Articles
DAIRY PRODUCTS RAISE BREAST CANCER RISK
Millions of American women suffer from breast cancer. It is the leading cause of death for women ages 40 to 55. Yet, in China and other countries that do not consume much milk or other dairy products, breast cancer rates are much, much lower. In our country, most milk is gotten from breeds of cows that have been selectively bred over the centuries to be heavy milk-producers, thus their milk has high concentrations of growth hormones. One of these hormones, called IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor –1) is found in high concentrations in the blood of women who suffer from breast cancer. Among women younger than 50, having high IGF-1 levels raises breast cancer risk by seven times Lancet 351(1998), 1393-96. A British study found low death rates for breast cancer where dairy product consumption was low, even when intake of other fats was high. British Journal of Cancer 24(1970), 633-43. Eliminating dairy products and the meat of these cows from the human diet lowers IGF-1 levels significantly. British Journal of Cancer 83(1) (2000) 95-97; Science 279 (1998), 563-6.
Is Dairy Necessary for Building Strong Bones?
The answer to this question is a definite NO! The Harvard University Nurses’
Health Study, with over 120,000 subjects, found that the consumption of milk
does not protect against hip or forearm fractures. Those who drank 3 or more
servings of milk a day actually had a slightly higher rate of fractures than
women who drank little or no milk. (American Journal of Public Health 87
(1997) 992-997).
There is adequate calcium and other minerals needed for bone growth in green
leafy vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and even fruits like oranges.
Milk Raises Ovarian Cancer Risk
A study, published in 2004 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,
followed more than 60,000 women, and found that “drinking more than two
glasses of milk a day significantly upped the risk of the most serious form
of ovarian cancer.” The article stated that “dairy products have previously
been linked to cancers, including those of the breast and prostate, and now
it is found that women who consume more than four servings of dairy products
a day have twice the risk of serous ovarian cancer than women who have fewer
than two servings.
Note: The links to cancer are attributed to the protein and other non-fat
parts of the milk … so using low-fat dairy products and skim milk does not
lower the risk.
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For more information see The China Study by Dr. T. Colin Campbell (www.thechinastudy.com),
any of the books on breast cancer, prostate cancer, and osteoporosis by Dr.
Jane A. Plant. (www.janeplant.com), or the Physicians’ Committee for
Responsible Medicine (www.pcrm.org)
