Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Milk

Ok, odd title for a water polo coaches blog, I admit. However, it became apparent last night that I am now coaching many players from a younger generation that have not heard me talk to them enough about nutrition. One athlete actually went so far as to tell me I was feeding them conspiracy theories when I answered some questions about milk and how it has a negative impact on many people.

First of all, I am not going to tell anyone not to drink milk even though there is ample research to tell you why not to. I am also not going to tell you to drive within the speed limit, to not download movies or video from the internet, to not drink alcohol to the point of intoxication. Everyone can make their your own choices about lifestyle; I will just help with information that is current and applicable to athletes.

So, why am I saying that milk consumption is not necessary? Simple, we are one of the few cultures in the world that drink milk after infancy. We, in North America, are told we need milk for calcium as we apparently can't get enough from other dietary sources. We are told we need the calories and the nutrients. However, we have the highest dietary consumption of milk and the highest rates of osteoporosis and obesity in the world. Next time an authority (doctor, nutritionist) tells you that milk calcium is needed to prevent osteoporosis ask them to discuss that in more detail. Ask them what role exercise plays in osteoporosis (more or less important than milk) or if zinc is more or less important than calcium in that disorder. Ask them why cultures that do not drink milk have much lower rates of osteoporosis.


I don't want to dwell on this topic but I do want people to realize that Milk Marketing in North America shapes the image and consumption of that product. It places milk on a pedestal that it has not earned. The many calories from milk can easily be replaced by better sources of calcium, like green vegetables, sesame seeds and nuts. It never hurts to challenge existing patterns of behaviour and that includes food consumption.

Here is a really good place to start reading about milk if you have questions and are surprised to hear that it isn't a wonder food from heaven - http://veg.ca/content/view/139/110/.

I won't even begin to discuss chocolate milk and why the addition of refined sugar just takes milk from unadvised to harmful.

1 comment:

  1. Not only are we the one of the only cultures that drinks milk after infancy, I am pretty sure we are the only species that drinks milk after infancy. I agree in that milk seems to be sensationalized. Milk is amazing, builds strong bones, gives you calcium. there are many other ways to get calcium as you said.

    There are also many people who can't have milk after infancy. You aren't supposed to have milk after infancy as you lose the enzymes that digest it. This is especially apparent in people who are lactose intolerant as they do not have the enzymes at all.

    I guess you can tell that I don't like milk/am lactose intolerant. I really hate how milk is marketed.

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