vegan/PCRM.milk.press-release.html
From our old vegetarian information file archives. (Please note that web links inside this document may be broken.)
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PCRM
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
5100 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Suite 404
Washington, DC 20016
(202)686-2210
PRESS CONFERENCE:
12:00 noon, Tuesday, September 29, 1992
Boston Park Plaza Hotel
64 Arlington St., Boston
White Hill Room, 4th floor
TOP DOCTORS WARN:
MILK CAN CAUSE HEALTH PROBLEMS
Parents should be alerted to the risks posed by milk consumption. That is
the conclusion of leading physicians, including Dr. Benjamin Spock, the
well-known author of _Baby and Child Care_, Dr. Frank A. Oski, the Director
of Pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University, and Dr. Neal Barnard,
President of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, all of whom
will be speaking at Boston's Park Plaza Hotel on September 29.
Because of nutritional concerns, including the risk of deficiencies in iron
and other nutrients, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended earlier
this year that whole milk not be given to infants less than one year of age.
Milk is so low in iron that an infant would have to drink more than 31
quarts of milk per day in order to get the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance
of 15 mg of iron. In addition, milk can cause blood loss from the intestinal
tract, depleting the body's iron. The reason for milk's tendency to cause
blood loss is not known.
Milk has also been implicated as a trigger for insulin-dependent diabetes,
which affects approximately 1 million Americans. Diabetes is the cause of
half of all leg and foot amputations and causes blindness in 12,000 people
yearly. Researchers have long suspected that milk proteins cause antibodies
to form which, in genetically susceptible individuals, can destroy the
insulin- producing cells of the pancreas. Of 142 diabetic children tested in
a recent study, 100% had high levels of an antibody to a cow's milk protein.
Non-diabetic children were found to have the antibody only at very low
levels.
Milk is also a common cause of allergy and of digestive problems,
particularly among blacks and Asians, who often lack the enzyme required to
digest the milk sugar, lactose. Dr. Barnard says, "The dairy commercials
tell us that 'Milk has something for every body.' What we didn't know was
that that 'something' could be iron- deficiency, allergies, or even
something as serious as insulin- dependent diabetes."
Dr. Spock adds, "I'm not a nutrition researcher, but I'm a parent advisor,
and I want to pass the word to parents that cow's milk from the carton has
definite faults for some babies. It causes intestinal blood loss,
allergies, indigestion, and contributes to some cases of childhood diabetes.
Human milk is the right one for babies."
Also speaking at the press conference are dietitian Suzanne Havala, MS, RD;
pediatrician Russell Bunai, MD; and Mark Wright, who has diabetes. The
doctors' recommendations are:
1. Parents should be alerted to the potential risks to their
children from cow's milk products.
2. Cow's milk should not be required or recommended in government
guidelines.
3. Breast-feeding is the preferred method of infant feeding. As
recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, whole cow's
milk should not be given to infants under one year of age
because of the risk of anemia.
4. Government programs, such as school lunch programs and the WIC
program, should be consistent with these recommendations.
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a non-profit
organization in Washington, D.C., promoting preventive medicine, and dealing
with issues in human and animal research, and medical care. The group made
headlines in 1991 with its proposal for the New Four Food Groups, a program
calling for grains, vegetables, fruits, and legumes as the basis for a
healthful diet.
MILK PROBLEMS IN BRIEF
FAT CONTENT: Other than skim varieties, dairy products are high in fat, as
a percentage of total calories:
Whole milk: 49% fat
"2%" milk: 35% fat (It is 2% fat only by weight)
Cheddar Cheese: 74% fat
Butter: 100% fat
IRON-DEFICIENCY: Milk is very low in iron. To get the U.S. Recommended
Daily Allowance of 15 mg of iron, an infant would have to drink more than 31
quarts of milk per day. Milk also causes blood loss from the intestinal
tract, depleting the body's iron.
DIABETES: Of 142 diabetic children tested in a recent study, 100% had high
levels of an antibody to a cow's milk protein. It is believed that these
antibodies destroy the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.
Approximately 1 million Americans have insulin-dependent diabetes. Every
year, 12,000 people lose their sight because of diabetes. Half of all leg
and foot amputations are caused by diabetes.
CALCIUM: Green leafy vegetables such as kale are as good or better than
milk as calcium sources.
CONTAMINANTS: Milk is frequently contaminated with antibiotics and excess
Vitamin D. Of 42 milk samples recently tested, only 12% were within the
expected range of Vitamin D content. Of 10 samples of infant formula, 7 had
more than twice the Vitamin D content reported on the label, and 1 had more
than four times the label amount.
LACTOSE: Many people of Asian and African heritage are unable to digest the
milk sugar, lactose, which then causes diarrhea and gas. The lactose sugar
when it is digested, releases galactose, a simple sugar which is linked to
ovarian cancer and cataracts.
ALLERGIES: Milk is one of the most common causes of food allergy. Often the
symptoms are subtle and may not be attributed to milk for some time.
COLIC: Milk proteins can cause colic, a digestive upset that bothers one in
five infants. Milk-drinking mothers can also pass cow's milk proteins to
their breast-feeding infants.
The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
provides food for women and for children up to five years of age. The
program costs approximately $2 billion per year, and reaches nearly one in
three babies born in the U.S. It is administered by the Food and Nutrition
Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one of whose missions is "to
stabilize farm prices through the distribution of surplus foods." The
program provides milk, cheese, fruit, juice, peanut butter, beans and peas.
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