MILK AND CALCIUM
Meat contains little calcium. It is true that milk products contain significant amounts of calcium, however, there are reasons why one should not rely on milk as a source of calcium. The calcium in milk is calcium phosphate, and it is only 25 percent absorbable. If you really want to drink your calcium, drink calcium-fortified orange juice, which contains calcium citrate, which is 100% absorbable. Milk contains little magnesium, and the body cannot turn calcium into bone without the presence of magnesium. When there is insufficient magnesium, calcium, instead of going into the bones, turns into kidney stones and atherosclerotic plaque and the arthritic buildup which results in gout. The recommended daily allowance for calcium in the United States is 1500 mg.; for magnesium 750 mg.
Milk contains little of the potassium our bodies crave and too much of the phosphorus we already have too much of. Milk contains little vitamin C and iron, and heavy cow milk consumption in children is associated with anemia.
Milk products are high in protein, particularly the high-sulphur proteins which tend to acidify the blood and require the body to draw calcium from our bones. Most people who consume animal products get too much protein. (See the section of this book entitled Dairy Products, Osteoporosis, and Animal Based Foods, p. 261.)
Milk products are also high in fats and calories. Nonfat milk is no better; while it is low in fats, it is still high in the high-sulphur proteins we do not need. Another problem with commercial milk is that it is homogenized, beaten into tiny balls of fat which contain small, undigested protein particles. These balls of fat are so small that they can pass through the walls of the intestine undigested, right into the bloodstream. You will have foreign proteins in your blood which can cause allergic reactions.
Milk is low in essential fatty acids and contains only fats we do not need. Why do calves thrive on cow’s milk which is low in iron, low in magnesium, low in potassium, and low in essential fatty acids? Because calves also eat grass, which is rich in all the things milk is low in.
Good plant-based sources of calcium include leafy green vegetables, asparagus, blackstrap molasses, nutritional yeast, broccoli, cabbage, carob, sea vegetables, figs, hazelnuts, mustard greens, oats, prunes, sesame tahini, lamb’s quarter, fennel, and flax. While spinach, chard, beet greens, and parsley are high in calcium, they also contain oxalic acid which, to some extent, interferes with calcium absorption. Tofu is an excellent source of calcium if it is set with calcium sulphate or calcium lactone, as most tofu is. (Read the label and look for the ingredient nagari.)
Tums contains calcium, but for a person to get calcium supplementation from eating Tums, he would be eating so many Tums that his stomach acid would be neutralized to the extent that the calcium could not be absorbed. (See Robert Cohen’s Not Milk web site at www.NotMilk.Com. See Balch & Balch, Prescription for Nutritional Healing, p. 24.)
CALCIUM AND PHOSPHORUS BALANCE
Our bones contain half as much phosphorus as they do calcium, and 85 percent of the body’s phosphorus is found in the bones. Phosphorus is found in most foods, and phosphorus deficiency is never a problem; however, phosphorus excess can be a problem. In mother’s milk the calcium-phosphorus ratio is 2.3 to 1. The ideal ratio is 2 to 1 or greater. (Recommended Daily Allowance, 10th Ed.) In cow milk the ratio is only 1.3 to 1, and at this ratio the excess phosphorus, in the form of calcium phosphate, interferes with calcium absorption. The ratio in meat, chicken, and fish—excluding bone—is 1 to 15 or 1 to 20, which is far too much phosphorus in relation to calcium. Leafy green vegetables, on the other hand, contain more calcium than phosphorus. (L.L. Oenning, et. al., “Accuracy of methods Estimating Calcium and Phosphorus Intake in Daily Diets,” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 88:1076-1078, 1978; Sally J. Rockwell, “Dietary Management Using Non-Dairy Sources of Calcium,” p. 25.)
MAGNESIUM
Magnesium is essential for calcium absorption. It is an important constituent of the synovial fluid which lubricates joints. The best sources of magnesium are nuts, legumes, whole grains containing the germ and outer layer, green vegetables, and bananas. Foods low in magnesium include dairy products, meat, fish, meat, and fruit other than bananas. (Sally J. Rockwell, Dietary Management Using Non-Dairy Sources of Calcium, p. 26; Udo Erasmus, Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill, p. 330 ff.)
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For a wealth of information on milk see Robert Cohen’s extensive website, http://www.notmilk.com/.
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There may be a causal connection between milk and type 1 diabetes.
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