Milk, it Does a Body Good…. Well, Maybe Not!

If you have digestive issues, skin problems, or overall health and diet issues, you may have come to the realization that it could be from the large amount of dairy you consume. If you’re curious to learn more, here are some very real benefits of giving up dairy.

Your Cancer Risk Drops Massively

Believe it or not, a benefit may be that you reduce your risk of cancer. Researchers in Europe have been able to predict cancer in patients, noting that adult women who drink more than a glass of milk a day increase their chances of getting ovarian cancer by more than half. That would be bad news for anyone, but it’s particularly troubling for families that have a history of cancer.

In men, instances of cancer increase by more than a third, so if you or someone you know has a history of cancer in their family, then you might want to let them know their options. There are a variety of great milk replacements on the market that are delicious and only marginally more expensive.

Your Risk for Diabetes Goes Down

Did you know that the more low-fat dairy products you eat, the higher your risk of diabetes? This is according to a 2015 study of nearly 27,000 people in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The reason for this may be that food manufacturers are using sugar to replace the missing fat which effectively turns their dairy products into diabetes-delivery systems. Sorry to have to break it to you, but low-fat dairy is BAD for you!

It Reduces Stress on Your Body

Researchers have linked milk to different forms of oxidative stress on tissues of the body. These minor issues won’t be a problem right away, but they can slowly erode your overall health by laying the groundwork for disease. Some figures suggest an increase in deaths as high as 13 percent.

Currently it’s thought to be due to a type of sugar found in the milk. These agitations of your system can cause flare ups of chronic diseases such as Crohn’s. Acidity and other pH issues can also cause aggravation that can even damage the DNA in cells, which can result in cancer.

You Will Strengthen Your Bones

I bet you thought that drinking milk was an amazing source of bone-strengthening calcium, didn’t you? Well, it’s not according to a 2014 study in the British Medical Journal. Researchers found a direct correlation between milk consumption and hip fractures – and not the correlation you might expect! They found that the more milk people drank, the more LIKELY they were to suffer hip fractures. Say what!?

Your Skin May Clear Up

A lot of people have low level allergies to certain foods, and milk is among the most common food items to trigger an allergic response in people. Many people experience some form of dairy intolerance and shrug it off due to the benign nature of the symptoms. Few recognize that gas and bloating are signals that tell you something in your digestive process isn’t functioning properly, but some allergies can be confused for normal things like acne.

For some, the presence of dairy can cause their skin to clog with excess fats that make your skin a perfect breeding ground for all sorts of acid-producing bacteria. Cutting back or eliminating milk can reduce much of your acne and allow your body to deal with fats more efficiently.

You Will Still Get More than Enough Calcium

According to EatThis.com, we tend to make a nearly instant association between dairy and calcium, but there are countless plant-based sources of this vital bone-building mineral. Leafy greens, beans, nuts, fruits (especially oranges and figs), and fortified cereals and nut milks deliver plenty of the mineral. (A bowl of Total, for instance, gives you an entire day’s worth of calcium—before you add any milk.)