Many people where transitioning to a plant-based diet (or vegan) tend to have many questions and worries. Which is good because it is important to be informed when making such a transition that we make proper choices for our health. One of these worries tends to revolve around calcium: where will I find my calcium without dairy? Before tackling that let us first find out: is dairy actually a good source of calcium?
I often get asked about calcium.
“Where will I get my calcium if not from dairy?”
“How can I prevent osteoporosis without dairy?”
“Will I have healthy bones without dairy?”
And the answer to that is quite simple. Not only can you get calcium from other sources than dairy, but they are even better! Yes, I said it: better!!
Let’s start off with some background information on calcium.
Calcium is an essential mineral from the macromineral (that just means your body needs a lot more of it than it would other minerals) group. It is considered essential because the body cannot reproduce it on its own, it needs to get it from the food you eat.
More than that, calcium acts as a buffer in our bones. This means that it is responsible for keeping our pH levels balanced. In other words, when an acid environment begins to take place in our body, calcium gets excreted out of the bones to bring the pH levels back to normal. Hence, depleting our bones from calcium. So, the question becomes: what creates an acid overload in our body? Actually, it is foods such as fish, meat, processed/refined grains, cheese and dairy products.
It looks something like this:
Studies were able to show this by noticing a higher amount of calcium in the urine for those eating an acidic diet in comparison with those eating more alkaline foods such as fruits and vegetables. This acidic type diet not only opens place for bone problems such as fractures and osteoporosis but also other diseases such as gout and kidney stones resulting from an accumulation of acids in the body. So unfortunately, acidic foods such as dairy that are known for being sources of calcium actually deplete our bones from it - and worse: they potentially bring along other problems!
Don't believe me? Let's take a look at this chart:
Here in North America we are often told about the importance of dairy for the prevention of bone diseases such as osteoporosis. However, it is in countries with the highest consumption rate of dairy that is seen the highest rates of bone diseases such as osteoporosis! Could there be a link with the acidosis theory? I believe so.
The sad truth is that dairy products are actually harmful to our bodies.
So why do we hear so much about dairy if science is showing through several studies that it's bad?
Well, like many things today, it comes from money. Actually, the Bible even teaches that the root of all evil is the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10). This information about how great dairy is for us actually comes from associations like the National Dairy Council that have been promoting milk/dairy for over a hundred years to increase their profits. Unlike what most of us believe, these councils are not there to look out for our best interest by directing studies relating to the quality of their product. Their goal is unfortunately not our health but their wealth. To give you an idea, Rosemont, Illinois – National, state and regional dairy producer directors had approved a budget for $165.7 million for a 2003 Unified Marketing Plant (UMP) designed to help increase dairy demand. Notice this budget was not to help increase studies on dairy and its health effects but rather: "how do we get more people to buy our product?". To make it short this included marketing to young children and mothers, using schools as channels to young customers and conduct and publicize research favorable to the industry. More than that, the dairy industry spends $4-$5 million a year to fund research toward the goal of finding something ‘healthy’ to talk about. Not to find relative studies on the truth behind dairy consumption. Many scientists including nutritional scientist, T. Colin Campbell, who have tried to voice their findings on the harmful effects of dairy on these boards have been kicked out or turned down. However, by God’s grace, the truth about the harmful effects of dairy along with other foods is slowly being proven through scientific studies and the public is becoming more and more aware of its dangers. Although it is frightening to realize that even our authorities are lying to us, we can rejoice in knowing that today, more than ever before, we can be more empowered through education and knowledge. For more information on this subject I recommend the book The China Study which details what I shared.
I hope this information was informative and I'm sure it is a lot to take in for some of us. When I first starting learning about all this about 9 years ago now, I too felt betrayed and upset. If you have any questions, doubts or want more clarifications please don't hesitate to contact me or comment below, I'll be glad to help as much as I can!
May God bless you on your journey towards optimal health.
Much love and smiles,
Nahisha
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