Hi, this is Dr. Rob with your weekly health blog. Since it’s Christmas time, I know many of you will be placing a glass of milk with a plate of cookies next to the chimney for Santa to enjoy while he fills up your stockings. However, there is compelling evidence and research that shows that milk doesn’t do a body good, especially pasteurized milk. Pasteurized dairy products consist of heating up milk in order to kill bacteria, but doing this denatures the protein in the milk. This leads to an increased risk of allergies. The evidence also shows a host of other problems related to drinking milk, such as:

• Childhood onset diabetes

• Constipation
• Otitis media (ear infections)
• Sinus congestion
• Skin problems including dermatitis, eczema, hives
• Asthma
• Digestive problems including irritable bowl syndrome and Chron’s disease
• Arthritis and joint pain
• Cancer including lymphoma and leukemia
• Obesity

Not to mention, many people are ingesting the hormones fed to the cows along with the denatured protein.

Milk also has a very high saturated fat content. Saturated fat has been proven to create cancer and heart disease. So, you can see, there is a whole list of problems from drinking milk!

Research also shows that 90% of African Americans, 70% of Asians, and 15% of Caucasians are unable to digest the sugar (lactose) in milk. We are also the only animal species that drinks another species’ milk!

There are alternatives to milk, such as:

• Coconut yogurt
• Almond milk
• Rice milk
• Vegetables like bok choy

If you don’t like it at first, try to develop a taste for it. The consequences of digesting dairy products long term can create big problems.

This Christmas, give Santa a better treat: a nice glass of water and a head of romaine lettuce or an apple. He’ll have more energy throughout the night and greatly appreciate it!