Dairy

Being from Minnesota, and right next door to Wisconsin, we are very familiar with dairy. Going to the MN state fair you can’t miss Princess Kay of the Milky Way carved in butter!

There are many different thoughts about eating dairy products. Here I will explain the main points and let you decide if and how you would like dairy to be a part of your diet. What I hope to do is peak your interest to research more so that you find what works for you.

Pro – Milk

Most doctors are still recommending three servings a day of low fat or fat free dairy. This can include milk, cheese and yogurt. The National Dairy Council says that the vitamins and minerals found in dairy products help promote bone health, heart health and healthy weight management.

Anti – Milk

The other side talks about how most people on the planet are not regular milk drinkers.  When you think about it. How did we even start to drink milk? Who’s idea was it to start drinking milk from a cow? It does seem strange when you think about it. People that oppose dairy products claim that dairy does not do a body good. In fact dairy products cause many of our bodily complaints and diseases.

Raw Milk

There is even another movement for the case for raw milk. What is raw milk? Raw milk is pretty much straight from the cow. It is not pasteurized or homogenized. From what I have researched if you would like to try raw milk at least in Minnesota, you must buy it from small local farms that feed their cows only organic green grass. People that drink raw milk say that milk loses all of its benefits once it has been processed. They say that the benefits of raw milk include higher amounts of nutrients including calcium, live enzymes, and beneficial bacteria. Pasteurization destroys the bad stuff in milk but it also destroys the good stuff.

Whole Milk and Weight Loss

Whole milk products can actually help you lose weight! A study conducted in Sweden found that women who ate one serving of full fat milk or cheese a day lost more weight than women who didn’t over a nine year period. Why is this?  It is for a couple reasons. First, milk naturally contains vitamins A and D. These vitamins are fat soluble meaning they need fat to be absorbed into your body. When you take the fat out, your body can’t absorb them anymore. When the milk industry takes out the fat the vitamins are lost as well. They then have to be put back in the milk. But our bodies can’t absorb them anymore. Second, whole milk contains glycosphingolipids which improve your immune system and cell metabolism. Third, saturated fats are not as bad for us as previously thought. Our bodies need healthy fat for proper body composition and weight maintenance. Lastly, read the low fat page on my site. It just doesn’t make sense to eat foods that are altered from their natural state by taking the fat out.  We are natural and organic why not eat food the way nature intended?

Our family eats full fat dairy products and we don’t have a problem with weight or health issues that are supposedly connected to fat. We try to stay as close to the real thing as possible.  We also make sure we eat dairy from cows that are hormone and antibiotic free. Because they have fat they are more satisfying and therefore we can eat a little and feel full. This doesn’t mean we eat a lot of fat. Always in moderation.

Again, doctors are recommending low fat and fat free dairy products. If you have health issues please consult with your doctor before trying something new.

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