Why do some osteoporosis organizations recommend milk?

Have a look at the website of just about any osteoporosis organization and you will see that they recommend dairy milk as a good source of calcium (and by implication a good way of combating osteoporosis).

Here’s an example:  In a press release issued today Professor Dr Chan Siew Pheng, the vice-president of the Malaysian Osteoporosis Society, says:  “High-calcium milk is a good source of calcium and anybody who does not want to have weak bones has to have sufficient calcium in their diet.”

Why do some osteoporosis organizations do this?  Why do they promote dairy milk and calcium by making such announcements?  This question is important because, as explained in The Milk Imperative, all the latest scientific research is saying that dairy milk consumption does not help prevent osteoporosis.  The only research that favours dairy milk is research funded by the pharmaceutical or dairy industries (as this helps them sell more milk and calcium supplements).

And this is a clue!  Check the funding of osteoporosis organizations (or the financial interests of Board members) and you will usually find “links” to pharmaceutical or dairy industries.  The Milk Imperative proves beyond any doubt that consuming more milk and taking calcium supplements has a dramatic effect on the body, greatly increasing the risk of osteoporosis.

Cow's milk intolerance

On Wed, Dec 14, 2005 Reuters issued a press release titled ‘Cow's milk intolerance rare in young adults.’.  Here is a summary:

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Young adults with gastrointestinal disturbances may blame cow's milk for their symptoms. While some type of allergic reaction may be involved, Finnish researchers report, intolerance to cow's milk is usually not the cause.

The researchers in Finland surveyed 827 young people and concluded that some type of allergic reaction to food may cause gastrointestinal symptoms, but that cow's milk is rarely the cause.  SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 2005.

This research fails to indicate whether intestinal discomfort was reported by the milk drinkers.  Only severe gastrointestinal symptoms were tested over a short period.  Furthermore, the research merely involved asking people to fill in a questionnaire.  Any serious study into this subject needs to carry out long-term tests.  Also, the funding for this research is not disclosed, making the validity and objectivity of the research somewhat suspect.  As shown in the book The Milk Imperative, virtually all serious studies into dairy milk allergies clearly show that regular consumption of milk does indeed cause gastrointestinal disturbances.  Free ebook: Osteoporosis Can Be Prevented

Want To Ward Off Osteoporosis As You Age?

HEALTH NEWS (USA) reported on 2 December 05 that “adding a little magnesium to your diet may ward off osteoporosis as you age. A study conducted by the American Geriatrics Society indicates adding a daily dose of 100 milligrams of magnesium could increase bone mineral density by 2 percent per day. Results of were better in white patients. Doctors say a difference in the way the body metabolizes calcium in blacks and whites may account for the discrepancy.”

This is pure baloney:  clearly it is important to get magnesium in your diet and it may well ward off osteoporosis.  But to conclude that blacks and whites ‘metabolize’ calcium differently is complete nonsense.  As proven in The Milk Imperative, blacks living in cold climates get less vitamin D (becasuse of skin pigmentation) and blacks are more lactose intolerant than whites.  These factors affect rates of osteoporosis, not calcium metabolism.  For more information on this subject you can a free ebook: Osteoporosis Can Be Prevented.