Got Milk?

Got Milk? Well, Austin Powers, Tracy McGrady, Serena Williams, Britney Spears, and even Elvis all do. But, do they know what they are selling in this Got Milk? Advertisements? The Got Milk? campaign was based on a milk deprivation strategy that reminded consumers how inconvenient it was to be without milk. The advertisement

made milk a very popular drink because of its attractiveness not because of the nutrients and health issues. It has been believed by many that milk is needed to have a strong and healthy body, when actually milk can be extremely harmful and the nutrients needed for a good body can be found in many other sources.

Statistics show that milk consumption is on the rise in the United States since the Got Milk? campaign was launched. In 1993, 58.1 billion pounds of milk was consumed. It had risen to 59.5 billion pounds by 2002, an increase of 1.4 billion pounds (ERS, Animal Products Branch). Another factor causing the milk industry to grow is dairy farmers. They risk the collapse of their industry if the population does not consume enough milk. So, of course, the farmers are pushing us to drink not just one glass, but two and three glasses of milk a day. Their main priority is to make money by getting us to drink milk as much as possible, not to inform us that milk may not be all that healthy because we are not aware of the risks, we tip our glasses and drink up.

Milk is not as nutritionally essential as it is portrayed, but rather it is harmful to our bodies. Heart disease is America's number-one killer. The main causes of this disease have been believed to be such things as smoking, stress, and even lack of companionship. However, according to an article in Earth Island Journal, milk consumption is probably the number one cause of heart disease. By the time the average American turns fifty-two, he or she will have consumed in milk and dairy products the same amount of cholesterol contained in one million slices of bacon ( "Milk: The Deadly Poison"). Dairy products are the most instant source of saturated fat. Saturated fat increases cholesterol production in the liver. This leads to the formation of fatty deposits in the arteries which increase one's risk of heart attack and stroke ("The Case against Dairy"). The high levels of saturated fat and cholesterol found in milk intensify your chances of bypass surgery, which would put a fifty-thousand dollar dent in your wallet.

Another problem that is not well known, are the harsh chemicals, antibiotics and hormones that may be found in milk and dairy products. Most of America's dairy cows have leukemia virus and after they graze in fields with pesticides their milk contains a mixture of lethal chemicals ("Milk: The Deadly Poison"). Equally as important are the hormones and antibiotics dairy farmers inject into their cows. One hormone, known as recombinant bovine growth hormone, or rBGH, is injected into many cows to increase milk production. There is evidence that rBGH assists the growth of tumors in lab animals and it stimulates another hormone closely connected with breast cancer ("The Case against Dairy"). Also, farmers are permitted to give antibiotics to their cows to fight various diseases. Milk and dairy products contain traces of the antibiotic that are passed on to us. Exposure to such toxins breed strains of bacteria that are immune to even the strongest medicine ("The Case against Dairy").

Most of us do not realize the number of people that are lactose intolerant. Worldwide estimates suggest that two-thirds of the population have trouble digesting milk because of lactose intolerance. According to Teacher Magazine, minorities may have difficulty digesting a sugar in milk known as lactose. An estimated ninety percent of Asian Americans, seventy percent of African Americans and Native Americans, fifty percent of Hispanics, and fifteen percent of Caucasians are lactose intolerant. Hand in hand with lactose intolerance are the proteins in milk that can lead to allergies. Dr. Attwood, an author of many well known parenting books, says ". . . there are more than twenty-five proteins in milk that can lead to allergies. Approximately seven out of ten patients I see have allergies with symptoms ranging from recurrent ear infection, asthma, and various upper respiratory