A nationwide attack on milk distorts the nutritional value
and health of dairy products
and the cows that produce them, say University of Georgia
experts.

Within a week in mid-March, People for the Ethical Treatment
of Animals, an
animal-rights group, launched, pulled and replaced a
controversial “Got
Beer?” campaign with a “Milk
Sucks” drive. The ads call milk
and milk products unhealthy and say dairies are cruel to
cows.

But the PETA ads ignore milk’s important nutritional values,
said
Connie Crawley, an
Extension Service nutritionist with the UGA College of
Family and Consumer Sciences.

No Reason to Avoid
Milk

“For the population as a whole, there’s no reason to
avoid milk and milk
products,” Crawley said.

“In our society, milk is our primary source of calcium
and vitamin D,” she
said. “We really don’t have a well-accepted alternative
source in our general
diet.”

Adults need 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams of calcium daily. The
need varies with gender and
age. “Young women, from 12 to 24, typically don’t get
nearly enough calcium,”
she said. “And generally, people need more nutrients as
they get older.”

Crawley said some people’s bodies can’t tolerate lactose.
“Those people need
low-lactose milk or another source of calcium and vitamin
D,” she said.

Choose Low-fat
Products

Milk does contain saturated fats, Crawley said. And people
need to make wise choices
when choosing milk products. A key is to compare the nutrient
density with the calories.

“I can drink a glass of skim milk with chocolate that
has 150 calories,” she
said. “A chocolate milk shake has about the same nutrients
but has 300 to 400
calories.”

Fortunately, she said, “the dairy producers give us
different levels of milk fat
in their products.” The fat content of whole milk is about
3.5 percent. But
2-percent, 1-percent, 1/2-percent and nonfat (skim) milk is
also available.

“Adults really don’t need as many fats as we eat in our
society,” Crawley
said. “But where most people get too many fats is
generally not in their milk and
milk consumption. French fries, for instance, are our No. 1
vegetable.”

Milk Products Not
Contaminated

The PETA ads call dairy products a “health
hazard,” claiming they are “contaminated with cows’ blood and pus
and frequently with pesticides, hormones and antibiotics.”

All of that “just isn’t true,” said John
Bernard, an animal and dairy
scientist with the UGA College of Agricultural and
Environmental Sciences.

“Milk is heavily inspected,” Bernard said.
“By law, before any truckload
of milk can be unloaded at the processing plant, it has to be
tested for residues of any
type. If there’s any suspicion at all, it has to be set aside
and the milk further tested.
If it has any contaminant, it can’t be used.”

No Antibiotic, Pesticide
Residues

Dairies don’t use antibiotics in the cows’ feed, he said,
“because of the
potential residue problem.”

At times, farmers have to use antibiotics to treat a cow for
a disease. “But that
cow’s milk is withheld until any disease and potential residue
is past,” he said.

About the only pesticides dairies use are for fly control,
Bernard said, and they’re
limited to only those that are approved by the Food and Drug
Administration and don’t pose
any kind of residue potential.

‘Cruelty’ Doesn’t Make
Sense

As for dairies’ cruelty to cows, Bernard said common sense
dictates that farmers treat
their animals well.

“If they mistreat a cow, that cow’s not going to give
as much milk,” he said.
“A frightened, abused animal won’t be productive. It
wouldn’t be expected to perform
like a world-class athlete.”

Bernard said the comparison of dairy cows to professional
athletes is a good one.

“They’re expected to perform at levels beyond what they
normally would,” he
said. “Dairymen do everything they can to keep their cows
well-fed, healthy and
comfortable.”