Milk and vascular disease

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Health

Milk has acquired a bad reputation. Many are intolerant or even allergic to milk, yet it seems that not milk itself may be to blame but the way we treat milk, "sanitizing" it by pasteurization, making it more durable by homogenization. Both these processes alter the chemical and physical properties of milk and make it less nutritious, harder to digest, and some say - even dangerous to our health.

Of course real raw milk cannot be shipped over long distances and cannot be kept for any length of time. It does tend to turn into sour milk, cottage cheese and other very edible things, but that's not really what our agro industrial food supply chain wants.

Things must keep and they must be able to be shipped - oh really? and our health?

HOMOGENISED MILK COULD KILL


According to statistics 50% of New Zealanders die from heart disease, 25% from cancer and 5% from diabetes.
Research has shown that the epidemic of hardening of the arteries (which leads to more deaths annually than cancer) is directly attributable to homogenized milk.

For more than 20 years Kurt A. Oster, MD, chief of cardiology emeritus at Park City Hospital, Bridgeport, Connecticut, has gathered evidence that provides a conclusive biochemical explanation for atherosclerosis (a form of arteriosclerosis, plaque clogging arteries). The culprit turns out to be the process of homogenisation, introduced to the dairy industry in 1932 as a means of improving marketing for products.

Homogenisation merely prevents the cream from separating from the milk. This is primarily cosmetic. It does nothing to enhance the quality of the milk. But according to Dr. Oster's findings, it does a great deal to improve marketability - at the expense of human life.

FRAGMENTED

Homogenisation causes the fat globules in whole milk to be fragmented into tiny, tight molecules that will not regroup. Not only do these intense molecules of fat refuse to regroup, they also resist digestion and manage to enter the bloodstream unaltered -which is one reason why so many people are allergic to milk. "Milk fat contains a substance called xanthine oxidase (XO). When milk is not homogenized both the fat and the XO are digested in the stomach and small intestine into smaller molecules, which are either used or excreted from the body. Homogenisation allows some of the XO to pass into the bloodstream intact" Oster reported.

XO is found in the liver of many animals, and humans, where it has a specific function: that of breaking purine compounds down into uric acid, a waste product. "When foreign XO, such as that from cow's milk, enters the bloodstream it creates havoc by attacking specific targets within the artery walls," Oster's report said.

The "specific target" within the arteries is called plasmologen, a tissue making up 30 percent of human heart muscle and artery wall cells. Plasmologen's presence is vital for the integrity of the outer cell membrane analogous to the way mortar holds bricks together in a wall. .





ARTERIES CALCIFIED

The direct attacks by foreign XO, Oster's research indicates, cause lesions within artery walls and the body's marvellous protective mechanisms respond to the damage by scarring and laying down calcified plaques.

"The simple thickening and hardening of the arteries is known as arteriosclerosis, whereas atherosclerosis is characterized by the additional accumulation of cholesterol and fatty deposits laid down adjacent to scars and plaques" Oster said. "Gradually, the artery wall thickens, obstructing the flow of blood. Arteries lose their elasticity in the later stages of the disease as additional calcium is deposited. Calcification of the arteries can contribute to high blood pressure which is actually not a disease in itself. High blood pressure is merely a symptom" Oster said.

The assault of XO on the artery walls has been further documented by autopsies performed on patients who died from heart and circulatory disease, Oster and Ross reported. "It has been found that plasmologen was completely missing in artery wall lesions and plaques, and the mystery was solved when researchers found XO in the plaques. The two substances cannot coexist" Oster said.

ORGANICS

In Rachel Carson's classic book "Silent Spring" the author warned us of the dangers of man-made pesticides. Rachel described how chemicals contaminate our environment and also accumulate in our bodies. Since then studies of human breast milk and body fat have confirmed her writings. Human beings in such remote areas as Canada's far northern Baffin Island now carry traces of persistent chemicals in their bodies, including such notorious compounds as PCB's, DDT and dioxin Even worse, in the womb through breast milk, mothers pass this chemical legacy on to the next generation.

After doing animal and human studies research scientists now link our exposure to man-made chemicals as having the following effects - low sperm count, infertility, hormonally triggered human cancers such as those of the breast and prostate gland, neurological disorders in children such as hyperactivity and deficits in attention and reproductive problems in wildlife

DPT the PCB's (poly chlorinated biphenyls) and dioxin are the most discussed, in terms of hormone disrupting chemicals These chemicals mimic estrogen but differ from plant oestrogen in that the body is able to break down plant oestrogen and excrete it. Unfortunately the man-made compounds resist normal breakdown and accumulate in the body, exposing humans and animals to low level but long term exposure. This chronic hormone exposure is unprecedented and some portion of the population is bound to be sensitive with infertility for example a prospect

Dairy Farmers are notorious for using huge amounts of chemical nitrogen, hormones and glyphosate. These are all known to be cancer causing agents. Queensland cancer research suggests 1 in 3 people will get cancer in their lifetime. 15,544 people were diagnosed with the disease in 1998. 6,075 died from the disease

Leading dietary therapist Kathryn Alexander, recently said "my patients don't recover unless they eat organically, regardless of whether they are eating meat or eating vegetables. If my patients can't get organic food, I can't treat them".

THE FACTS ABOUT PASTEURISATION

Raw milk has good and bad bacteria. The good bacteria are an inbuilt inhibitor to the bad bacteria. This is why raw milk lasts longer in the open than pasteurised milk. Once processed milk is open the bad bacteria flood in. Pasteurisation changes the calcium into an insoluble form which cannot be absorbed by animals or humans. More and more children and women are suffering from lack of calcium.

The Lee Foundation for Nutritional research say pasteurisation destroys vitamin A, it destroys about 38% of the vitamin B complex, and about 50% of the Vitamin C in milk.

Scientific investigations have shown that an anti cancer protective element is contained in raw milk but destroyed in pasteurisation. The enzymes in raw milk are either destroyed or altered in the pasteurisation process. Raw milk was sold door to door in Queensland unti11989, about eleven years ago. And calves will die if fed pasteurised milk as their normal diet. Pups and kittens grow much healthier if fed organic raw milk.

ANIMAL WELFARE

Our cows are cared for in the best possible way. Organic farming is not about neglect but rather a more hands on approach. Animals are dewormed with a natural product, sprayed for fly and tick with approved organic mixtures. Minerals are also added to their feed. Disease is minimal because of the superior natural feed our herd enjoys. Any cows that require antibiotics are treated and immediately removed from the herd.


WHY DOES QUALITY FRESH MILK HAVE TO BE LABELLED: 'NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION'

Current Queensland legislation forbids the sale of fresh milk from the dairy. This ensures that only milk which has been processed, by factories generally owned by national and international conglomerates, is the only milk available to the public for sale.


RECOMMENDED READING

Our Stolen Future by Theo Colborn

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

For further inquiries:
The Society for Natural Nutrition, P.O. Box 489 Yandina Qld 4561
Disclaimer: The above Information has been taken from articles and read by our society. We don't take any responsibility for the accuracy of any claims.


"Be the change you want to see happen in the world" - Gandhi


Article forwarded by: Jennie Gorman, Connexions Unlimited
jennie@acenet.net.au

"Global NetWeaver"


Additional information:

Consumption of milk has also been associated with an increased incidence of prostate cancer. Might those foreign particles mentioned in the above article - xanthine oxidase (XO) - which pass into the bloodstream, possibly have anything to do with that? - Josef