Food for Thought. . . Where Are You Getting Your Info?
I have recently had a mild discussion on the necessity of dairy in our diets and was intrigued by the amount of people who stand firm in the assumption that without dairy we will become calcium deficient and our bones will deteriorate. This has brought to my attention the fact that often people will give ‘good’ or ‘healthy’ advice to others without being able to back up their statements with real facts. Where are we getting our information? Who is behind the information we are being fed? As we grow up we are told how to be healthy by our parents, teachers, government, peers, and now we have this all knowing inter-web to support their claims with an incessant rambling of new fads and studies, most of which are just there to justify eating poorly. But without proper research to back up much of what is being thrown out into the web how do we know what is truth. Where did this information come from and why is it believed without question? How do we discern what we truly need to live a healthy, long, and great life? The fact is we have no idea unless we do our own research. We are responsible for ourselves and are responsible for believing, or not believing what we see, hear or feel.
Our health is no light matter either. In the end it is our health that we have and our health that determines the quality of life we lead and how long we are able to lead it. There is such concern regarding what factors are currently harming us from fluoride in the water, BPA in our plastic bottles, to vaccinations from our doctors. Yet, there is a lack of concern on a day to day basis, hour to hour basis with what we ourselves are personally placing into our bodies through our food. “You are what you eat” is a term I used to hear as a child when my dad would buy me a small fry from the local chip truck. And now this term has become a significant part of my life. What am I? Am I an extensively processed piece of bleached out nutrition-less piece of white bread? Am I a fat laden, artery clogging skin erupting stick of butter? Or am I a nutrient dense lively piece of flexible, life giving sustenance fresh vegetable? In the end we have the ability to choose our own path, our own health, our own meals.
As a child I remember being told that we have to drink milk and consume an adequate amount of dairy to receive the needed calcium to stay healthy; without dairy we will have weak bones and be unhealthy and unhappy. I saw the ads that claim that dairy products are a necessary part of a balanced diet. Yes we do need calcium, in our diets to maintain our health. But what forms of food that contain calcium are we told to consume? We are led to believe by the dairy industry commercials and the national food guide ads and our community that believe what they are being told that dairy is the most effective source of calcium.
Dairy is a calcium dense food. It is also rich in animal fats, protein and cholesterol. What we are not told is the negative effects dairy has on our body. Facts such as that the acidity from the methionine levels contained in the animal protein in dairy causes more calcium loss through urination than it does in supplying this mineral to our bones. A 1994 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Remer T, Am J Clin Nutr 1994;59:1356-61) showed this calcium loss. This acidity that it causes in the blood also creates the perfect environment for certain cancer cells to grow.
The milk protein, milk fat, saturated fat in dairy is directly related with an increase of risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity in children, osteoporosis, certain cancer growth particularly breast cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases. We are being told only a partial truth about what is healthy for us when in fact you can have a much healthier diet with the necessary calcium intake on a plant based diet without the fats, excess protein, and cholesterol; a diet that does not include calcium stripping dairy products. You can have a calcium rich diet by incorporating kale, spinach, brussel sprouts, broccoli, bok-choy, almonds, sesame seeds, chick peas, collards, dried figs, oats, flax seeds, navy beans, and many more healthy foods. These beneficial nutritious additions to your diet that do not contain the harmful elements that raise the risk of serious disease and illness also contain many other vitamins and minerals that are part of a balanced healthy lifestyle.
Now that is not to say dairy has had no place in society. It had been a useful tool in the past to support many diets. Taking a look at these diets from all different cultures from Thailand with a very minimal use of dairy to New Zealand, United Kingdom, Australia, United States, Sweden, with a much higher dairy consumption and the increased rates of high cholesterol, heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, obesity, cancer and other health threatening conditions over the years should be an indication that it is not necessarily a healthy choice on a day to day basis. So maybe those who have been guiding us are just as human as we are and don't have all the answers. This is exactly the reason we need to be informed. Not just to stay healthy, but because each person has different needs on every level and should not just accept what they are told is good for them because it is being served to the masses.
There are so many studies being done to help understand how to be healthy. My advice is to listen to them all, see them all, know them all and to question every single piece of information no matter who it is coming from. . . even me!! So don’t hesitate to ask the necessary questions. Who is funding the research? Does the language used in the study back up the data they retrieved? Or is it all smoke and mirrors? Never be content with accepting what you are being told. Especially when those funding the research have monetary interest in the results. Try a few new ways of looking at food, eating new foods, eliminating some foods and see how you feel. Experiment and have fun. Play with your food!! The information is out there it is up to us to use it! Consult your family physician or nutritionist when dealing with any pre-existing conditions. The more we communicate, discuss, and question the more we will learn about ourselves, our society, and how to live the greatest life we can live!!
References
American Journal of Epidemiology 1994;139
Warensjo E, Jansson JH, Berglund L, et al. Estimated intake of milk fat is negatively associated with cardiovascular risk factors and does not increase the risk of a first acute myocardial infarction. Br J Nutr. 2004;91:635–642.
Scharf RJ, Demmer RT, DeBoer MD. Longitudinal evaluation of milk type consumed and weight status in preschoolers. Arch Dis Child. 2013; 98:335-340
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Szeto YT, Kwok TC, Benzie IF. Effects of a long-term vegetarian diet on biomarkers of antioxidants status and cardiovascular disease risk. Nutrition. 2004;20:863–866
Ornish D, Brown SE, Scherwitz LW, et al. Can lifestyle changes reverse coronary heart disease? Lancet. 1990;336:129–133
Gordon, D.B. 1999. Milk and mortality: the connection between milk drinking and coronary heart disease. Livermore CA, Gordon Books 208 p
