Calcium

Modern nutritional recommendations promote the idea of drinking animal milk for healthy bones. This is completely false, as evident by that fact that higher consumption of dairy consistently correlates with higher rates of osteoporosis and bone disease (Michaelsson, et al). For those who promote consumption of animal milk for bone health, it is a perplexing fact that populations that consume higher amounts of calcium – particularly through dairy products – have higher rates of fractures (Hegsted).

Our bones require a balance of minerals, specifically of magnesium and calcium, to develop and maintain proper structure. Animal milk (dairy) contains excessively high levels of calcium without the balance of magnesium, resulting in an imbalance of minerals and improper bone formation. Furthermore, milk – like other animal-based foods – puts the body in a state of metabolic acidosis, which the body corrects by pulling calcium out of the bones. Although we drink milk to get calcium, we might actually be causing our bones to lose calcium because animal foods, including milk, make the body acidic. Calcium is easily and best obtained through eating whole plant foods.