Milk Healthy or Not? Essay

Most people drink milk everyday because it has been proven to increase bone strength and also helps slow down bone loss as we age. However, this seemingly harmless drink may be more harmful than it is healthy. Milk and other dairy products are packed with a lot of different nutrients that are essential for human survival and growth. As well as calcium, milk also has protein, potassium, phosphorus, vitamin D, vitamin B12, vitamin A, Riboflavin, and Niacin. The National Dairy Council states that with just one eight ounce glass of milk a day provides the same amount of vitamin D you would get from 3. 5 ounces of salmon and more than 2 ? cups of broccoli. Milk helps build strong bones and teeth where most of the body’s calcium is held. It also improves bone density, which means a lower risk of fractures and osteoporosis. After working out its proven that drinking chocolate milk can increase your results. This is because after you workout, your body is more receptive to using amino acids to repair muscle tissue. It is also beneficial because of its protein content. Dairy products in general carry a lot of calcium, but they might not be the best source. Good, non-dairy sources of calcium include soy milk, beans, and supplements that have calcium and vitamin D. Another good way to get calcium is to eat dark green vegetables; that is how cows get their calcium. High intake of milk and other dairy products can increase the risk of prostate cancer. They can also have high levels of saturated fat and vitamin A, which can actually weaken the bones. Milk from a cow is rich in phosphorous which can potentially fuse with calcium and that can prevent us from absorbing the calcium in the milk. Milk’s protein also quickens calcium emission from the blood through the kidneys. People can also be allergic to dairy products and it is called lactose intolerance. This is because those allergic cannot produce the enzyme lactase essential for digesting dairy. The FDA has just recently approved the use of Bovine Growth Hormones, or BGH, for dairy farmers to increase their cows’ milk production. This is a very bad thing because those hormones go right into the milk. BGH causes an increase in an insulin-like growth factor than can be absorbed directly into our bloodstream. Before I researched this topic I thought the milk was undoubtedly good for us, but now I realize that it may actually be bad for you. You can get all the nutrients that are in milk from other products. There are more factual examples of risks than benefits with people that ingest dairy products than those who do not. After researching this topic I will not drink as much milk as I have in the past. Works Cited Bayer, Jeff. â€Å"Benefits of Chocolate Milk After Your Workout. † Fox News. FOX News Network, 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2013. Mercola, Joseph, Dr. â€Å"Don’t Drink Your Milk! † Mercola. com. N. p. , 17 Feb. 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.