, I would lose muscle mass and possibly develop scurvy and other diseases caused by nutrient-deficiencies ( actually, I try to avoid grains/starchy crabs as much as possible since I follow some aspects of the paleo diet).
This explains why people need balanced diets.
Furthermore, one should always go for organic, unprocessed milk. Lactose-intolerant individuals find raw milk easier to digest because it contains lactase, an enzyme removed during conventional milk processing.
Although humans do not need dairy as a part of their diet, it can be quite healthy when consumed in its natural, unpasteurized form (from pastured cows of course) and in certain amounts depending on the individual's health requirements/limitations.
At the very least, treat it as fine wine, an occasional indulgence,