When “milk” is mentioned, what do you think about?  You may think about the white liquid itself, or maybe the most recent celebrity “Got Milk?” picture ad you saw, a cow, or the many dairy products we enjoy.  If I asked you to think about where the milk came from that you have consumed throughout your life, I’m sure your answers would begin to give a picture of your age as well.  If you are under 40, you would say the grocery store in the refrigerator section in plastic or paper cartons.  Those 40 to probably 60 would add to the above that a “milkman” delivered it twice a week into a little metal milk-box on your back porch, and then those over 60 will probably get a little smile on their face and remember having a family cow themselves or have a relative/neighbor who had a farm where they would get fresh raw milk weekly straight from the cow itself!  This was the norm in suburban or country areas until the 1940-50’s when pasteurization and homogenization made its way across the continent from the big cities where commercial farming practices starting mass producing a lower quality of milk from lower quality farm standard s with the need for pasteurization to assure health safety and extend the shelf life. 

                “Raw” milk is making a comeback in health conscious people.  It’s kind of funny we call it “raw” and think it is something new we’ve never heard of because for thousands of  years it was the only form of milk known.  This is just like the name “alternative healthcare” when it is really what was here first before allopathic medicine.  “Raw” just means nothing has been done to it since coming from the cow, just as God intended; a perfect food to grow healthy bodies.  Society has starting coming to the conclusion that breast feeding is far superior to formula for infants, this is no different.  Calves and babies fail to thrive when given pasteurized milk from their mothers, yet we think it’s OK to do that for the milk we continue to drink from cows.  I realized there is controversy over whether we should drink milk at all after being weaned from our mothers, but there has been many known benefits of continuing milk consumption from cows or even goats.

                Pasteurization is the process where the temperature of milk is raised to kill off bacteria and pathogens that may be present.    This process started in the 1800’s when refrigeration was not available and many other sanitary practices of milking animals on a large scale weren’t either, so milk did become a health problem if not pasteurized.  But the little farmer who produced milk for his family and community had great health benefits by consuming the fresh milk and even the Mayo Clinic used the high quality country milk as the basis for many of its successful therapies.  During this high temperature pasteurization, many of the benefits of milk are decreased or destroyed; some even refer to it as “dead” milk.   It is a shame that even many of the commercial “organic” milks are ultra pasteurized to have an even longer shelf life.  Federal regulations actually have more stringent regulations on the pathogen count for raw milk than after pasteurization of milk (meaning the numbers are much higher in the milk sent for pasteurization).  What happens to the killed bacteria in the pasteurized milk?  They are still in the milk, only their cell walls have ruptured spilling the intracellular proteins into the milk.  This may be the biggest reason many have allergic reactions to pasteurized milk yet can drink raw milk without problems.

                Homogenization is the process of using high pressure to destroy the natural butter fat cells found in milk to break apart the soft buoyant fat cells that float to the top of raw milk so it doesn’t’ have to be shaken every time before pouring.  It is solely for convenience and not required by law.  Some studies have been done in Europe that suggests this to be dangerous and contributing to heart disease and arterial plaguing due to the smaller fat cells being able to penetrate the digestive walls into the blood stream without getting metabolized first as a larger fat cell.  FDA refutes these findings mostly due to the large dairy lobbyists.

                The above may be the reason many who are “lactose intolerant” to pasteurized milk can drink the “living milk that brings life” as described by Mark McAfee, owner of Organic Pastures Dairy Co. in Fresno, California.  There are many anecdotes about how people have been healed with raw milk.  Many people will drive miles to get raw milk, I read about one man driving 3 hours one way to get it for his family.  We are blessed to be living in an area where we can buy raw milk at our local health food store.  So what are the benefits of drinking the raw, live milk? 

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Beneficial bacteria to boost immune function

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Live Enzymes (lipase, protease,  and others to break down and digest foods to get the nutrients into our cells)

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Lactase forming bacteria (probiotics)

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Many enzyme based pathogen killing systems for the digestive tract for a healthy balance

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Immunoglobulin, or antibodies, to boost the immune system and help neutralize toxins and counter microbial attacks

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Lactoferrin, a known immune booster in natural health

<!--[if !supportLists]-->·         <!--[endif]-->Children who drink raw milk have fewer allergic skin problems and far less asthma than children who drink  pasteurized milk (Lancet 2001 358(9288):1129-33

     With all of this being said, all raw milks are not equal!  The above is true only if the cows are in good health without the use of antibiotics.  They should be grass-fed while out grazing on fresh  organic farmed pasture, not locked up in a barn without seeing much sunlight (like many commercial farms, even commercial “organic” farms).  Know your farmer or the source of the raw milk.  the milk delivered to Natural Options is from a 5th generation farm in New Castle, PA where the farmer himself and his family drink the raw milk from his farm?  Milk can be contaminated by pore conditions just like any other food, so know where it comes from.  Sounds like our local farmer’s market logo “Your food, Your Farmer” (which by the say, started this Thursday in Grove City).

     This may be a bit much for many of you to comprehend or even think about.  We have been so indoctrinated with fear of raw milk.  I don’t discount that, but do some research for yourself and come to your own conclusion.  I think you’ll be surprised what you find and it seems like an easy change in your lifestyle to get the great benefits of health from raw milk.  Check out some of these sites for good information:  www.ftcldf.org/raw-milk.html , www.realmilk.com (actually shows places you can buy raw milk according to your location), and even www.youtube.com  and search for “raw milk” videos. Or you can read Milk Diet as a Remedy for Chronic Disease by Dr. Porter.

    It seems government regulations should be to support the safety of producing quality raw milk rather than demanding pasteurization of sub-quality milk.  So when you think about milk now, what will you think of?  Will you look at it as a health benefit for your whole body?  Will you think about the farmer who produced it? Will you enjoy that nice tall glass of freshly shaken milk?  Just be aware and decide for yourself.  Maybe you can say soon... “Got RAW Milk”?