Milk Question....

[rykertest]

The non plat search function is totally worthless and the diet forum gets no traffic so I wanted to post this here in hopes of getting some feedback.

How many of you drink organic milk? I have always drank regular skim milk, but wonder if I need to switch to organic. It's hard to find unbiased info on organic milk when I search the net.

Thanks!

 

[gotmilk]

why switch?

As long as the dairy farm does not use hormones in their cows, and most do not, regular skim milk is fine.

 

[rykertest]

why switch?

As long as the dairy farm does not use hormones in their cows, and most do not, regular skim milk is fine.

Yeah I hear they do and I hear they don't. It's so hard to find some real answers. The FDA sucks.....I think. lol

I wonder if it really even matters or if it is just a marketing ploy?

 

[rykertest]

like this read. This seems true but is it?

"Modern processing techniques (pasteurizing, homogenizing, and skimming) destroy most of the beneficial nutrients in milk," Pronk continues. "Enzymes (which make milk easy to digest) and beneficial bacteria (which prevent people from developing allergies to foods) present in raw milk are destroyed by the heat of pasteurization, making it harder to digest and more allergenic. . . .

"Dairy cattle are now fed a fixed ration of feeds which they would not typically eat if given a choice. . . .Not only might this be considered inhumane, but what is not considered is the effects of these feeds on the quality of the milk and the effects of this milk on those who drink it.

"Having to deal with feeds that disagree puts an extra stress on a cow's immune system. Stressed cows are much more susceptible to infections and, not surprisingly, farmers are seeing very high rates of mastitis (udder infection) in these herds. The typical treatment for mastitis is antibiotics; antibiotic residues then end up in the milk. Overuse of these antibiotics has lead to the problem of antibiotic resistance.

"Milk has historically been used very effectively as medicine for a number of different conditions. Fresh raw milk from healthy animals contains many beneficial nutrients that can be very nourishing and healing. Complete protein, lactoferrin, various digestive enzymes, immunoglobulins (antibodies), conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), and beneficial lactobacillus bacteria are just a few of the valuable nutrients that milk, in its natural form, supplies. . . .

"I would say that organic milk is a lot closer to the whole food milk used to be. I would consider conventional store-bought milk to be a 'modified milk ingredient'; nothing close to the natural food it was a century ago."

Although the healthfulness and medicinal value of organic milk is still more a matter of lore than science, one thing is for sure: the evidence against modern milk can no more be applied to organic milk than the evidence against white rice can be applied to brown. These are cows of an entirely different colour.

 

[gotmilk]

Not a marketing ploy. Several farms use hormones to make their cows produce more milk.

Also, in order to be organic, the cows can only eat certain foods. Regular cows graze on grass in pastures. Organic milk cows are strapped into feed bins where they eat mostly oats and certain hay.

Non-organic milk cows can be treated with anti-biotics if they become sick. Organic cows cannot be treated with anti-biotics.

Most dairy farms now show if their cows are treated with hormones or not. Most regular milk producers will not pay the extra expenses to become certified for organic production.

Plus, grazing on grass is actually healthier for cows unless the grass is treated with normal fertilizers.

There's not much difference is regular or organic milk. There's a huge difference when it comes to salughtering these animals for food.

Pasturization kills the few bacteria in milk making it safe anyhow. Too bad we do not treat meat the same way we care for milk.

 

[rykertest]

I wish I had a cow. but I only drink skim milk and skinny cows are hard to some by.

When I was born, I was given milk straight from my grandpas cows they had at his small farm. I was a butterball so they switched me over to 2% from the store. lol But funny thing, I had a Dr. tell me once that was the best thing they could do for me.

Whenever I have a kid, I'll see about whole milk from a farm for the first year or so.