Comments on Is Raw Milk Healthier?

Who is Nipper.
What is Milk Drunk.

listeriosis, anyone? raw milk = bad. it's illegal in most states for a very good reason.

Nipper is a breeder?

It's all about the enzymes, baby!

As a new parent myself, I am familiar with the "milk drunk" face and love it. It is the picture of content.

This is one cute goat.

Drinking raw cow milk - not good for you.

Drinking raw goat milk - same.

Drinking raw human milk when you are 5 or younger - good for you.

Period.

Nipper is awesome! You should let him Slog.

I'd love to see a few posts a day from him.

I grew up drinking raw milk, with no memorable problems. But then I was in charge of QA since I was actually milking the cows myself.

go to google and do undulant fever

no raw milk, used to be killer stuff if the cow is infected

as a kid we had a small farm and a milk cow - my mom milked her, I have one hell of a mama- tell me, and was sterile/very clean ... in how she handled the milk to keep it pure

but just from the store, no raw milk

raw milk is sometimes probably bad. But always tasty.

And young raw milk cheeses are almost always tasty (but very illegal).

I see that Larkin grew up on a farm too ... seriously, you can get a lot of really bad diseases from drinking raw cow's milk, people.

There's a reason why pasteurization was regarded as one of the most important inventions ...

it could be even worse than what we already know - i had a professor in grad school who thinks there is a link between the bovine leukemia virus [found in raw milk] and breast cancer. she has some pretty compelling evidence, although she has enormous skepticism and political resistance to overcome. but i'd err on the side of caution. you never know....

Raw milk is riskier than pasteurized milk. But, just as raw eggs in ice cream taste better than pasteurized egg product ice cream, raw milk tastes way better.

For me, it's worth the risk. I hope it remains legal.

Re "there are no health benefits in drinking raw milk—the nutrients easily survive the heating.."-
Oh, yeah? Then the heat only hurts the alleged pathogens? Sounds like the same-ol' crap to me... eg "All vitamins are the same"... so I'll file it under "we're educated, & you're not, you ignorant (insert epithet here)". Given the # of raw milk providers & the # of cases of attributable sickness that has sprung from them, I'll take my chances that 1. the nutrients are 'better' for me, as well as the flavor; and 2. the measures of cleanliness observed by my milk providers is sufficient to protect me... & you (yes- even YOU, Mr. Hysteria-man)... ^..^
Ever been to a commercial dairy?.. & seen the charts of individual cows, and what they've been medicated with, lately, and the # of days before they can legally be milked, again?.. and the wall chart that tells you what's in the medications?.. & maybe you have a list of the most common teratogens, endocrine disruptors & known carcinogens there in your shirt pocket- and do some comparisons of the Published ingredients with the List... & don't even worry about synergistic effects, because nobody Else does... (& explain again why your shit don't stink 'cause you don't eat meat...) ^..^

Herbert - why does pig shit smell so much worse and is so much harder to get off than cow or horse shit? Honest question here. Some of this stuff is actually useful, cowpies burn. I guess pig shit is a rich fertilizer but I think there are certain things you can't or shouldn't grow with it. Total dimwit on that end of the sustainable scale.

Raw milk and raw cheese are not illegal. I buy both all the time and I drink both all the time and have never had a problem. For more information on what it is and where you can buy it, check out www.realmilk.com.

I felt this Dear Science article was completely unresearched and biased. Raw milk is completely healthy and the farmers and dairymen, er, people, who proudly sell their fresh milk take great care in making sure it's safe. They have to. Those states that allow the legal selling of raw milk also enforce strict health policies regarding their product. I've been drinking raw milk now for 2 years and the few times I've returned to pasteurized/homogenized milk, I noticed a marked difference in how I felt, which was not better. Do your homework, folks, and you can start by checking out the website posted in the comment above.

Bah. No adult should drink any kind of milk. Ever. ;)

I'd like to add that this is the first time I have had any background knowledge about the science topic at hand. And given the poor research and contradiction from my own life experience, I can just dismiss any other topics Jonathan brings up as being flat out wrong.

My grandmother got tuberculosis from raw milk.

My Grandmother lived a long, healthy life drinking raw milk.

The Washington Department of Agriculture has just advised consumers about raw milk that is contaminated with Campylobacter, a food poisoning microbe. Please see the following link for more details: http://efoodalert.blogspot.com/2007/12/why-drinking-raw-milk-can-be-risky.html