Organic Milk or Not

We just had that discussion a few days ago. A friend who works in the health field asked some experts and they did highly recommend organic milk especially for girls. I have not been doing it but will start now and I have a 2 yr old.

I would - I just went to a nutritional class and they had a list of the most important foods to buy Organic and milk was near the top of the list. To me, the most important thing is to make sure it's hormone free. I like to keep stuff as natural as possible. You just don't know what all the stuff they put in our food these days is really doing to us, you know?

Hi J.,
Sounds like organic milk is preferred from the respones. I am not a huge fan of milk at all. Unfortunately, our government is. They make huge profits from it. Conventional milk is full of pus. It's not the same milk that was served in the 60s, when I was little. Check out organicfeelsbest.com for many of your answers to questions about milk and food. Notmilk.com is a site I refer parents to.
Kristen

Hi J.,

I have 11 month old twin boys and I only give them organic milk. It's so much better than regular milk because it doesn't have the hormones and antibiotics in it. It's not really more expensive. I buy it in BJ's which is cheaper than the regular grocery store. I buy it by the 1/2 gallon and I usually buy 3 or 4 1/2 gallons at a time. It has a much longer expiration date than regular milk. I don't buy anything else organic either, but the milk I feel is important because of the hormones and antibiotics that's in regular milk.

I would whole heartedly recommend organic milk! Organic dairies cannot feed their cows with grains grown with pesticides, nor can they use antibiotics or growth hormones like rGBH or rbST. these things can filter into the milk and it is not worth the risk to your baby to consume them, even in trace amounts.
If you are interested in learning more, visit the link below to see a list of the top 12 foods you should buy organic whenever possible (meat is #1, milk is #2)
http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/Dirty-Dozen-F...

I personally have always chosen organic. The way I see it, if I ate something/took medicine that could come thru my breast milk and impact my baby, I would think it would be the same with cows. The idea of all that medicine, hormones, etc. that they give cows to maximize production doesn't feel/seem healthy to me. To in turn be giving that 'tainted' milk to my young child, particularly when they are still in such a significant developmental period, seems to be fraught with potential problems.

Hi J.!

I was buying my girls organic until I went to a farmers market and found out the difference between all natural and organic. I switched to all natural Battenkill Valley Whole Milk (you can get it at Hannaford's) and it is $2.15 for a half gallon! I do buy the girls organic yogurts and milk, nothing else but in my opinion it is worth it.

S.

Milk is the one thing that I always buy organic. They drink so much milk and I worry about the antibiotics and hormones in milk for my kids.

Personally, we drink organic, grass fed, raw milk for a huge number of reasons, including a low price, but I know that not everyone trusts milk the way God intended. Supermarket organic milk is a good idea in theory, but unfortunately, it is almost always ultra-pasteurized, heated to very high temnperatures, which kills every useful good bacteria that exists in it. It is also, as you mentioned, very expensive. A good compromise might be Mountainside Farms milk, which I know they have at my local Shop-Rite (I always notice the cartoon picture of the cow by Sandra Boynton on the package). It is free from hormones and antibiotics and is only pasteurized (not ultra), so there is a small amount of good bacteria left to help with its digestion. It is also cheaper.

I definitely believe organic milk is one of the most important organic items you can buy, and anytime I've looked info up about organics, that is what I've found. It is true that some organic brands are better than others, and if you have the option to buy local it may trump the organic. (I would make sure they don't use rBGH or rBST or other hormones, and one of the reasons organic milk is rated so high on the to buy list is that cows eat a lot so they are greatly decreasing the pesticide burden by using organic feed, but if the local cows eat pasture grass that is NOT sprayed, that is a great option. I grew up near a local dairy, but they were not allowed to sell their own milk, although it was homogenized and pastureized on site. We were able to find out what stores did sell their milk.)
Good luck!

I totally have to agree with Jennifer O.

I would never never never give my children "regular" milk. Besides the hormones, pesticides, and antibiotics the milk is nutritionally raped from the processing it endures.

If you can't get raw milk, buy WHOLE milk that is only pasteurized and also NOT homogenized. (Homogenized dairy has been shown to corrode arteries) Try Sky Top Farms brand. Or do a web search and find a local dairy. Personally, we drive up to Hawthorne Valley Farm twice a month or visit them at the union square market.

The more processing a food goes through, the more nutrients it loses.

I buy organic milk for my son because there are no hormones in it and he drinks so much of it. I have heard that all the hormones kids are now getting in their milk and meat is contributing to early puberty as well as other hormone-related problems.

HI Jess,
If you have Tuscan in your store, go with that - it's free of hormones and antibiotics, but costs less than other organic kinds. If you don't have it, I still feel it's worth the extra money to go organic. Girls seem to be developing at a much earlier age these days than when we were kids, and I totally believe it is largely to do with the hormones being put in some of the products regularly consumed, such as milk. We don't do organic everything at our house, but with the amount of milk my daughter goes through on the daily basis, I feel it's a must.

If you choose to buy one organic product, milk should be at the top of your list.

We believe strongly in organic milk with no pesticides or hormones. The pure quantity they drink the milk is reason enough for me. I believe that as pure food I can give my daughter as possible is important.

My daughter just turned one 2 weeks ago and started on whole milk very slowly, since she was on soy formula. So far, so good (knock on wood). Anyway, my best friend has 2 kids (7 & 9 now) and they drink SOOO much milk and chocolate milk, she told me that the one thing she wishes she had done from the beginning was to give them organic milk. With all the hormones in regular milk, it can play havoc with growing bodies. For me, it's money very well spent. Good luck!!

More important then organic is to buy local milk with out BGH (bovine growth hormones). I live in a rural dairy town and farmers here refuse to become certified organic because to achieve the certification they were told they would have to remove their cows from pasture and keep them in stalls and feed grain to insure they ate no grass, which is no way for a cow to live. They said that to get the organic label they have to prove that the grass in the pasture has never been exposed to anything ever...which is almost impossible as these farmers have only owned their farms for a few generations. Organic is great for fruits and vegatables, but for milk and meat I would rather support local farmers who take good care of their animals and give no growth hormones rather then to go with the often misunderstood organic label.

Milk is a highly allergenic food. Want to get rid of a child's ear infection? Just get them off dairy! I used to work for a holistic doctor and almost everyone who came in with health problems was allergic to milk. We are the only species who regularly uses the milk of another species. We can and should live without it. Take a few minutes to watch this interview and hopefully you will understand why:

Milk, the Deadly Poison:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYpafipJyDE

If you must feed your child dairy then Google Weston Price and read about raw milk. At least it has some enzymes in it that will help to digest it. Milk turns calves into big huge cows and look what's happened to the obesity rates with all the pasteurized dairy consumption...not that dairy is the only factor but it is a big one.

Failing that, then YES, organic is a necessity, not a luxury. Conventional produce is laden with herbicides and pesticides and cows are not exactly grazing out in fields these day. They are kept in a very stressed state and fed unnatural food for their species. Once again, milk is not a healthy product to consume. Wish I had known this when my daughter was the age of your baby!

S. Hoehner
www.sharethecause.com/detoxqueen

I do not buy a whole lot of organic products, but do try and buy at least organic milk, eggs and chicken. Beef - if I can find it. A doctor once told me that it is chickens and cows that receive the most hormones and antibiotics and the byproducts of these animals can be loaded with residual chemicals. I think it makes sense adn honestly - I seriously can taste the difference in the milk and chicken. Also - the milk stay fresher a lot longer.

Hi J.,
My advice is to start reading and learning about organic products. At this stage it would be a wonderful thing for you to start your child off without the huge array of additives and chemicals in foods and beverages. I think organic milk is a great idea. I also think you and your child will benefit greatly from a switch to organic in any other areas you can manage. Once you start reading, you will be horrified to learn the toxic additives that are in foods. Many childhood issues including allergies and ADD and ADHD are readily tied to frutctose, food dyes, preservatives as well as the chemicals that are used to grow and process food.
Take the step toward educating yourself so you can protect your child.
All the best !
P.

Hi J....I'm not sure where you live but if you are near a Cumberland Farms, I would try there. My local Cumberland Farms milk is actually Garelick Farms milk and although it is not "organic", it has no artificial growth hormones. The price is also MUCH better than the grocery store (because it says Cumberland Farms, not Garelick Farms) at just $3.00 a GALLON. Good luck with your decision!

My family has quit drinking cow milk because of food allergies. However, we do eat organic as much as possible and I know from research I've read that animal fats carry a lot more environmental pollutants in them than vegetables. People who don't eat any animal products have much less of these pollutants in their systems, people who don't eat meat but eat dairy have more and people who eat meat have the most. Eating organic meat may be more important than drinking organic milk, but organic milk does have fewer pollutants than factory farmed milk. If you have access to grass-fed milk that has a lot more Omega 3s than the usual grain fed. Do some research on Google and see what you find.

I do think rBGH effects people. When I was nursing my youngest daughter I noticed that although I drank a lot of organic milk, when I had ice cream made from commercial milk my breasts would become engorged and I would make more milk than usual. Kinda creepy.

While we do use a lot of organic foods and products, in doing my research on milk when it was time for the switch from formula, I chose to place the emphasis on hormone free and antibiotic free milk. Organic milk is naturally free of those things but some non-organic milks are as well (such as Farmland). We do use the Earth's Best organic milk boxes when we're out because they do not require refrigeration. Hope this helps and best of luck.

I have a 7 month old and we are giving him organic baby food. We probably don't have to, but my husband thought it would be a good idea. I also more or less stopped breast feeding around 6 months, as I went back to work. We had been giving powder formula (enfamil), but then switched to liquid, thinking it would fill my son up better, and satisfy him more than powdered formula. But we have him on organic similac formula. I would probobably try to give him organic milk when he is drinking regular milk, hoping it is free from the hormones in regular milk. The kids seem to physically develop more than when I was a kid. I think they give the cows hormones and I dont think I want to pass that onto my child.

i use organic milk, pricewise at costco, its around $3 a half gallon as well as at BJs. its not like im scared out of my mind of nonorganic milk, but i dont want to chance it. i recently read an article talking about organic or not for your child, and the doctor stated milk was the one thing that you should try to buy organic as a baby drinks so much, esp during the growing years. other foods, organic baby foods, ect he said were not important in the long run.
if you absolutely cant afford organic milk, you must only use milk that states on the package that they dont use hormones of any kind. dont waiver on this.
and dont forget, you can just buy him the organic stuff, and you and your husband drink regular.

Hello J.,

Although it does cost more, organic milk is worth it. I have been drinking organic milk myself for years and as soon as my son turned 1 (now 2 1/2) I started him on it. Toddlers drink so much milk (30 oz or so) daily that I thought it better for him. Actually I usually try to go all organic with my dairy products (yogart, cheese, eggs, etc). it really is better for them and you.

If you choose to give him milk, go with only organic whole milk. It is worth every penny.

But I find dairy to be very closely related to infections and mucus. Keeping away from it prevented my kids from all kinds of colds and ear infections.

C.

Dear J.,

The word "organic" has become quite a buzzword. While it provides us with some sort of standard, it doesn't tell the whole story. An organic farmer can feed a cow organic soy or organic corn... yet there can be a farmer down the road who lets his cow graze on green grass and hay that hasn't been sprayed with pesticides, and doesn't give his cow growth hormones- and the second non-organic cow would be healthier. Cows were meant to eat grass. For instance, what if I fed one son organic potato chips for 90% of his diet, and my other son non-organic fruits and veggies? Who would be healthier- the one who ate primarily organic or the one who didn't? The one who didn't of course- humans weren't meant to live on potato chips whether or not they are organic. And that is why I don't buy organic milk at the store, instead I found a source of milk that was from grassfed animals without hormones. If you dont' have the interest to find out where your milk comes from or travel to obtain it, buy organic. To save money, limit your child's consumption of milk to one glass a day. They are still probably having cheese and yogurt. I give my son, a 3 yr old self-imposed vegetarian, eggs at breakfast, yogurt for lunch, and something with cheese at dinner- and if I give him more than 8-12 ounces of cow's milk along with that, he develops allergies (clear runny nose). If you are buying a little less milk, maybe it won't seem so expensive to you.

I totally think organic milk is worth it. Children drink so much milk. I also believe that the contaminents (pesticides, hormones, antibiotics) are mor elikely to be in the fat, so it is even more important with whole milk. If I had to pick one thing to go organic on, I would say milk. Check store brands or Costco. They can be cheaper. Also look for coupons. Our Shop Rite often has coupons in a natural living (I can't think of the name) magfazine each month that you get for free on the way out. You can also get coupons from the brand's website.

Absolutely hormone free milk if not organic. Do you have a Stew Leonards near you? Their milk is hormone free and cheaper than any milk I have found. Also, Costco carries organic whole milk in 3 1/2 gallon packs and trust me, you will go through it!

I'm a huge advocate of drinking organic milk and have done so for years now. I had done some research and found out about the hormones cows are given which make them produce more milk than their udders can hold....so then they are given antibiotics to curb infections, etc...yikes. No thank you.

I've found great prices at wholesale clubs like Costco and BJ's that are right there with regular milk. If you have any in your area you may want to check it out. By the way, I don't buy a lot of organic stuff either, but milk is the one thing I insist on.

J.,
Ounce for ounce, pound for pound, our kids are exquisitely more sensitive to toxins than we adults are. Conventionally raised dairy and meat in our country is loaded with hormone and pesticide residues. These toxins are measurable in children's blood. It's worth the extra bucks and even worth foregoing convenience to make sure our children eat the least toxic food available. The bottom line is a sick child is NOT convenient!

We don't own the earth, we borrow it from our children and grandchildren. The hidden cost of industrially produced food is the pollution it leaves behind. Right now, there is a dead zone the size of NJ in the gulf of Mexico. How did it get there? Pesticide and fertilizer runoff from farms growing corn and soy to feed those cows! It's all connected.

As parents, we need to do everything in our power to make sure our food is not toxic for our kids and harmful for the earth. It's a big job and it starts with eating as clean as we can. Local and organic foods are your best bet if you want to maximize your children's health.

Check out the Enviornmetal Working Group (www.ewg.org) to learn more about organic food and the "dirty dozen"

Even if organic milk is the only thing organic he gets I personally think it is well worth the money. Regular milk in the stores is loaded with synthetic hormones and antibiotics, and the cows are fed with feed the has who knows what in it. Organic milk comes from cows that aren't treated with hormones or antibiotics and are fed only organic, natural feed. Until probably 50-60years ago that is the type of milk everyone drank. Personally I think it tastes a lot better too.

i was at the same place you are 6 months ago. i also bought nothing organic & was debating to do organic whole milk or not after nursing my son for 12 months. i called my doctor & asked his thoughts. he said it costs more and there is no real documented cases of the growth hormone affecting children b/c they drink regular milk. if you are an extra careful person regarding what goes into your baby and fear that there will be harm to them if they don't drink anything but organic - go ahead. i chose to listen to my doctor & until they report that regular whole milk absolutly does damage to those children drinking it, and there are proven cases - then i'm sticking to it.

personally, i think the more organic, the better. i dont go crazy, but i try, especially for the things my kids eat the most of, like milk, yogurt, and bananas. if there is a fairway near you, their prices arent bad. also, bj's wholesale club has some organics now, including milk and some fruit and veggies and frozen veggies.

when i had my first son i gave him mostly organic baby food and milk. i now have 3 toddlers and they drink about 4 gallons (or more) of milk a week. i recently stopped buying organic because it was cutting into my budget although i do feel very guilty about it. i tell myself that many kids are raised on regular (non organic) milk and i too was raised on non-organic milk and i turned out okay. go with what you can afford or what really matters to you.

Hi J.,
I think it is worth it, milk is a big protion of his diet.
Try Borden's brand kid builders itis 5.69 a gallon, a little cheaper than the organic brands but it is the same. My kids love it. I would also try to incorporate a little more organic as he eats more table food and snacks.
Good Luck,
K.

I give my 16 month old son organic milk, unless I can find regular milk that does not contain the growth hormone rBGH (I think that's what it is). Some grocery stores now have regular milk without the rBGH, you just have to look on the label. I figure it's a few extra dollars a month - my little guy drinks about a gallon of milk a week - and it gives me peace of mind, which is worth the extra expense. I don't buy anything else organic, either.

I have given my daughter either raw or organic milk since she was about 1 year old with no problems.
Good Luck

Yes, it is worth buying organic milk. As humans, we are what we eat and the same goes for cows. Organic cows tend to eat better, live better and get sick less often. Due to the better animal husbandry used for the cow,the cow does not have to be fed animal feed with anti-biotics to keep it healthy. While most milk is not hormone free when labelled as such, it is not antibiotic free unless the label says as much. Further, cows fed only grass is even better because of a higher amount of CLA which is good for us. So eat organic yogurt as well because unless stated the milk used does not say rbst free (growth hormone which is stapled to the calf's ear until it dies).

Organic milk costs more because it is not as heavily subsidized and reflects the real price of raising a cow in a humane way. Factory raised cows are treated in a terrible way. See the meatrix.com for more information. Further, buying organic is one way to vote for raising cows in a better more humane and environmentally conscious way. Even if the milk seems cheaper, the real cost is much higher than organic milk when you take into account the profound and lasting harm done to the environment.

Lastly, I read a long time ago that vitamin D in the milk need fat to be digested, so I have always served whole fat milk to my children. They continue to grow nice and healthy, and as they reach puberty eveything seems to be going along properly. They seem to do better with organic grass-fed milk than regular milk.

Trader Joe's has organic whole milk for a low price. As more people buy it, the price has gone down over the years. Mind you, it is not a huge part of our diet. On the other hand, I buy mostly organic because studies have come out from the UK proving that organic produce can be up to 30% more nutritious. My family thinks it tastes better.

This could be fun for you to explore. See www.ewg.com for a list of produce that should be bought organic.

All the best,
Ana