The Milk Farce

It's been confirmed that I am lactose intolerant...these last two night I've had bowls of cereal for dinner and these past two mornings at about 10 O'Clock I've had bowels of cereal for breakfast... my apologies for those of you who were mid chew...

I am not alone. Did you know that 70% of human beings are lactose intolerant? This means that most of the people in this world cannot digest milk and other dairy products. So in this world of  "milk does the body good," most of us are indulging and then suffering the consequences of lactose intolerance characterized by gas and bloating.

So how how was this phrase "lactose intolerance" coined?

Lactose is the sugar of milk. We cannot break it down into digestible units and absorb it without the help of the enzyme lactase. Lactase is required to break lactose into its simple sugars: glucose and galactose. People who are lactose intolerant do not have the enzyme and therefore cannot digest the lactose. 

However, you might be wondering how it is possible for infants to be breastfed? Or maybe you are concluding that this is why they are so gassy, but the truth is we are born lactose tolerant.

Huh?

Again, we are born lactose tolerant meaning we produce the enzyme lactase and can therefore digest mom's breastmilk in our infancy.

So...how is it that we loose our tolerance for milk and dairy?

It stems from sequences in our DNA or genes and whether or not they are "turned on" or "off". If a gene is turned on it will express its corresponding protein or enzyme. So long/boring/scientific story short, the lactase gene A.K.A the gene that expresses the enzyme lactase needed to break down milk into digestable simple sugars, is turned on during infancy and once we are weaned from mom's breast milk or the bottle, the gene is turned off.

Why is it turned off?

Historically speaking, milk was not a vital part of our diet nor was it in existence, pre-farming error. So, historically, the expression of this gene was not necessary once the child had teeth and could eat more wholesome foods such as nuts berries and meat...A.K.A the traditional cave-man diet.

But then came the cattle herders who began raising animals for milk. As it turns out those who can digest milk have ancestors who were pastoralists and drank milk some 3000 years ago.

And let's be clear here...milk is fortified with vitamins meaning they are added to the milk, they don't naturally occur in the drink. It is not the only source of AD and K.

So if milk does the body good and without it we are destined to suffer diseases like osteoporosis then why are there 70% of people still standing all of which are not reaping the benefits of milk?

I say cut the cheese...and the dairy.