Every day more and more people are developing intolerance’s to dairy products. This means no more of your favorite treats like ice cream, yoghurt, cheeses, whey protein powders, and of course milk. So why is this?

My personal guess is we aren’t really meant to consume dairy in the first place.

You see…

Consuming dairy products in the form of cheeses, milk, and delicious yoghurts all contribute to making our bodies really acidic. In fact according to Dr Hyman, diary is only a perfect food for a baby calf!

giving up diary

I understand telling people they shouldn’t eat dairy is one of the hardest things in the world because so many dairy farmers pay top-notch advertisers to condition you to believe it’s essential for your health.

In fact – Did you know that dairy farms fund most of the ‘research’ that goes into the standard food pyramid?

To me it looks like they’re only looking out for their bottom line and not your health. So please, please take some time to hear me out and to do some research on your own before believing that the creamy white stuff is essential for your health. In the end it’s completely your choice if you want to  give up dairy, and after you discover the truth, the choice is in your hands.

 

But first…let’s cover the facts.

 

Walter Willet, M.D., Ph.D.,  the second-most-cited scientist in all of clinical medicine and the head of nutrition at Harvard’s School of Public Health, has done countless studies and also reviewed  a dozen other researchers on this topic of dairy.

After all of this research, he has boiled his findings down into 6 simple statements:

  1. Milk weakens bones! According to the Nurse’s health study, drinking dairy increases your risk of bone fractures by 50%
  2. Dairy Causes Osteoporosis– Countries such as Asia and Africa have the lowest rate of osteoporosis because they don’t consume dairy.
  3. Calcium doesn’t make your bones strong– It’s actually Vitamin D that makes your bones stronger. Vitamin D , which is found in fatty fishes such as salmon, mackerel, herring, trout, and halibut (just to name a few!) contain higher contents of vitamin D than dairy products, right behind these fatty fishes is in fact Soy products such as soy milk and firm tofu. So tell me why you need to drink milk again?
  4. Calcium, not dairy may help prevent colon cancer- Calcium supplements, not dairy products (as you’re made to believe) may help prevent colon cancer
  5. Calcium may increase cancer risk by 50%–  too high intakes of calcium and dairy may increase men’s risk of prostate cancer by 30-50%. Additionally diary consumers have an increase in their insulin-like growth factor-1- a known cancer promoter!
  6. 75% of people can not genetically stomach dairy products– majority of the population is born lactose intolerant, which actually gets worse with age.

 

Plus dairy may be linked to even more negative health benefits such as:

 

  • Asthma
  • Sinus Problems
  • Increased Phlegm in throat
  • Obesity and Weight gain
  • Ear Infections
  • Type 1 diabetes
  • Chronic Constipation
  • Anaemia (in children)
  • Chronic Inflammation
  • Aging
  • Acne (poor skin)
  • Chronic digestive Problems (IBS)
  • Increase Cancer Risks

 

Dairy Isn’t The Only Source Of Essential Vitamins And Minerals

 

According to the National food Pyramid dairy consumption is good for calcium intake, vitamin D, iron, and B Vitamins. But they seem to skip the part where dairy is not the only place you can get these minerals.

Thankfully, there are many other great ways to get your consumption of calcium, iron, vitamin D, and B Vitamins and you can find them naturally in foods such as:

  • Almonds (Calcium, B Vitamins and Iron)
  • Kale (Iron and B Vitamins)
  • Oranges (calcium and B Vitamins)
  • Broccoli (Calcium and B Vitamins)
  • Figs (Calcium and B Vitamins)
  • Spinach (Iron and B Vitamins)
  • Enriched rice, almond, hemp and coconut milks
  • Sesame seeds (calcium)
  • Salmon (calcium and B Vitamins)
  • Tofu (calcium and B Vitamins)
  • Beans (Iron and B Vitamins)
  • Dark Leafy Greens (calcium, B Vitamins, and iron rich)
  • peas (iron and B Vitamins)

 

Additionally you’ll be amazed at how little of these minerals we actually need in a day. Below are the daily recommended intakes of the minerals contained in dairy:

 

* µg equals microgram and there are 1000µg per mg

  • 1000mg of calcium per day
  • 400 µg Folate (B-complex)
  • 1.4mg B1 (thiamine)
  • 1.6mg B2 (riboflavin)
  • 18mg B3 (Niacin)
  • 6mg B5 (pantothenic acid)
  • 2mg B6 (pyridoxine)
  • 6 µg of B12 (Cobalamin)

This means you can easily get your daily dose of “essential” vitamins and minerals from eating a plant-based a diet (except for Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D, which I explain further below)

 

How to get your calcium without milk

 

You can easily get your daily calcium intake (1000 mg) in a very easy to consume, natural way according to Harvard University. By combining the data from Harvard, and the U.S National Library of medicine, below I’ve created a simple food list that ensure you get your full 1000mg of highly bio-available calcium

  1. 1 cup cooked spinach (120mg)
  2. 1 cup cooked green cabbage (280mg)
  3. 110g cooked Broccoli (310 mg)
  4. 1 200ml glass of soymilk (210mg)
  5. 30g Raw almonds (75mg)

Some people would rather consume Calcium supplements to get their daily doses and that is an easier option too.

Where can you get B Vitamins from if you don’t drink dairy?

 

 

And for the B vitamins, it’s really simple. You just need to consume the following food sources to feel rest-assured about getting your recommended daily doses:

Vitamin B1 (thiamine)

Food Source: Green peas, sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts, soymilk, beans (butter beans, kidney beans, black beans etc.), tahini paste (sesame seeds), asparagus, whole-grains, Pinenuts, and spirulina.

Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)

Food Source: whole-grains, almonds, sesame seeds, spinach, buckwheat, quinoa, and soy milk.

Vitamin B3 (Niacin)

Food Source: spirulina, peanuts (peanut butter), millet, chia seeds, wild rice, green peas, avocado, sunflower seeds, tahini paste, baby red new potatoes, and tomatoes.

Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)

Food Source: Sunflower seeds (sunbutter), whole-grains, broccoli, avocados, tomatoes, and soymilk.

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)

Food Source: All soy products, peanut butter, almonds, green peas, avocado, hemp seeds, spirulina, chia seeds, beans (butter beans, kidney beans, black beans etc.), chickpeas, squash, pumpkin, brussel sprouts, green beans, garlic, sage, Kale, collard, and peppers (red capsicum).

Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin)

Food Source: All organic non-gmo soy products, spirulina (largest content of B12) you see- you don’t have to consume almost a litre of milk a day to get your intake of B vitamins and that most definitely includes Vitamin D.

 

Even the most common fortified food in the Western diet—cow’s milk—doesn’t have enough vitamin D to meet daily needs. It takes 1 ½ quarts to provide the vitamin D RDA – One Green Planet Org

 

So why do we need Vitamin D anyway?

 

It’s really vitamin D, not calcium that is responsible for all the benefits that we’ve been promoted all these years. Here are just a few of the health benefits of D3:

  • Healthy bones
  • Reduced risk of type 2 diabetes
  • Healthy Infants
  • Healthy pregnancy
  • Cancer prevention
  • Weight Loss
  • Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease
  • Reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease
  • Reduced risk of hypertension
  • Reduced risk of multiple sclerosis
  • Reduced risk of autism
  • Reduced risk of asthma

 

For ultimate health our here is our daily recommended Vitamin D intake:

  • 0-50 years: 5 micrograms/ day
  • 51-70 years: 10 micrograms/ day
  • 71+: 15 micrograms/ day

 

So now you have this in mind, you can get most of your vitamin D from fatty fish oils such as:

  • Cod liver oil, 1 tablespoon: 34 mcg
  • Herring, fresh, raw, 4 ounces (114g): 27 mcg
  • Swordfish, cooked, 4 ounces (114g): 23mcg
  • Salmon, sockeye, cooked, 4 ounces (114g): 15mcg
  • Sardines, canned, 4 ounces (114 g): 8 mcg

Alternatively you can get them from Vitamin D3 supplements, which are easily found in your nearest chemist.

So why am I going through so much details about these vitamins and minerals?

 

It’s because I want you to know that you definitely don’t need to consume dairy products to get the vitamins and minerals that the dairy industry has been convincing you need for so long. But rather you can get better quality sources from a purely plant based diet.

Look, Dairy Farmers are always going to look for ways to convince you that you need to consume dairy products. I simply ask that you think for second and ask yourself – Are they truly looking out for you, or for their bottom line?

The dairy industry in USA is worth $140 Billion, and $14 Billion in Australia. Therefore they clearly have leverage to make sure you keep eating your dairy, so they can keep growing profits even if it’s at the expense of your health.

I understand for many dairy is food gold, I have friends who would rather die than give up their brie cheese, ice-cream or favorite yoghurts and that’s completely fine.

I just wanted you to know the facts, so you can make a decision that works for you and your beliefs. In the end if you’re consuming dairy products because you think it’s important for good health, I then hope this article has helped you think otherwise 🙂

I dare you to give dairy up for a whole 2 weeks! so you can see how you feel. And so to help you deal with this temporary transition I have made a few super mega awesome dairy-free recipes, which are calcium, iron and vitamin B rich.

Question of the day:

What’s the hardest dairy product you had to give up or would be for you to give up?

For me, it was Yoghurt! I freaking LOVED yoghurt. I could seriously eat it all-day and everyday, literally. I probably went through 900g of yoghurt in one sitting and it was pretty easy for me.

I don’t miss it at all now, funny that?