Guest guest Posted May 24, 2001 Report Share Posted May 24, 2001 ________________________________________________ > > " The myth that osteoporosis is caused by calcium > deficiency was created to sell dairy products and > calcium supplements. There's no truth to it. American > women are among the biggest consumers of calcium > in the world, and they still have one of the highest > levels of osteoporosis in the world. And eating even > more dairy products and calcium supplements is not > going to change that fact. " > -Dr. McDougall > The McDougall Program for Women (2000) > > Osteoporosis is a debilitating disease characterized > by low bone mass and deteriorating bone tissue that > affects tens of millions of Americans and causes 1.5 > million fractures annually. The annual cost of treatment > totals more than $10 billion. While some people suffering > from osteoporosis experience recurring back pain, loss > of height, and spinal deformities, many don't even know > they have the disease until a bone fracture occurs. > > According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, > one in two women over the age of 50, and one in eight > men, will experience an osteoporosis-related fracture. > > The dairy industry has a powerful hold on the nutrition > industry in this country; it pays huge numbers of > dietitians, doctors, and researchers to push dairy, > spending more than $300 million annually, just at the > national level, to retain a market for its products. The > dairy industry has infiltrated schools, bought off sports > stars, celebrities, and politicians, pushing all the while > an agenda based on profit, rather than public health. > > Dr. Walter Willett, a veteran nutrition researcher at > the Harvard School of Public Health, says that > calcium consumption " has become like a religious > crusade, " overshadowing true preventive measures > such as physical exercise. To hear the dairy industry > tell it, if you consume three glasses of milk daily, > your bones will be stronger, and you can rest safely > knowing that osteoporosis is not in your future. > > Despite the dairy industry funding study after study > to try to prove its claims, Dr. McDougall, upon > examining all the available nutritional studies and > evidence, concludes: > > " The primary cause of osteoporosis is the high-protein > diet most Americans consume today. As one leading > researcher in this area said, '[E]ating a high-protein > diet is like pouring acid rain on your bones.' " Remarkably > enough, if dairy has any effect, both clinical and > population evidence strongly implicate dairy in causing, > rather than preventing, osteoporosis. That the dairy > industry would lull unsuspecting women and children > into complacency by telling them, essentially, drink more > milk and your bones will be fine, may make good > business sense, but it does the public a grave disservice. > > Most of the world's peoples do not consume cow's > milk, and yet most of the world does not experience the > high rates of osteoporosis found in the West. In Asian > countries, for example, where consumption of dairy > foods is low (and where women tend to be thin and > small-boned, universally accepted risk factors for > osteoporosis), fracture rates are much lower than > they are in the United States and in Scandinavian > countries, where consumption of dairy products i > s considerably higher. > > But don't take our word for it; examine the science > for yourself: > > One study, funded by the National Dairy Council, involved > giving a group of postmenopausal women three 8-ounce glasses > of skim milk per day for two years and comparing their bones > to those of a control group of women not given the milk. The > dairy group consumed 1,400 mg of calcium per day and > lost bone at twice the rate of the control group. According to > the researchers, " This may have been due to the average 30 > percent increase in protein intake during milk supplementation ... > The adverse effect of increases in protein intake on calcium > balance has been reported from several laboratories, including > our own " (they then cite 10 other studies). Says McDougall, > > " Needless to say, this finding did not reach the six o'clock > news. " > > After looking at 34 published studies in 16 countries, > researchers at Yale University found that countries with the > highest rates of osteoporosis-including the United States, > Sweden, and Finland-are those in which people consume > the most meat, milk, and other animal foods. This study > also showed that African Americans, who consume, on > average, more than 1,000 mg of calcium per day, are nine > times more likely to experience hip fractures than are South > African blacks, whose daily calcium intake is only 196 mg. > Says McDougall, " [O]n a nation-by-nation basis, people who > consume the most calcium have the weakest bones and the > highest rates of osteoporosis. ... Only in those places where > calcium and protein are eaten in relatively high quantities > does a deficiency of bone calcium exist, due to an excess > of animal protein. " > > Harvard University's landmark Nurses Health Study, which > followed 78,000 women over a 12-year period, found that > the women who consumed the most calcium from dairy > foods broke more bones than those who rarely drank milk. > Summarizing this study, the Lunar Osteoporosis Update > (November 1997) explained: " This increased risk of hip > fracture was associated with dairy calcium . If this were > any agent other than milk, which has been so aggressively > marketed by dairy interests, it undoubtedly would be > considered a major risk factor. " > > A National Institutes of Health study out of the University > of California, published in the American Journal of Clinical > Nutrition (2001), found that; > > " Women who ate most of their protein from animal sources > had three times the rate of bone loss and 3.7 times the rate > of hip fractures of women who ate most of their protein from > vegetable sources. " Even though the researchers adjusted > " for everything we could think of that might otherwise explain > the relationship . it didn't change the results. " The study's > conclusion: " [A]n increase in vegetable protein intake and a > decrease in animal protein intake may decrease bone loss > and the risk of hip fracture. " > > Another study published in the American Journal of Clinical > Nutrition (2000) looked at all aspects of diet and bone health > and found that high consumption of fruits and vegetables > positively affect bone health and that dairy consumption did > not. Such findings do not surprise nutritional researchers: > According to Dr. Neal Barnard, author of Turn Off the Fat > Genes (2001) and several other books on diet and health, > the calcium absorption from vegetables is as good as or > better than that from milk. Calcium absorption from milk is > approximately 30 percent, while figures for broccoli, > Brussels sprouts, mustard greens, turnip greens, kale, and > some other leafy green vegetables range between 40 > percent and 64 percent. > > After reviewing studies on the link between protein intake > and urinary calcium loss, nutritional researcher P. > Heaney found that as consumption of protein increases, so > does the amount of calcium lost in the urine (Journal of > the American Dietetic Association, 1993): " This effect has > been documented in several different study designs for more > than 70 years, " he writes, adding, " [T]he net effect is such > that if protein intake is doubled without changing intake of > other nutrients, urinary calcium content increases by about > 50 percent. " > > Researchers from the University of Sydney and Westmead > Hospital discovered that consumption of dairy foods, especially > early in life, increases the risk of hip fractures in old age > (American Journal of Epidemiology, 1994). > > Finally, an analysis of all research conducted since 1985, > published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2000), > concluded: > > " If dairy food intakes confer bone health, one might > expect this to have been apparent from the 57 outcomes, > which included randomized, controlled trials and longitudinal > cohort studies involving 645,000 person-years. " > > The researchers go on to lament that " there have been few > carefully designed studies of the effects of dairy foods on bone > health, " and then to conclude with typical scientific reserve > that: > > " The body of scientific evidence appears inadequate > to support a recommendation for daily intake of dairy foods > to promote bone health in the general U.S. population. " > > What we do know is that osteoporosis rates decline markedly > as body weight, exercise, and caloric intake rise. Corroborating > the researchers' lament about bad studies, only three studies > have factored caloric intake into the analysis; two of them > found no correlation between dairy intake and osteoporosis. > The other found a positive link; that is, the more milk consumed, > the higher the fracture risk (Harvard Nurses Study, see above). > > The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2000) study cited > above argued that since we know for certain that total caloric > intake and body weight are positively associated with bone > mass, such factors are " particularly important " in any study > of osteoporosis and bone mass. > > Is the dairy industry ignoring these factors by design > in its clinical studies, perhaps because dairy consumers > tend to be heavier and to consume more calories than > those consuming fewer (or no) dairy products? It is > remarkable that the dairy industry can't get the results > it's looking for, since dairy consumption does tend to > make people heavier. Even though dairy researchers > ignore this factor, most studies still show no relationship, > and some indicate that milk causes osteoporosis. If the > tendencies of those who consume more dairy to be > heavier and to consume more calories were accounted for, > would the studies indicating no link show, in fact, that > dairy intake causes osteoporosis, like the Harvard School > of Public Health study? That would bring clinical analysis > into line with the population analysis, which clearly states > that increased dairy consumption is linked to increased > risk for osteoporosis. > > So what can I do for strong bones? > > Osteoporosis is a horrible disease, and although the > evidence is strong that dairy consumption doesn't > prevent it, simply eliminating dairy products does not > ensure that it won't afflict you. And if, like most people > who consume no meat or dairy, you are slender, you > should be sure to put some thought (and effort) into > keeping your bones healthy. > > What the evidence does dictate as useful for strong bones is: > > . Getting enough vitamin D (if you don't spend any time in the > sun, be sure to take a supplement or eat fortified foods). > > . Eliminating animal protein (for a variety of reasons, animal > protein causes severe bone deterioration). > > . Limiting alcohol consumption (alcohol is toxic to the cells > that form bones and inhibits the absorption of calcium). > > . Limiting salt intake (sodium leaches calcium out of the bones) > > . Not smoking (studies have shown that women who smoke one > pack of cigarettes a day have 5 to 10 percent less bone density > at menopause than nonsmokers). > > . Getting plenty of exercise. Studies have concluded that physical > exercise is the key to building strong bones (more important than > any other factor). For example, a study published in the British > Medical Journal, which followed 1,400 men and women over > a 15-year period, found that exercise may be the best protection > against hip fractures and that " reduced intake of dietary calcium > does not seem to be a risk factor. " And Penn State University > researchers found that bone density is significantly affected by > how much exercise girls get during their teen years, when 40 > to 50 percent of their skeletal mass is developed. Consistent > with previous research, the Penn State study, which was > published in Pediatrics (2000), the journal of the American > Academy of Pediatrics, showed that calcium intake, which > ranged from 500 to 1,500 mg per day, has no lasting effect > on bone health. > > " We (had) hypothesized that increased calcium intake > would result in better adolescent bone gain. Needless > to say, we were surprised to find our hypothesis refuted, " > one researcher explained. > > Conclusion: > > Drinking milk builds dairy producers' profits, but as the > above studies show, it's more likely to harm your bones > than to help them. And dairy foods are linked to all sorts > of other problems, including obesity, heart disease and cancer > (including breast cancer and prostate cancer) and are likely to > be contaminated with trace levels of antibiotics, hormones, and > other chemicals, including dioxin, one of the most toxic > substances known to humans (The Washington Post reported > that " the latest EPA study concludes that people who consume > even small amounts of dioxin in fatty foods and dairy products > face a cancer risk of 1 in 100. They may also develop other > problems, such as attention disorder, learning disabilities, > susceptibility to infections and liver disorders " (April 12, 2001). > > Of course, calcium is an essential mineral, and it is possible to > have a calcium deficiency. According to Dr. Neal Barnard, > president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible > Medicine: > > " Milk, in particular, is poor insurance against bone breaks . > the healthiest calcium sources are green leafy vegetables and > legumes . You don't need to eat huge servings of > vegetables or beans to get enough calcium, but do include > both in your regular menu planning. If you are looking for > extra calcium, fortified orange, apple, or grapefruit juices > are good choices. " > > It makes no more sense for humans to consume the mother's > milk of cows than for us to consume the mother's milk of > rats, cats, dogs, giraffes, or any other mammal. Nature > created human mother's milk for baby humans, cow > mother's milk for baby cows, and so on. > > The late Dr. Spock, in Baby and Child Care > (the United States' best selling book, other than the Bible, > over the past 50 years), after recommending that no one > consume cow's milk and cataloging a host of ills associated > with milk consumption (heart disease, cancer, obesity, > antibiotic residue, iron deficiency, asthma, ear infections, > skin conditions, stomach aches, bloating, and diarrhea), > concludes: > > " In nature, animals do not drink milk after infancy, and that > is the normal pattern for humans, too. .Children stay in > better calcium balance when their protein comes from plant > sources. " > > Dr. Spock recommends human mother's milk for baby > humans, as nature intended. > > " It is hard to turn on the television without hearing > commercials suggesting that milk promotes strong bones. > The commercials do not point out that only 30 percent > of milk's calcium is absorbed by the body or that > osteoporosis is common among milk drinkers. Nor > do they help you correct the real causes of bone loss. " > -Dr. Neal Barnard > > Says Dr. T. Colin , the world's leading > epidemiological researcher in the field of diet and health, > > " The dairy folks, ever since the 1920s, have been > enormously successful in cultivating an environment > within virtually all segments of our society-from research > and education to public relations and politics-to have us > believing that cow's milk and its products are manna > from heaven. . Make no mistake about it; the dairy > industry has been virtually in total control of any and > all public health information that ever rises to the level > of public scrutiny. " > > " The association between the intake of animal protein > and fracture rates appears to be as strong as the > association between cigarette smoking and > lung cancer. " > -Dr. T. Colin > > " Milk, it now seems clear, is not the solution to poor > bone density. To the contrary, it's part of the problem. " > -Dr. Attwood > ________________________________________________ > > Bruce Friedrich of PETA gets credit for having > written this column. The original appears on > their award-winning website: > > http://milksucks.com/osteo.html > Cohen > http://www.notmilk.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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