Lactose intolerance plays a role
Consumption of cow’s milk is in decline
Author: Dr Elena Kontogianni
An average person consumes about 144 pints (81 litres) of cow’s milk a year.
Americans drink 37% less milk than they did in the 70s. In the UK, dairy consumption has fallen by a third in the past 20 years.
Milk is increasingly getting a bad press with many articles referring to lactose intolerance.
Lactose is the sugar found in milk and dairy products and it needs the enzyme lactase to break it down. Without enough lactase, the lactose is broken down by bacteria in the small bowel, causing bloating, flatulence, stomach cramps, diarrhoea and nausea.
Around 70% of us don’t continue producing lactase after we have finished breast or formula feeding. Genetically, babies need milk, adults not so much. Northern Europeans, who thousands of years ago got into cattle farming, have adapted to cow’s milk and have a genetic mutation so that only 2-15% have a degree of lactase deficiency. This rises to 23% in central Europeans and 95% in Asian populations.
Cow’s milk is nutritious. It contains calcium, vitamins A and D and riboflavin, as well as protein. According to dietitians our bodies may find the calcium in cow’s milk easier to extract than from the supplements in almond and coconut milks.
Image credit: http://bit.ly/2ggaVpk
You must be logged in to post a comment.