Don't Drink Milk

What do you think of when you are told to keep your bones healthy?

I bet you answered “Drink Milk!”

That is how good the marketing arm of the dairy industry is.  They have made everyone in the U.S. a believer in their ad campaign.  In fact, they are even funding the nutritional training of students in our medical schools.  No wonder when patients ask doctors how to prevent osteoporosis, the doctors recommend extra milk!

There has been so much good research and so many reputable studies on the fact that milk is probably the last thing that will keep your bones strong.  Cornell University’s Dr. Colin Campbell states, "The correlation between animal protein [intake] and fracture rates in different societies is as strong as that between lung cancer and smoking."

Countries that have the highest consumption of cow’s milk and other milk products (cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese) also have the highest rates of hip fractures. Those populations that consume the most animal protein, also have the highest levels of calcium excreted in their urine.

Dr. Dean Ornish writes, "The real cause of osteoporosis in this country is not insufficient calcium intake, it's excessive excretion of calcium in the urine. Even calcium supplementation is often not enough to make up for the increased calcium excretion."

When people eat too much animal protein it increases the acid load in the body which allows calcium to be drawn from the bones thus weakening them.  Therefore, the amount of calcium in the urine is increased. This effect has been established for over eighty years.

To minimize your risk of osteoporosis, eat a variety of whole plant foods and avoid animal foods, including dairy.  Eat plenty of beans and leafy vegetables and stay away from refined carbohydrates like plain pastas, white breads, candies and sugary cereals.

To learn more about osteoporosis and to get support with your healthy eating, check out the programs at MelindaCokerCoaching.

Sign up to receive new blog posts directly to your inbox.  Just fill in your name and e-mail address in the gray box to the left and hit the "submit" button. You will then get an e-mail asking you to confirm your e-mail address.  Once you do that, you will be signed up to receive new blog posts.

© 2007-2015 Melinda Coker

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: “Melinda Coker, health coach and author of the book, Diet and Cancer: Is There a Connection?, teaches men and women around the world how to develop a healthy lifestyle.”