"The Dirty Dozen" #6

6. Pasteurized, homogenized skim milk: By Jordan Rubin

When it comes to dairy products, the conventional wisdom in the diet world can be summed up in this way: whole milk, bad; skim milk, good. (depending on if its people that dont know anything about real nutrition and just on "dieting to lose weight", or nutrition buffs)

Whole milk is loaded with fat and calories, right? But removing the fat to make it 2 percent or skim milk makes the milk less nutritious and less digestible as well as cause allergies. Yes, whole milk has more calories, but I have seen research suggesting that the mix of nutritents found in milk, such as calcium and protein, may imporve the body's ability to burn fat, particularly around the mid section. Besides, the thought of a cow naturally delivering reduced fat or fat free milk is " udderly" ridiculous, but Im gong to milk this topic for all its worth because milk does a body good. (end of cliche' alert.) lol!!

The richest food sources of calcium are milk and milk products, but I dont recommend drinking any commercially homogenized and pasteurized milk. The pasterization process alters vital amino acids, which reduces your ability to access the protains, fats, minerals, and great vitamins like A, B 12, D, Folic Acid found in raw, unpasteurized milk. The homogenization process may be even more dangerous as it alters the fat globules and creates a compound known as XO, or xanthine oxidase, which is believed by some to cause damage to the arterial walls and may lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

I recommend drinking unpasteurized milk from grass fed animals instead of homogenized, pasteurized milk. Unfortunately, raw milk can be dangerous if it comes from a farm that lacks sanitary practices, which is why its not available in many states. The next best thing is finding cultured or fermented dairy whole milk products, such as yogurt and kefir (mmmm sooo good), which are produced from pasteurized, nonhomogenzied milk.

If you can get used to its "goaty" smell and tasste, goats milk is naturally homogenized, less allergenic, and more rapidly absorbed in the digestive tract. (I have tasted goats milk and its pretty darn good!! And Im picky!) Goats cheese, which has become widely available in the last few years, is very healthy, as is cheese made from raw cows milk. My fav dairy products are made from sheeps milk, which are easy to digest and more nutritious than dairy products made from cows or goats milk. I find the creamy taste wonderful. Look for sheeps milk yogurt and cheese at your local natural foods grocery.

Youve probably noticed the major supermarkets as well as warehouse clubs sell organic milk. I dont believe commercial organic milk is the answer however. Some companies with organic brand names you would recognize produce pasteurized and homogenized milk.