Millions and millions of people drink cow's milk every day. Milk has become an apparent necessity in an abundance of peoples' lives. Many people use milk for breakfast such as on cereal, putting in their coffee or simply as a glass of milk with toast. At most grocery stores, the choices are fat free, one percent, two percent, and whole milk. It is believed that milk as a source of calcium leads to strong bones, but this belief has its detractors and has become controversial. Advertisements such as "Got Milk" have brainwashed us into thinking that we "need" it. But most of the time this cow's milk is contaminated with growth hormones and pesticides. In addition, pasteurization destroys almost all the nutritional value in cow's milk. The disadvantages to drinking cow's milk far outweigh the advantages. Drinking milk causes increasing health problems, and may even lead to an over-intake of calcium which can be just as problematic as not enough. .
In the late 19th century, a growing number of influential people throughout the country believed that American cities had a milk problem. Newspaper articles exposed the appalling conditions in which cows were fed swill. The situation was known as "the milk problem". (Group III) Named after Louis Pasteur, pasteurization is a process that requires heating the milk to kill bacteria and prevent spoilage. It was introduced for safety reasons, but because of the way it depletes the milk, pasteurization has led to many health problems throughout the world.
Pasteurized milk is said to be much safer than raw milk and produce less health problems. But how could it be when rBGH is injected into cows causing them to produce between ten and twenty percent more milk? RBGH-treated animals have a 25 percent greater chance of developing mastitis (a potentially deadly inflammation of the udder), an 18 percent greater chance of becoming infertile, and a 50 percent greater chance of becoming lame.
