Vegetable milk!
Vegetable Milk.
In my mother’s kitchen, there were some sacred ingredients. Butter, cow’s milk and garlic.
So when I began to realize that the cows that bring this treasure, were badly treated by man, but above all, the food they ingest, found itself in the shape of steak on my plate and milk, in my glass. As a result, I stopped using it almost overnight, without following any fashion or conviction.
Not to mention, all the literature on the subject. Hundreds of articles about the dairy lobby, which would push consumption through false health recommendations, I could no longer ignore that the problem was real.
Cases of Cancer and Diabetes cow’s milk. I set out to dig into the issue, change the way I feed myself using vegetable milk.
No more believing in the ads of good natural, healthy and delicious milk that would be responsible for many diseases, because of the antibiotics injected to cows to produce more milk. Pesticides (glyphosate and others) that soak the food ingested by our dairy cows.
Calcium, a bad pretext!
Here’s what I found out.
“Dairy
products are our friends for life”
because they allow us to strengthen our bones with calcium. Remember the cute little skeletons in the commercial?
It’s a good joke. Of course, our bones contain calcium, but cow’s milk is not the best source.
It is true that we must continue to take calcium once our growth is complete.
Calcium maintains the balance of our blood pH at 7.4 permanently. At the slightest acidification of the blood, our body takes calcium from our bones to basify our blood, that is to say to rebalance its pH.
We risk osteoporosis, without additional regular intake, decalcification of the bones that weakens them and increases the risk of fractures.
Drinking a lot of milk does not reduce the risk of a fracture. This is demonstrated by a 2011 study, published in the
American Journal of Public Health
.
The researchers behind the study followed nearly 80,000 women, aged 34 to 59, over a 12-year period.
As a result, higher milk or calcium intake does not change the fracture rate. The calcium cycle in our bodies is particularly complex.
Several other trace elements and vitamins come into play. A fragile balance is established between contradictory phenomena. For example, milk proteins contribute to bone formation, but also help to acidify the blood and thus increase calcium intake.
Fortunately, many foods are as high in calcium as milk and have an equivalent or better bioavailability. Milk offers a calcium bioavailability of 30 on average. This means that 30 of the calcium ingested is metabolized by the body.
This is comparable to the bioavailability of calcium found in… Tap water!
Obesity, diabetes, cancer: false threats
More seriously, consumption of milk, in too large quantities, is accused of being a risk factor for several diseases.
In the 2000s, the hypothesis of a link between dairy consumption and obesity emerged. Modern milk is said to be too high in sugars and fats.
You can find a bunch of controversial theories on the net about it.
As for the link between milk and cancer, the most contradictory theories are circulating. The growth hormones given to cows would promote the mutation of our cells.
We don’t know how, but the theory is seductive.
The synthesis published in 2018 by the World Cancer Research Forum
makes a rather reassuring point. Limited evidence (
limited evidence
) indicate a positive link between dairy consumption and prostate cancer, one of the least serious cancers.
On the other hand, limited evidence for breast cancer and strong evidence for colon cancer indicate that dairy products would protect against both cancers.
To date, there is no scientific research of a danger associated with milk consumption.
On the other hand, we are beginning to hear claims about the benefits of vegetable milk, it would contain far more nutritional and bioavailability benefits than in animal milk, such as certain vegetables, oilseeds and fish:
- Chinese cabbage (twice as much calcium, and even bioavailability);
- almonds (twice as much calcium);
- sardines (with bones, 175 mg of calcium per 100 g versus 130 mg for milk);
- watercress (same calcium content, but twice as much assimilated).
The history of milk and calcium, is a PURE invention of the pro-milk industrial lobby.
In addition, the drop in recommendation on the benefits of dairy products has been very noticeable since 2017 in the Euro area.
Cows that only eat GM foods?
Intensive industrial farming shows that cows no longer eat a single blade of grass. As a result, the milk in our supermarkets has little to do with the milk our grandparents consumed.
Today’s cows come from breeds selected to the extreme for productivity reasons.
In industrial farms, it is not uncommon for a cow to produce up to 50 litres of milk a day, 10 times more than 50 years ago!
Since the early 1970s, farmers have been replacing some of the grass with maize, between 25 and 60, depending on the region. The addition of corn doubles milk production!
This means that our cows consume GMOswhen their feed is imported. But also that the ratio between omega-6 and omega-3 has been degraded. The more corn they eat, the more omega-6 milk cows produce.
The productivity gain was therefore accompanied by a significant loss of milk quality nutritionally. In addition, intensive breeding promotes infections and diseases in animals.
The use of antibiotics is therefore ubiquitous.
Industrial milk and milk from the small organic farmer are two very different products, you will understand!
And as much as the quantity, the quality of your milk will be decisive.
Fresh milk, organic milk, unprocessed milk, even if you pay twice as much since you will drink half as much.
Finally the alternatives to milk are much more interesting, have I found peace in my body?
Hazelnut, soy, almond milk, cashews, buckwheat, rice, etc. These new drinks have been flourishing on the shelves of our supermarkets in recent years.
What about the nutritional qualities of these plantmilks, compared to that of our good Fleurette? Should they be drunk in addition or instead of cow’s milk?
Today we have the choice, that of deciding for ourselves and our family what we think is more suited to our well-being. From a nutritional point of view but also ethically.
In 2020, more than in the past, we are all facing changes in eating habits. We need to make changes, because the world has evolved and this evolution is present at all levels. Agriculture and technology are forcing us to adapt to a world that is changing faster and faster.
So without entering into an endless debate, our diet is the basis of our body and mental health, which will allow us to remain active and in full possession of our faculties, as long as possible.
Everyone will find their way and make the choice that suits them, I chose to remove animal milk, to avoid certain diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. I am not saying that organic vegetable milk is the panacea, but I am taking fewer risks than using GMO cow’s milk. If our dairy cows graze in the grass pastures without pesticides, I will change my long gun. I am not sure that in the next decade, awareness will be enough to stop intensive agriculture, the economic stakes are far too powerful.
Some nutritional figures:
Cow’s milk 240ml Almond Rice Oats Soy
- EnergyKcal 149 60 120 130 99.6
- protein 7.69 1 1 4 7
- lipids 7.98 2.5 2.5 2.5 4
- carbohydrates 12.80 8 23 24 8
- Fibers 0 1 0 2 1.5
- Calcium 276 450 20 350 450
- Vit D 124 150 0 150 180
The numbers speak for themselves, it is soy milk that wins the vote at all levels. Low fat, high energy and a higher amount of calcium than in cow’s milk. The ideal is to consume it organically and made in short circuit.
Take care of yourself.
