What we are really eating... at least in the U.S.

[Monica]

Monica, I'm aware you have strong feelings about foods. But these are your interpretations of your experiences.. I do not have your experiences,

That's right. I was just sharing my experiences. They might be useful to someone. Also, there are many opposing viewpoints on diet. For every alternative doctor saying milk causes excess mucous conditions, there is another doctor saying milk is healthy.

I agree that each person has to decide for themselves. My point is that milk isn't necessarily the health food that the conventional medical system and dairy industry tell us it is, via the mainstream media. There is enormous controversy regarding all animal foods, especially milk. (Diet is inherently controversial anyway. It's now trendy for some alternative doctors to advise against eating fruit. Can you believe it??)

Each person can decide for themselves what to do with that controversy. My point is only that there is controversy. Milk is sort of taken for granted as a 'health food' especially for children. The general population don't even question what they've been taught about milk.

You are apparently lucky in that you are able to digest milk. But many people aren't so lucky, and they have chronic colds and mucous conditions while being clueless that milk may be the culprit. In addition, it's indisputable that conventional, pasteurized, factory-farmed milk is laced with strong hormones. That is reason enough to question the heavy consumption of milk currently advocated by our society. Especially for children who are now developing early.

Raw unprocessed milk is good when it comes straight from the cow into your stomach. This is how it works in life. The milk goes straight into the baby.

I have no issue with raw milk from clean, free-ranging cows.

The milk hasn't evolved to be stored. Raw milk is very nourishing. Including to bacteria. Raw milk is therefore highly susceptible to being infected with pathogens. And in spite the fact that the vast majority of people tend to drink processed milk. Unprocessed milk still causes most deaths. Pasteurization is a life saver. Yes this kills off some beneficial ingredients but it kills of the killer ingredients.

Raw milk doesn't cause deaths here in the US, where raw milk dairies use sanitary measures and the cows are healthy. Of course, in countries where the cows aren't healthy or clean, that is just one among many other hygiene problems. Look at how many people in the world still die from starvation and contaminated water!

But pasteurizing already dirty milk isn't the solution to those in such impoverished conditions. It's just trading one problem for another. They would be so much healthier if they could eat the grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables directly instead of feeding those precious foods to cows. Vegetarian food production is much more efficient.

But I digress...