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Unhealthy dogma means unhealthy food
Part 5: Conclusion
But what about calcium?
Milk is touted as a great natural source of calcium, and we are told to eat plenty of calcium to prevent osteoporosis, or thinning of the bones. Sadly, eating available dairy products can increase the rate at which calcium is lost from the body and so hasten calcium deficiency diseases.
A recent meta-analysis found that a low intake of milk was not associated with any important increase in fracture risk in either men or women.[19]
Conclusion
Milk should be, and could be, an important food source. It would be a shame to give it up. But current dietary dogma and processing methods have ruined it as a healthy food at this time.
Low-fat milk, milk processing and the other dietary modifications to make animal fats ‘healthier' are crimes against nature.
But they aren't the only ones. There are many examples from genetic modification to hormone controls, to developing animals such as Belgian Blue cattle that have double muscles and are too big to be born other than by Caesarian section — which is unnatural, dangerous and expensive. And with only one aim: to produce leaner meat, which makes it tougher, tasteless and much less healthy to eat.
In our arrogant tinkering with natural foods to make them ‘healthier', we have inadvertently created a health crisis not only for us but for our farm animals.
How long will it be before we learn that whenever we attempt to ‘improve' on Nature, we end up paying for it with our health?
Reference
[19]. Kanis JA, Johansson H, Oden A, et al. A meta-analysis of milk intake and fracture risk: low utility for case finding. Osteoporos Int 2005; 16: 799-804.
Last updated 1 December 2008
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