The Raw Truth

And now from one of my good friends and a geyser of fabulous and arcane food and nutritional knowledge...

The Health Benefits of Raw Dairy

By Erica Stelcik

Raw dairy… it’s not as gross as you think it is!

Last time you bought a container of milk or butter, you probablydidn’t think twice that your container had the word “pasteurized” written on it. Have you ever thought about what that means exactly, and how it can affect your health? Milk in its most natural form is raw (unpasteurized), full-fat, and non-homogenized (i.e., the cream rises to the top). Until you taste the real stuff, you have no idea what you are missing out! Raw dairy from approved dairy farms is extremely safe to consume because the farmer follows even stricter safety guidelines than a conventional dairy farm. Pasteurization kills both the bad and the good in conventional dairy. Here are some reasons why raw dairy is one of the best Real Foods you can eat:

* All raw foods, including raw dairy, contain enzymes that are constantly breaking down that food. Enzymes are killed with heat processing. If you cut a raw apple in half and leave it out for a day, what happens to it? It starts to turn brown because the enzymes in the apple are actively breaking it down. Raw dairy works the same way – it contains enzymes that help break down its components. Raw dairy is the richest source of lipase, an enzyme required to break down fats. A fat metabolism problem (being overweight or underweight) or a fat-soluble vitamin (A, D, E, and K) deficiency problem can mean a lipase deficiency in the body.

* Pasteurization has been linked to asthma, immune system diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, and more. The tremendous biodiversity of good bacteria in raw dairy helps to repopulate the good bacteria we need in our gut, which is essential for maintaining a great immune system and our health.

* People who are unable to eat pasteurized dairy due to lactose intolerance can usually eat raw dairy without a problem. Lactase, the enzyme needed to break down lactose the milk sugar, is abundant in raw dairy.

* Raw dairy also has vitamin B6, which is easily destroyed by heat. Vitamin B6 is usually the most difficult B vitamin to obtain through eating. It is absolutely essential for carbohydrate metabolism.

For more information on raw dairy, please visit http://www.realmilk.com/ or http://www.westonaprice.org/. Both websites discuss in great detail the benefits of raw dairy from grassfed, happy cows not dosed in antibiotics or growth hormones.

Erica is studying for her MS degree in Holistic Nutrition and is also a proud member of the Weston A. Price Foundation. She supports eating nutrient-dense foods made the traditional way, and absolutely adores raw cream on top of blueberries! She occasionally writes on her blog at http://www.realfood2health.com/.

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