Dairy Products and Allergies
For some, dairy products, and cow’s milk in particular, are linked to all kinds of allergies and sensitivities, including skin rashes, eczema, fatigue, spastic colon, excessive mucus production, nasal allergies and chronic ear and sinus infections. Some people have diarrhea due to lactose intolerance. If you have any of these, stop all dairy products for a week or so, and watch the improvement.
Also, dairy products tend to have lots of saturated fats in which toxins are concentrated. High amounts of pesticide residues are usually found in butter and cheese.
Goat milk products generally cause fewer allergies and sensitivities than cow milk. Organic, low-fat, or fat-free goat milk or goat cheese can be found in some health food stores and online.
Eat low-fat or nonfat organic cheese, sour cream or yogurt. Use organic butter or ghee, which is clarified butter. Never substitute margarine for butter. It contains trans fatty acids, which are associated with heart disease.
It’s best to avoid ice cream and frozen yogurt. Both are high in sugar. Ice cream is usually also high in saturated fat.
The best dairy products for you is low-fat organic plain yogurt or kefir, or low-fat organic plain goat milk yogurt or kefir, which contains good bacteria to maintain a healthy GI tract. These good bacteria help reduce the production of cancer-causing chemicals.
If you can, buy living foods the day you intend to prepare them. Through proper handling, you can keep living foods healthy all the way to your dinner table.
Cook and Serve
Once they are exposed to air, fruits and vegetables begin to lose nutritional value. If you must chop or cut up your vegetables, do so just before eating.
Busy homemakers like to prepare meals in advance, but reheating food and leftovers depletes them of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. When you boil vegetables, the nutrients leach into the water, so bring the water to a boil first, then add your vegetables for a brief time. Drain them immediately and serve them. Lightly steaming your vegetables causes very little loss of nutrients.
A study in Science News in 1998 found that just six minutes of microwave cooking destroyed half the vitamin B-12 in dairy foods and meat. This is a much higher rate of destruction than other cooking techniques.
Stir-frying, steaming and grilling are wonderful ways to prepare your food. Don’t overcook it, and watch what you cook in.
Teflon is possibly related to cancer because of the presence of a toxic chemical used to produce it. Aluminum has toxic effects, and iron is a free radical. I recommend the use of stainless steel, glass or porcelain cookware.
Once you’ve set the table with healthy foods, start your meal with a heartfelt blessing and keep the conversation pleasant. Eat moderate portions and feast instead on conversation and laughter. Chew each bite 30 times and put your fork down between bites. This dramatically slows down the meal so that the hormone leptin will signal the brain to stop eating.
Set new goals for yourself this year. Plan and cook healthy meals, and most of all, enjoy the company of your family and friends. Deuteronomy 30:19 says, “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore, choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.”
Don Colbert, M.D. is the author of The Seven Pillars of Health, from which this article was adapted. For additional resources and articles by Colbert go to www.drcolbert.com.
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