Dairy
Rethinking dairy
Dr Justine Butler Senior Researcher and Writer Viva!Health
While more and more people are choosing alternatives to cows’ milk, government policy and healthcare workers continue to promote dairy. However, an increasing body of evidence now threatens the public image of the white stuff. We know about the health risks associated with fish contaminated with pollutants (1). The links between red and processed meats and bowel cancer are well-documented (2). However, dairy continues to slip under the net. It’s as if the white stuff is so pure, natural and wholesome its beneficial properties are beyond question. It is portrayed as liquid calcium for bones, an elixir of goodness for the young, the fussy, the poorly and the elderly. However, a large body of evidence links cows’ milk and dairy products to a wide range of illnesses and diseases including heart disease, diabetes and cancer, right through to acne, allergies and even osteoporosis, suggesting that cows’ milk could be doing more harm than good. Heart disease
Dr Justine Butler is a Senior Researcher and Writer at Viva!Health. Justine holds a PhD in Molecular Biology, BSc Biochemistry and Diploma in Nutrition. She has published an extensive list of reports, guides and factsheets for Viva!Health and written articles for health journals, regional and national press.
The number of people in the UK with heart disease has remained relatively constant over the last decade. The benefits we should be seeing (due to advances in medical treatment and the reduction in smoking) are being negated by the increase in obesity and diabetes. We are smoking less, but we are eating more, and not just that, we are making poor dietary choices. Heart disease is linked to poor diets including high levels of saturated fat, salt and refined carbohydrate and low levels of fruit and vegetables (3). Foods high in saturated fat include: meat pies, sausages and fatty cuts of meat, butter, ghee, lard,
cream, hard cheese, cakes and biscuits and foods containing coconut or palm oil (4). Interestingly replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat may be more effective in lowering the risk of heart disease than reducing the total amount of fat in the diet. This means moving away from saturated animal fats to unsaturated vegetable oil-based fats. A move that offers major health benefits according to the World Health Organisation (5). So go dairy-free, while increasing the intake of fibre, fruit and vegetables is a simple way of reducing saturated fat intake, losing weight and lowering the risk of diabetes and heart disease. Soya protein, nuts, plant sterols and soluble fibres from wholegrain foods, fruit and vegetables can all help lower cholesterol which is a risk factor for heart disease (6). Vegetarians (who eat a diet based on cereals, pulses, nuts, fruits and vegetables) tend to have lower cholesterol levels and a lower mortality from heart disease. The widespread adoption of a vegetarian diet could prevent approximately 40,000 deaths from heart disease in Britain each year (7). This means a healthy plant-based vegetarian diet and not one based on cream cakes and cheesy pizzas. NHDmag.com May 2015 - Issue 104
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