The Benefits of Raw Milk

People have enjoyed the wide array of milk products for over 10,000 years, such as fresh milk, buttermilk, clabber, curds, whey and a variety of cheeses. These products were never pasteurized. Americans have been inundated with information for the past 70 years about pasteurized milk that was inaccurate. There was a time when pasteurization may have prevented certain pathogenic bacteria, introduced through poor handling techniques, from being transferred in the milk to the consumer. However, it was not a 100% guarantee. The success of pasteurization afforded mass milk producers milk with a longer shelf life, resulting in higher profits.

Pasteurization not only destroys harmful bacteria, but it also destroys beneficial bacteria. These bacteria are vital to a healthy digestive system and need to be replenished. Also, studies have shown that before heating, milk is a living food rich in colloidal minerals, vitamins, and enzymes necessary for the absorption and utilization of sugars, fats and minerals in the milk. For example, milk has an enzyme called phosphatase, which allows the body to absorb the calcium from the milk. Lactase is an enzyme that allows for the digestion of lactose. Once heated, milk becomes rotten, with precipitated minerals that can't be absorbed (osteoporosis), with sugars that can't be digested (allergies), and with fats that are toxic. People that consider themselves "lactose intolerant" are able to enjoy raw milk because it contains "lactase." Normally it would predigest the milk while in the stomach and allow the body to take in nutrients. Pasteurization forces the milk to enter the lower intestines undigested, resulting in cramps and gas.

According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, "Pasteurization destroys enzymes, diminishes vitamin content, denatures fragile milk proteins, destroys vitamins C, B12 and B6, kills beneficial bacteria, promotes pathogens and is associated with allergies, increased tooth decay, eczema, colic in infants, growth problems in children, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease and cancer."

Today, modern handling techniques and local farm care eliminate the need for pasteurization. Pasteurization was adopted as a remedy for milk issues when low-grade milk was being produced by "swill dairies" that fed their cows the by products of whiskey making. The malnourished cows were not able to create milk that would normally fight off pathogenic bacteria. Matters only got worse as milk was collected in open containers and sometimes handled by people who were ill. No wonder the milk made people sick. Poor milk quality also arises from cows fed on a high protein feed made from soybeans and other unacceptable foodstuffs. Rarely is anyone allergic to grass-fed cow's milk.

Obtaining raw milk can be difficult depending on where you live since some states have laws against selling it in stores. When looking for a local dairy that produces raw milk, make sure the cows are healthy and fed on a diet of quality organic feeds like alfalfa hay and barley or grass that is chemical free. The cows should be free of hormone therapies and antibiotics. Most dairies should have closed collection systems, which insure the milk goes straight from the cow into a clean chilling tank. Local milk should go from the cow, to the bottle, to you. To find raw milk and see if it is available in your state, visit realmilk.com