Frigga
05-10-2009, 12:06 AM
Milk. The ability to produce milk, and to drink it, is what makes humans mammals. We supposedly outgrow the ability to digest milk as we grow older, and have to give up this wonderful, nourishing food. But, maybe that's not really the case.
If you look at several cultures in the world, they have milk products as their central artisanal food products. What European country can you name that does not produce at least one type of cheese, or other fermented milk product?
The Swiss are the ones who pop in my mind as being heavily dependent on dairy products. Weston Price, a dentist from Ohio visited the Loetschental valley in 1931, and 1932. He saw several villages with almost no tooth decay, or dental deformities, or tuberculosis. They never brushed their teeth, as there were no dentists from the American Dental Association telling them to brush and floss two times a day. But these people were incredibly healthy and vibrant. Their chief source of food was fermented rye baked into loaves of bread, and raw milk products, such as cheese, butter, and milk. Their athletes were the best in their fields. They drank bowlfuls of raw cream before competitions. And they always did really well. This valley was isolated from the rest of the world until the early 20th century, as the only route in was a small footpath. And the weather conditions were harsh, and the winter was long. So, they grew and raised what they could, which were rye, and cattle.
The English have more farmstead cheeses than I could ever count. One of my favorites is Stilton. Traditionally, cheese was eaten almost every day, but not as a chief source of calories like the Swiss in the Loetschental valley, as the climate in England is much more temperate compared to the Swiss Alps. In France, we have several soft cheeses, like Brie, and Camenbert, and Chevre. In Southern Europe, we have more of sheep and goat milk cheeses, as they are easier to raise in the more rugged terrain. The most prominent ones are ricotta, feta, mozzerella, and provolone.
And we can't forget about yogurts. Yogurt is found all over Europe, and into the Middle East, and Asia. Kefir is another fermented milk product. I believe that kefir originates from Turkey. Kefir is fermented with a little colony of kefir culture. They're little grains that are lumpy, and look like cauliflower. The kefir culture makes kefir from the lactose in the milk. It smells yeasty, like bread, but, it's milk!
Human beings have evolved drinking milk over the last several thousand years. We've evolved, and adapted to it. Now, many people claim that they are lactose intolerant, and that they can't digest milk. And, they are right. They can't digest lactose. But, modern milk is no longer allowed to digest the lactose for us!
Back in the 19th century, there was such a thing called an "urban dairy". It was a distillery dairy. There, they would have cows living at the distillery, and they would be fed the sludge from the process of making whisky. It was very inappropiate feed for cows, and they lived in dreadful, dismal conditions. The milk from these mistreated cows was white poison. They suffered from mastitis, and malnourishment. The milk had a bluish tinge, and was full of pus. This was being sold raw! The milk producers would add chalk to the milk to correct the color and texture. This went on for many years, and people were getting sick and dying from this poisonous milk. There were two schools of thought on how to fix the problem. One, was to get the cows out of the distillery, and clean the place up so that the milk was being processed in more sanitary conditions. Another, was to sterilise the milk, so that the bad bacteria would, they thought, be killed. Now, we all know which was implemented, as we've been drinking sterilised milk for most of our lives, and so have our parents. The ones in charge opted for the pastuerization, which doesn't fix the problem, it just puts a band aid on it, hoping that things will be better. They chose that route because it was cheaper.
Modern dairies are not too far removed from the distillery dairies. The cows are not out in the fields, grazing on lush green grass. They are instead, placed in a barn, on a cement floor for their whole short lives. They are pumped full of hormones, antibiotics, and steriods to keep the milk production up. They live miserable lives. Their milk is sterilised, and homogenized, and then to add insult to injury, they fractionate it by making skim, 1%, and 2% milk. They then have to add vitamin D to the milk, as the cows are unable to put it in their milk naturally. They have to be in the sun, grazing on verdant grass in order to synthesize vitamin D. This milk is cheap, but it is not life giving milk. It is a moon cast shadow to true milk as it is meant to be. This type of milk probably should be pastuerized, as I would not want to drink raw milk that comes from these types of cows.
Real Milk, comes from free grazing cows. They see the sun. They are not on cement floors for their milking careers. They are well taken care of. Their milk is properly handled, and respected. Real Milk is not pastuerized.
Louis Pastuer was correct that the cooking of milk would kill bacteria and other pathogens. He just didn't realize that the harmful bacteria is more likely to survive the sterilization process, and then multiply unhindered. Because the good bacteria in the milk that keeps the pathogens under control was killed. Good bacteria, and fungi, yeasts, and enzymes live in raw milk, just like they live in our bodies, and especially in our digestive tract. They keep the bad beasties under control, and digest the parts of milk that humans find harder to assimilate. That is why you are lactose intolerant with commerical milk. The good enzymes that would normally digest the lactose for you are dead. Real Milk is Alive!
Here are some websites for further reading:
http://www.westonaprice.org/transition/dairy.html
http://www.realmilk.com
:)
If you look at several cultures in the world, they have milk products as their central artisanal food products. What European country can you name that does not produce at least one type of cheese, or other fermented milk product?
The Swiss are the ones who pop in my mind as being heavily dependent on dairy products. Weston Price, a dentist from Ohio visited the Loetschental valley in 1931, and 1932. He saw several villages with almost no tooth decay, or dental deformities, or tuberculosis. They never brushed their teeth, as there were no dentists from the American Dental Association telling them to brush and floss two times a day. But these people were incredibly healthy and vibrant. Their chief source of food was fermented rye baked into loaves of bread, and raw milk products, such as cheese, butter, and milk. Their athletes were the best in their fields. They drank bowlfuls of raw cream before competitions. And they always did really well. This valley was isolated from the rest of the world until the early 20th century, as the only route in was a small footpath. And the weather conditions were harsh, and the winter was long. So, they grew and raised what they could, which were rye, and cattle.
The English have more farmstead cheeses than I could ever count. One of my favorites is Stilton. Traditionally, cheese was eaten almost every day, but not as a chief source of calories like the Swiss in the Loetschental valley, as the climate in England is much more temperate compared to the Swiss Alps. In France, we have several soft cheeses, like Brie, and Camenbert, and Chevre. In Southern Europe, we have more of sheep and goat milk cheeses, as they are easier to raise in the more rugged terrain. The most prominent ones are ricotta, feta, mozzerella, and provolone.
And we can't forget about yogurts. Yogurt is found all over Europe, and into the Middle East, and Asia. Kefir is another fermented milk product. I believe that kefir originates from Turkey. Kefir is fermented with a little colony of kefir culture. They're little grains that are lumpy, and look like cauliflower. The kefir culture makes kefir from the lactose in the milk. It smells yeasty, like bread, but, it's milk!
Human beings have evolved drinking milk over the last several thousand years. We've evolved, and adapted to it. Now, many people claim that they are lactose intolerant, and that they can't digest milk. And, they are right. They can't digest lactose. But, modern milk is no longer allowed to digest the lactose for us!
Back in the 19th century, there was such a thing called an "urban dairy". It was a distillery dairy. There, they would have cows living at the distillery, and they would be fed the sludge from the process of making whisky. It was very inappropiate feed for cows, and they lived in dreadful, dismal conditions. The milk from these mistreated cows was white poison. They suffered from mastitis, and malnourishment. The milk had a bluish tinge, and was full of pus. This was being sold raw! The milk producers would add chalk to the milk to correct the color and texture. This went on for many years, and people were getting sick and dying from this poisonous milk. There were two schools of thought on how to fix the problem. One, was to get the cows out of the distillery, and clean the place up so that the milk was being processed in more sanitary conditions. Another, was to sterilise the milk, so that the bad bacteria would, they thought, be killed. Now, we all know which was implemented, as we've been drinking sterilised milk for most of our lives, and so have our parents. The ones in charge opted for the pastuerization, which doesn't fix the problem, it just puts a band aid on it, hoping that things will be better. They chose that route because it was cheaper.
Modern dairies are not too far removed from the distillery dairies. The cows are not out in the fields, grazing on lush green grass. They are instead, placed in a barn, on a cement floor for their whole short lives. They are pumped full of hormones, antibiotics, and steriods to keep the milk production up. They live miserable lives. Their milk is sterilised, and homogenized, and then to add insult to injury, they fractionate it by making skim, 1%, and 2% milk. They then have to add vitamin D to the milk, as the cows are unable to put it in their milk naturally. They have to be in the sun, grazing on verdant grass in order to synthesize vitamin D. This milk is cheap, but it is not life giving milk. It is a moon cast shadow to true milk as it is meant to be. This type of milk probably should be pastuerized, as I would not want to drink raw milk that comes from these types of cows.
Real Milk, comes from free grazing cows. They see the sun. They are not on cement floors for their milking careers. They are well taken care of. Their milk is properly handled, and respected. Real Milk is not pastuerized.
Louis Pastuer was correct that the cooking of milk would kill bacteria and other pathogens. He just didn't realize that the harmful bacteria is more likely to survive the sterilization process, and then multiply unhindered. Because the good bacteria in the milk that keeps the pathogens under control was killed. Good bacteria, and fungi, yeasts, and enzymes live in raw milk, just like they live in our bodies, and especially in our digestive tract. They keep the bad beasties under control, and digest the parts of milk that humans find harder to assimilate. That is why you are lactose intolerant with commerical milk. The good enzymes that would normally digest the lactose for you are dead. Real Milk is Alive!
Here are some websites for further reading:
http://www.westonaprice.org/transition/dairy.html
http://www.realmilk.com
:)