Warning: I am not hoping to upset anyone with this post. I am simply hoping to inform. Please do not be offended if you don’t like what I am saying. I am just hoping to raise awareness to an issue that I consider important. If I upset you – I am sorry. It was not my intention.
Okay, that’s it. I’m declaring war against milk. Please don’t think I am attacking you if you give your kids milk. I am not. I am simply attacking the misinformation campaign that makes our society believe that not only is milk necessary for children, but that it’s GOOD for them. YUCK. Honestly, it pisses me off. I’m gonna admit that I believe it’s one of capitalism’s greatest deception. Think of how big the milk industry is.. billions? So why do you think they keep this myth going, all the “got milk” commercials, etc? MONEY MONEY MONEY!
Okay, I know I’m not usually an angry blogger. But this issue makes me really upset. VERY. Because I follow about 20 kid’s blogs, and I read about 6 Yahoo groups for families of children with special needs. And every day I read about kids having GI issues, constipation, tummy aches, pain, food rejection, reflux. Then typically the next thing I read is about their pediasure, or their milk, or something like that. And it makes me so sad. Parents go to a nutritionist who tells them to give their kids pediasure. Day after day after day, meal after meal after meal after meal after meal after meal after meal after meal. Can you imagine how you’d feel if you ate the same exact thing over and over and over again, for every meal, every day, for years? Let me give you an example. I went through an egg-eating phase. Every day for a few months I ate eggs every morning for breakfast. After a few months I noticed I didn’t feel quite right after eating eggs. I had some testing and did an allergy test and voila, I’d become allergic to eats simply because I ate them so much. I hadn’t been allergic months before (according to the test). Then I was allergic. Now think of kids who are given pediasure all the time! To that, add drinking milk every day, which is a known allergen, and give it to your kid day after day after day? Keep in mind, milk often produces an IgG reaction, not an IgE reaction. IgE is the reaction produced when people can’t breathe, who get swollen, etc. That is an IgE reaction. Milk often produces an IgG reaction. Here’s some info about IgG reactionS:
When an allergic reaction occurs, the immune system reacts by releasing cells called antibodies. The foods and inhaled particles that provoke the release of antibodies are called allergens. Two commonly produced antibodies are IgG (immunoglobulin G) and IgE (immunoglobulin E).
Conditions related to IgG allergies:
IgG allergic reactions occur over several hours or days. With an IgG allergic reaction, IgG antibodies attach themselves to the allergen and create an antibody-allergen complex. These complexes are normally removed by special cells in the liver and spleen called macrophages, but if they are present in large numbers and the allergen continues to be consumed, the body isn’t able to remove them fast enough. These allergen-antibody complexes accumulate and are deposited in body tissues, causing the release of inflammation causing chemicals which contribute to a variety of health problems:
Headaches and high blood pressure: may result from deposition of antibody-allergen complexes in blood vessels.
Mood disorders: Deposition of antibody-allergen complexes in nervous system tissues may contribute to hyperactivity, depression, anxiety, inability to concentrate and other mood disorders.
Asthma and recurring respiratory infections: Deposition of antibody-allergen complexes in lung tissue can cause a variety of respiratory problems.
Eczema and other skin conditions: may result from deposition of antibody-allergen complexes in the skin.
Joint pain: may result from deposition of allergen-antibody complexes in joints.
Runny noses and puffiness around the eyes: can result from allergic reactions.
Source: http://www.rmalab.com/index.php?id=13
These are some of the reactions caused by milk. And one of the main ingredients in Pediasure? MILK.
Here are the ingredients in pediasure:
Water, Sugar (Sucrose), Corn Maltodextrin, Milk Protein Concentrate, High Oleic Safflower Oil, Soy Oil, Whey Protein Concentrate, Medium Chain Triglycerides. Less than 0.5% of the following: Soy Protein Isolate, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Cellulose Gel, Dextrose, Potassium Citrate, Magnesium Phosphate, Calcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Salt (Sodium Chloride), Potassium Phosphate, Cellulose Gum, Choline Chloride, Soy Lecithin, Monoglycerides, Ascorbic Acid, Calcium Carbonate, m-Inositol, Carrageenan, Taurine, Ferrous Sulfate, dl-Alpha-Tocopheryl Acetate, L-Carnitine, Zinc Sulfate, Calcium Pantothenate, Niacinamide, Manganese Sulfate, Thiamine Chloride Hydrochloride, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Cupric Sulfate, Vitamin A Palmitate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Chromium Chloride, Potassium Iodide, Potassium Hydroxide, Sodium Selenate, Sodium Molybdate, Phylloquinone, Vitamin D3, and Cyanocobalamin. (FAN 8151-02)
Contains soy and milk ingredients.
Source: http://abbottnutrition.com/products/products.aspx?pid=224
The bolded part, not so good, but the 2nd part, not so bad, right? Lots of vitamins and minerals? But let me ask you a few questions, how do you think these vitamins will be absorbed when they are surrounded by sugar, dairy, and all sorts of chemicals? And did you notice SUGAR was the 2nd ingredient listed? And how do you feel about giving sugar to your kids? Would you give your typical child sugar for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, and dinner every single day? And did you know that vitamins aren’t absorbed by the body just because they’re ingested? Did you know that to process certain vitamins, the body needs to have certain biochemicals present? For example, calcium can’t be absorbed without magnesium present? So just because pediasure has vitamins, it doesn’t necessarily mean that all of the vitamins are being absorbed, especially when they are delivered in a source choc-full of chemicals, dairy, and sugar. Why not give your child regular food and supplement for the vitamins and minerals with a multi-vitamin?
But I digress. I am ranting about milk. But I am also ranting against pediasure (and others like it) because it contains milk and it is one of the single most used products in the special needs world. Why would doctors prescribe these things, if they are harmful? Because medicine still hasn’t caught up to some of these subtle aspects of the body. Slowly slowly they are, but it’s taking them time (time that our kids don’t have). It takes decades to change beliefs in the medical world. Can you believe that only now, in the last couple of years, are doctors believing/understanding brain plasticity? That’s why we’re all told that our kids will not BLAH BLAH BLAH. Because docs believe the brain is fixed and cannot change. What a gross, horrendous misunderstanding!! We have all witnessed the miracles, we have all proven doctors wrong a million times – why can’t we prove them wrong again when it comes to dairy and pediasure?
Back to milk. Milk is NOT GOOD for children. It is believed that kids need milk because they need calcium for their bones to grow. They key is – they need CALCIUM, not milk. Milk is NOT a good source of calcium. There are a TON of other sources of calcium. I just bought Nathan Floradix, a great source of bio-available calcium. There are many others like it.
Here’s a little bit of information regarding the calicum/magnesium combo:
In order to absorb calcium, the body needs comparable amounts of another mineral element, magnesium. Milk and dairy products contain only small amounts of magnesium. Without the presence of magnesium, the body only absorbs 25 percent of the available dairy calcium content. The remainder of the calcium spells trouble. Without magnesium, excess calcium is utilized by the body in injurious ways. The body uses calcium to build the mortar on arterial walls which becomes atherosclerotic plaques. Excess calcium is converted by the kidneys into painful stones which grow in size like pearls in oysters, blocking our urinary tracts. Excess calcium contributes to arthritis; painful calcium buildup often is manifested as gout. The USDA has formulated a chart of recommended daily intakes of vitamins and minerals. The term that FDA uses is Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA). The RDA for calcium is 1500 mg. The RDA for magnesium is 750 mg.
Society stresses the importance of calcium, but rarely magnesium. Yet, magnesium is vital to enzymatic activity. In addition to insuring proper absorption of calcium, magnesium is critical to proper neural and muscular function and to maintaining proper pH balance in the body. Magnesium, along with vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), helps to dissolve calcium phosphate stones which often accumulate from excesses of dairy intake. Good sources of magnesium include beans, green leafy vegetables like kale and collards, whole grains and orange juice. Non-dairy sources of calcium include green leafy vegetables, almonds, asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, oats, beans, parsley, sesame seeds and tofu.
Source: http://www.notmilk.com/deb/092098.html
There is a TON of good information about why dairy is poison in the NOTMILK site, so I won’t continue cutting and pasting here – you get the idea. But I will paste one last final bit of info:
Detox from Dairy
Can you maintain this most important change in your life for
just seven days?That is your challenge and goal, for during that seven day
period of abstaining from all milk and dairy, one gallon of
mucus will be expelled from your kidneys, spleen, pancreas,
and other internal organs. If you still eat cheese, ice
cream, milk chocolate, and yogurt, your one-week experience
will be as if an internal fog has been dispersed from inside
of you.Most people successfully weaning themselves from all milk
and dairy products immediately observe dramatic physical and
emotional changes. Better sleep, more energy, fewer mood
swings. Just seven days to a new you.Take the challenge. Your body will thank you. So will those
who care most about you.If you are daring enough, or doubting enough to think that
your new feelings are mere coincidence, plan a pizza party
with ice cream for dessert after your seven day milk-fast.
Remember the good and bad feelings, for in 15 hours after
your dairy feast, the famine of bad feelings returns.
I’ve done it. I’ve experienced it myself. I found this to be true. If you are afraid of removing dairy for your child, try it yourself first. See how it makes you feel. Then eat dairy, like the challenge says. I promise you will notice a difference. I cheat every once in a while, and boy, do I know it. My stomach hurts, I get heavy and tired, I get foggy, I lose energy. This is what our kids are feeling, without knowing how to articulate it, every single day. It makes me so angry!!!! Because we love our kids and want to do what’s best for them, but we are just not well informed by the medical world! Question – did any of you drink or do drugs while you were pregnant? My guess is the answer is a huge NO. Because you knew it was harmful. But nobody’s yet told us that milk is harmful for our kids so we give it to them anyways, without knowing any better. I want to do my bit in my tiny piece of the world and at least let you know what i know.
Please, I beg you, do some research. Investigate online. You don’t have to believe me. You don’t have to agree with me. All I’m asking you to do is – research. Learn. Then, if you find that what I’m saying can’t be substantiated, then that’s great – you made an informed decision. Remember, all I’m asking you to do here is to make an INFORMED decision. I just want you to have some awareness of this issue. I know I am grateful for the people who insisted I do some research. Removing dairy from Nathan’s diet is one of the absolute best, most wonderful things we have done for him. I am grateful.
I realize I’m almost finished and haven’t said one of the most important things: Casein, the protein that is left when milk is broken down, is very large and very difficult to absorb, especially for children that have central nervous disorders. From Generation Rescue: The simple explanation is that wheat and dairy proteins are very hard for the body to digest, often permeate the gut of children with environmental toxicity, get into the bloodstream where they do not belong, and serve as a neurotoxin creating “brain fog”. I wrote another explanation here: The GFCF diet. This post is already long enough so I can’t get into the specific issues of ingesting dairy for kids with special needs, especially as I already wrote about it in a separate post. But milk (and wheat) is even WORSE for kids with compromised central nervous systems.
Now let me leave you with some quotes from the NOTMILK site:
“Dairy products may play a major role in the development of ALLERGIES, asthma, sleep difficulties, and migraine headaches.”
Israel Journal of Medical Sciences 1983;19(9):806-809 Pediatrics 1989;84(4):595-603
“In reality, cow’s milk, especially processed cow’s milk, has been linked to a variety of health problems, including: mucous production, hemoglobin loss, childhood diabetes, heart disease, atherosclerosis, arthritis, kidney stones, mood swings, depression, irritability, ALLERGIES.”
Townsend Medical Letter, May, 1995, Julie Klotter, MD
“At least 50% of all children in the United States are allergic to cow’s milk, many undiagnosed. Dairy products are the leading cause of food allergy, often revealed by diarrhea, constipation, and fatigue. Many cases of asthma and sinus infections are reported to be relieved and even eliminated by cutting out dairy.”
Natural Health, July, 1994, Nathaniel Mead, MD
“Formula-fed babies, at the age of three months, were secreting low levels of serum antibodies to bovine proteins contained in their formula.”
“A Prospective Study of Humoral Immune Response to Cow Milk Antigens in the First Year of Life” Pediatric-Allergy-Immunology, August, 1994, 5(3)
“Most formula fed infants developed symptoms of ALLERGIC rejection to cow milk proteins before one month of age. About 50-70% experienced rashes or other skin symptoms, 50-60 percent gastrointestinal symptoms, and 20-30 percent respiratory symptoms. The recommended therapy is to avoid cow’s milk.”
“Epidemiological and Immunological Aspects of Cow’s Milk Protein ALLERGY and Intolerance in Infancy.” Pediatric-Allergy-Immunology, August, 1994, 5(5 Suppl.)
By the way, these are the ingredients in a twinkie, not so different from Pediasure, huh:
“Enriched wheat flour, (niacin, a “B” vitamin), ferrous sulfate (iron), thiamin mononitrate (B1), riboflavin (B2), water, sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated vegetable and/or animal shortening (contains one or more of: canola, corn, cottonseed or soybean oil, beef fat), eggs, dextrose. Contains 2% or less of: modified food starch, whey, leavenings (sodium and pyrophosphate, baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), salt, starch, yellow corn flour, corn syrup solids, emulsifiers mono and diglycerides, lecithin, polysorbate 60, dextrin, calcium caseinate, sodium stearoyl, lactylate, cellulose gum, wheat gluten, natural and artificial flavors, caramel color, artificial colors (yellow 5, red 40), sorbic acid (to retain freshness).”