Milk is... gross. (Warning: polarizing content)

What I'm about to say will make mothers gasp in horror and cover their children's eyes. I hope it's received a little better than that, but had I heard someone say two years ago what I'm about to say now, I probably would have tuned them out as some kind of flake. And while I may be the color of a flake, I don't think I'm a total flake or even part of a flake.

Before I say it, let me say that I love milk. The creamier the better. I would have milk eleventy times a day if I could. However...

MILK IS BAD FOR YOU.

Hear me out, because this is coming from the granddaughter of a dairy farmer, and I do love milk. I just have a few problems with milk.

Imagine, if you will, that you are sitting down with a bowl of your favorite sugary cereal and you take that first freezing cold, crunchy, sugary bite, when some woman comes running into the room and hollers, "Stop! That isn't milk, it's breastmilk!"

Hey, I warned you that this might be polarizing.

What would your reaction be? I know what mine would be. I can imagine that most people would be disgusted, that they'd spit the bite out and scrub their tongue clean, and maybe forever have an aversion to milk because of that incident. Am I being a little dramatic? I'm not sure. I just think that the idea of consuming human breastmilk is disgusting to almost everyone.

Why is that exactly? Probably because we know that it came from a human body and went through no purifying or homogenizing or separating process. But even if there were a process for human milk, it wouldn't ever be sold by the carton, we know that for sure. Human milk is designed for the baby whose birth initiated the process of making that milk in the first place. Right?!?!??1/??

So why is it not weird that we take milk from a COW instead? Think about it. These poor dairy cows spend their whole lives nursing.. humans. Not literally. But really when you think about it, that is what they are doing! Is this weird to anyone else?

I want to dissect some basic 'truths' about milk, and show you why they are actually just myths.

MYTH 1: MILK HAS ALL THE NUTRITION YOU REQUIRE
Correction: Milk has all the nutrition that CALVES require. What nutrition do calves require? They need a substance that will enable them to pack on weight quickly, hence the saturated fat in milk. I don't think I even need to point out why humans shouldn't be drinking this same substance.

MYTH 2: MILK IS A GREAT SOURCE OF CALCIUM
There is calcium in milk, yes. But not only is it not the best source of calcium out there, it's not even that high on the list. The calcium from milk is not easily absorbed in our bodies. The best sources of calcium include greens, seeds, nuts, beans, and sardines. More on this in myth four.

MYTH 3: MILK IS A BEVERAGE
Milk is not a drink. It's a food. When your doctor tells you to drink plenty of fluids, milk is not and should not be on that list.

MYTH 4: MILK CONSUMPTION WILL PREVENT OSTEOPOROSIS
This is my favorite myth of all. This ties back to the myth that milk is a great source of calcium. It's the calcium in milk that you are led to believe will prevent osteoporosis. Not only is this not true, the opposite is true! More on that in a minute. First of all, what causes osteoporosis? The main cause is the leaching of calcium from your bones. What causes calcium to be leached from your bones? The consumption of alcohol, caffeine, sugar, excess sodium, and excess animal protein. So the real question is this: does NOT drinking milk cause you to consume alcohol, caffeine, sugar, excess sodium, and excess animal protein? No. Not drinking milk does not lead to osteoporosis. Can drinking milk help prevent osteoporosis? Actually, it can help contribute to it. Milk contains a lot of animal protein. Simply by drinking milk, you are causing your body to leach calcium from your bones. Do you see the irony in this? There's more. Everyone always hears about the connection between milk and calcium. People probably hear more about calcium than they do any other mineral. It's true, calcium is an important mineral, maybe even the most important mineral. However, it is CRITICAL that you take calcium in conjunction with magnesium. Your body's process of making calcium useable actually depletes your body of magnesium. You must replace that magnesium, because magnesium is the second most critical mineral in your body. But no one ever hears about magnesium and the importance of it. All they ever hear about is calcium. So they rush out and buy calcium supplements, which further deplete the magnesium that they don't know they need to be supplementing as well, and this leads to a whole host of problems. What happens when your body is depleted of magnesium? Osteoporosis. Among hundreds of other things. Ask my mom, I could go on and on and ON about magnesium.

Let's take it a step further. It is now common knowledge that many people suffer from a milk intolerance. In fact, the official percentage is somewhere around three quarters of the population of the world. How can we still believe that milk is good for us when so many people have a bad reaction to it?? Milk is also linked to heart disease and prostate cancer, and is one of the known causes of IBS, allergies, chronic ear infections, sinus problems, eczema, and constipation. Know what else is linked to all of those things? Magnesium deficiency.

MYTH 5: MILK IS WHOLESOME AND NATURAL
At one time it was. But now over 80% of milk samples contain antibiotics, bovine growth hormone, and pesticides. On top of that, the fat in animal tissues stores environmental toxins forever, and that is passed on to us when we drink the saturated fat in milk. I know that organic milk is an option, and I have tried it. But organic milk doesn't address the other issues with milk.

If anyone is still reading this, you may be wondering what you should drink instead of cow's milk. I have soy milk and I like it, but soy is no better for causing magnesium deficiency. You should NEVER give soy milk to children. Adults should have only small amounts of soy as well, because soy blocks your body's absorption of magnesium. I'm astounded that they still make soy formulas for infants. If you do eat a lot of soy products, make sure you take your magnesium supplement at a time that soy can't interfere with it. I take mine right before bed, about three hours after I have eaten.

All I really want to say is that a mother's milk (whether that mother is a cow or a human or whatever) is ideal for her babies and not for anyone else.

Apparently the USDA was asked by the Federal Trade Commission to compile a group of scientists to analyze the statements they make in their Got Milk? ads, and none of them were found to be true (and some were found to be blatantly false). I haven't seen one in a while, so perhaps they were asked to discontinue these ads, I'm not sure. But the damage is done. People everywhere are convinced that milk is a good source of protein and calcium and that it will help them lose weight, and while I have no problems with anyone else drinking milk, I do wish I could make that decision for my children without facing the judgment of a million Americans who think I'm a bad mother for questioning whether or not my child should drink cow's milk. And my children will drink milk. It's unavoidable. I'm not going to create any waves in the school system (since milk is all they offer children at lunch), but you better believe that this momma will be giving them a magnesium supplement when they get home, and a bedtime story about vitamins that will put them right to sleep every night.

Next week: why vegetables are bad for you! (kidding..)