By Robert Cohen, NotMilk.com

"Cow's milk is not suited for human consumption. Milk causes constipation, biliousness, coated tongue, headache, and these are the symptoms of intestinal auto-intoxication."
- Jethro Kloss, Back to Eden, 1939

Mothers often report that after children are weaned from breast milk and adopt a dairy diet, they become constipated, some severely. Does anecdotal evidence qualify as real science?

That question was addressed by doctors in the Pediatric Gastroenterology Unit of Spain's Basque Country School of Medicine. Their study has been published in the August issue of the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition (2010 Aug;51(2):171-6).

TITLE: Cow's-Milk-free Diet as a Therapeutic Option in Childhood Chronic Constipation

AUTHORS: Irastorza I, Ibañez B, Delgado-Sanzonetti L, et. al.

STUDY CONCLUSIONS:

"A clear association between CM (cow's milk) consumption and constipation has been found in more than one third of children..."

Notmilk has been warning moms of the dairy/constipation link for more than a decade.

Got science? The October, 1998 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (339:16, 1100-4) reported:

...cow's milk can also cause severe perineal lesions with pain on defecation and consequent constipation in young children. In young children, chronic constipation can be a manifestation of intolerance of cow's milk.

Sound painful? If your child is similarly affected, thank those who promote milk and dairy consumption.

As America's noted pediatrician (Dr. Benjamin Spock) wrote in his best-selling book ("Child Care" - 75 million copies sold):

Cow's milk has become a point of controversy among doctors and nutritionists. There was a time when it was considered very desirable, but research has forced us to rethink this recommendation...dairy products contribute to a surprising number of health problems...