Overall, milk is a healthy food, and has a soothing effect in many different illnesses and also treats depression and does do a body good, it satisfies both hunger and thirst, but it does have an insulinemic effect and tends to encourage mucous formation and the casein in it can also trigger or contribute to inflammation. All this needs to be considered. Also the galactose in Milk is a carbohydrate and even consuming only a glass of milk per day can easily exceed your daily net carb allotment. The other negative side effects of milk are due mainly to the animals being treated with antibiotics to control infections and Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH), to increase lactation / milk production. Over-consumption of such milk products beyond the recommended daily allowance for adults, about 3 glasses or 3 portions of other dairy products (100 gms each), may also cause health problems. However, such limits may be due to the type of proteins in the milk and may not be necessary if milk of the right type is consumed (See – Below).

A study in Sweden has found that women consuming more than 3 glasses of milk a day had almost twice the mortality over 20 years compared to those women consuming less than one glass a day. In addition, the high milk-drinkers did not have improved bone health. In fact, they had more fractures, particularly hip fractures. Interestingly, the study also found that fermented milk products (cheese and yogurt) significantly decreased mortality and fractures among these women. For each serving of these fermented dairy products, the rate of mortality and hip fractures was reduced by 10-15 percent. Again this may be due to wrong tyoe of protein in the milk.

Lactose found in milk can cause abdominal bloating, pain and diarrhea in those intolerant to it. Other animal milks, such as the sweeter goats’ milk, contain lower levels of lactose, making them easier to digest. However, research suggests that the growing lactose intolerance and the many other problems caused by over consumption of milk could again actually be due to the type of protein in the milk.

Milk contains six different types of protein-four casein proteins and two whey proteins. The casein proteins make up about 80 percent of the total protein content of milk and one of these is beta casein, of which the two most common forms are A1 and A2. but due to a genetic mutation at some point, the A1 form appeared in Europe and, gradually became the prevalent form of beta casein in many cow breeds. Milk from the European (Bos Taurus) breeds like Holstein, Friesian, Aryshire, British Shorthorn, contains mostly the A1 variant. Recent Studies have begun to show a possible link between consumption of A1 milk and some illnesses, namely allergies, diabetes, heart disease, schizophrenia, autism, metabolic degeneration disease, mental disorder in old age and obesity. Humans, goats and, in fact most mammals, produce solely A2 milk and despite the increase in cattle producing A1 milk, there are still breeds that produce the original A2 milk. These are the Jersey, Guernsey, Charolais, Limousin cows and Zebu (humped) category of cows which include Indian breeds (Bos Indicus), Buffaloes and other animals such as camels, goats, donkeys, yaks and sheep, all of which express only the A2 variant of this protein. The A2, variation is not only healthier but is more suitable for children’s growth, both physical and mental. A2 milk has the capability to fight against diseases and disorders of human body like obesity, joint pain, asthma, mental problems. Recent research in USA as found that milk (or milk products) from grass or range fed Indian cow breeds has less cholesterol and also does not cause any human diseases. So perhaps it is not necessary to limit milk or dairy products intake containing the A-2 protein.

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