Don't Drink Your Milk!

by Frank A. Oski

CAUTION: Milk Can Be Harmful to Your Health! The frightening new medical facts about the world's most over-rated nutrient. If you drink milk, you MUST read this. Frank Oski, MD, is the Director, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief, the Johns Hopkins Children's Center. Now includes an appendix of recent studies related to milk.

Genres: Health, Nutrition, Nonfiction, Vegan

115 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1977

Reviews

[Jenava · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I know. All you that are reading this and thinking "okay I knew Jenava was different, but what is she reading now?", stay with me on this one!! I wasn't raised on cows milk due to the fact that I was raised my my father who isn't american...and news flash, milk drinking is pretty american (at least to the degree we drink it here). So, I wanted to read a few books about this "super important" beverage, and get a feel for it myself. And, quite frankly, to the disappointment of my american grandmother, this book reinforced my suspicions. Cows milk is for calves, and not for me:) I am not against milk in cereal etc...but the idea that we "need" it? Hello, no. There are plenty of healthy cultures that don't ingest cows milk. And, as far as I have understood, they are not dying in the streets due to broken bones or spines that are crumbling. And, actually, I read a few years ago, that the highest Osteoperosis (sp?) rates were, yes, here in the cow drinking capital of the world!! Not to mention the BGH that they pump into the poor lactating cows to force them to lactate MORE!! Now, if I was that cow, I would be very upset. Drink your milk, but in moderation.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though this is NOT a recent book, I suspect the findings still hold true and may even be more forcefully supported by the medical community. I LOVE my milk but, to be fair, I never drink whole milk or have full fat dairy. The conclusion from this doctor is that humans should not be drinking cow's milk. I have numerous friends who already believe this, and I am now inclined to change my way of thinking. This is a great resource for anyone who has digestive problems or wonders if they should give their child cow's milk.

[Paul Smolen]

Book Review by Dr. Paul Smolen, posted at www.docsmo.com January 2016


Dr. Frank Oski's book approaches the subject of the nutritional value of milk the way you would expect an academic pediatrician would, sighting articles and research to justify his positions. He contends that his research revealed to him that not only is cow's milk not nutritious for children or adults, but that it actually causes a lot of physical harm. Here is a synopsis of what Dr. Oski's take on the the research that he presents;

The saturated fat found in cow's milk is a major cause of heart attacks and strokes in the western world where it is consumed throughout life.
Most children and adults develop lactose intolerance, that is the inability to digest the sugar in cow's milk after infancy and therefore cannot digest the sugar lactose, that is so abundant in cow's milk. Lactose intolerant children and adults become sick when they consume lactose.
Milk is a very high calorie food but lacks iron, an essential nutrient that children need. Consuming a lot of cow's milk starves these children of needed iron and makes them susceptible to iron deficiency's devastating effects on a growing child including developmental delays and frequent infections.
Many infants and young children are allergic to the proteins in cow's milk therefore causing a serious gut allergy called allergic colitis.
So why, with all this medical evidence of serious harm coming from the consumption of cow's milk, does the Academy of Pediatrics, the USDA, and the Center for Disease Control continue to insist that children should get three servings of lean dairy each day after the age of two years? Dr. Oski addresses this dilemma with a blunt discussion of the power of marketing. He contends that the dairy industry has a vested interest in keeping the American population drinking milk and that marketing that message works! Here we are, 48 years after the first edition of Don't Drink Your Milk was published and we are still debating the same argument. The dairy industry is either right (milk is an essential and great food) or the dairy industry marketing machine is able to drown out the truth about the health problems associated with milk consumption.

Dr. Oski is now dead and gone, having died in 1996 of prostate cancer. What a shame and how ironic that he would die of a disease that many now believe can be fueled by the milk protein called casein that is found so abundantly in cow's milk. For more on that subject, I refer you to my book review of The China Study, by Dr.T Colin Campbell.



So what are parents and pediatricians going to do with all the indicting evidence that Dr. Oski, an extremely well informed pediatrician, presents in his book, Don't Drink your Milk? Is cow's milk a healthy vital food or a food that fuels degenerative diseases like heart disease and cancers? For me, the truth is somewhere in the middle as is so often the case with so many controversies. I believe there can be many negative short and long term health consequences that can come from dairy--to that, I think there is no doubt. I see negative effects of dairy in my everyday experiences with all the constipated children who have stomachaches that I try and help. Convincing their families to go dairy free is still a very radical move for these families however. Many of these families are convinced that milk is the only nutrient that can give their children vital minerals for good growth. The same question, asked in another form is at the crux of the great milk controversy. "Can children get enough minerals from foods other than dairy to sustain good bone growth?" I think the answer is obvious, of course they can, just like half the world does, from vegetables and other nutrients. Yes, the nutritional orthodoxy is right that children needs the minerals that are abundant in milk but I believe that they can get them from other sources that are healthier, if they would just eat their vegetables--but that seems to be a very hard sell in this part of the world!

For parents who want to dive a deeply into the science of childhood nutrition, I highly recommend Don't Drink Your Milk. I give Dr. Oski's book 4.5 out of 5 Doc Smo Stars. Not only is It well written, concise, and well referenced but Dr. Oski has proven that he was at least 50 years ahead on the great milk debate. I think it is definitely worth a read for parents tasked with feeding a child.


Smo Notes:



http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/sites/defaul...

[Dan Lurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, well referenced read. I kind of expected Ed this to be a thinly disguised vegan manifesto, but it’s not.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has me convinced I am lactose intolerant/sensitive. Next step? Time to get some medical advice! That aside, this was truly eye opening to the fact that milk really isn’t "doing a body good". In fact, most of the world population can’t drink milk without terrible (or at least uncomfortable) consequences! I didnt know how common it is to be lactose intolerant/sensitive. Nor did I stop to consider that milk is meant for infants, what's more, cow's milk is for baby cows. Not people. All in all, this short muckraker-like documentary left me with a lot of questions and more than a few concerns about my own health and that of the public. I'll be doing a lot more reasech into this subject!

[Nadya Anggun Mowlina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Setidaknya buku ini menambah referensi saya tentang 'apa yang ada dibalik susu?'. Saat kuliah,dosen saya yang juga seorang peneliti tentang hal-hal seperti ini pernah mengatakan, susu zaman sekarang kandungannya sudah sangat sangat buruk. Ditambah kalimat yang mengatakan 'Susu sapi adalah untuk anak sapi' sudah sangat jelas maksud dan tujuannya.

Saya juga pernah membaca dari sumber-sumber penelitian lain tentang susu. Bahkan, saya mengalami sendiri efek yang diberikan oleh susu terhadap tubuh.

Awalnya memang susah untuk percaya. Secara doktrin-doktrin iklan di luar sana selalu mengatakan susu baik untuk tubuh, susu adalah makanan yang hampir sempurna, bla bla bla. Ada baiknya kita meluangkan waktu, dan melihat perkembangan dunia. Membaca buku ini tidak ada ruginya.

[Dylan Nam · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you ever drank a milk. You might the book cover might look interesting. In fact author is trying to persuade you to avoid drinking milk with several facts. Believe or not, it doesn't sound as untruth at all. Even though the main idea of the book is interesting it wasn't fun enough to finish the entire book.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 3 out of 5]

321 - 2014

Aku suka susu sapi segar dan dingin. Es krim apalagi. Keju juga.

Itu pilihan lidah, sih. Tapi... tubuhku setuju banget dengan teori buku ini. Karenanya, akal sehatku juga setuju banget...

[Fin_ra · Rating 3 out of 5]

bukunya membuat saya kembali ke masa kuliah dan berharap kembali ke penelitian tentang susu.
suka dan tidak suka susu itu pilihan, :)

[Visien Vinesa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't really satisfy me because it focuses mainly on breast milk and allergies to milk by infants.

[Ibraheem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cow Milk is bad for you, plus any diary products.
The moral of the story you didn't born to drink something not yours.

[Pitaloka Dia · Rating 5 out of 5]

recommended bagi kamu yang masih minum susu... susu sapi ;)