Eggs and Milk: Good for you, or bad for you?

[Henri Gaudier]

When I switched from being Vegetarian to Vegan I noticed an immediate improvement in my health. I quit milk first and didn't feel any improvement but when I went the whole way - no eggs, butter or cheese I felt a lot better - healthy skin, less tired. I miss salty butter on my toast and Comte and Normantahl cheese but I can't go back having made the decision. If you can afford it, go organic as much as possible. As others have said, there is so much stuff in our food that shouldn't be there, who knows what detrimental effect it will have a little down the line. Also sans OGM - buy nothing that is GM. That stuff should carry a skull and cross bones on the label.

 

[njmac]

Well, I know what I'm having for lunch.

Tally ho!

Cold or warm I suppose. Boiling water is supposed to have detrimental affects on the leaves etc, but I was told this by a hippy in the green field at Glastonbury so make of that what you will.

We can't have tea made with boiling water? What's the point of even living?

As a rule of thumb, pour boiling water over black tea and steep 3 to 5 minutes.

Pour water that is about 160º -180º F over white or green tea leaves and steep for 1-3 minutes depending on strength and the leaves themselves.

 

[Kernow]

It may be that some people are confusing what lactose intolerance actually means - it is not an allergic reaction to the consumption of dairy products, it is the absence of the ability to produce the enzyme lactase which is needed to break down lactose, which is the sugar in milk.

The majority of lactose intolerant adults can consume a varying amount of dairy products before displaying any symptoms (which tend to be things like excess gas, stomach ache etc). You can also become acclimatised to dairy products, whilst still remaining lactose intolerant.

Another point is that people may not connect the symptoms of lactose intolerance with the consumption of dairy products - because it is not an allergic reaction, they can manifest themselves up to several hours later. Because the symptoms can vary in severity and can be caused by many other things, the connection is often not made.

I guess the stats that have been quoted above refer to this definition (absence of lactase), which is much harder to recognise than an inability to consume even the smallest amount of milk without suffering an allergic reaction.

I am lactose intolerant - it can trigger my asthma as well as make me feel bloated and farty, so I tend to avoid milk as much as possible. Having said that, I can eat small amounts of cheese, so pizza remains on the menu

 

[Apemanblues]

Most people are unaware of the fact that coconuts are actually bears eggs.

 

[devilot]

It may be that some people are confusing what lactose intolerance actually means - it is not an allergic reaction to the consumption of dairy products, it is the absence of the ability to produce the enzyme lactase which is needed to break down lactose, which is the sugar in milk.

The majority of lactose intolerant adults can consume a varying amount of dairy products before displaying any symptoms (which tend to be things like excess gas, stomach ache etc). You can also become acclimatised to dairy products, whilst still remaining lactose intolerant.

Thank you for writing that. I was becoming increasingly frustrated with those puporting that 'all' the Asians they knew weren't LI.

All the Asians I know are lactose intolerant: yes, on a sliding scale. Yes the ABCs I know are much more able to drink milk and consume dairy prodcuts without as extreme of symptoms. Those who are first generation definitely show more symptomps. To the point of needing to drink Lactaid instead of milk, and even popping those pills that help digest lactase or whatever.

 

[Abstract]

I've seen plenty of Japanese eating ice cream. I used to hang out with a group of Filipinos and Malaysians and we'd all get milkshakes. Calpico Soda has non-fat milk in it and so does UCC Milk Coffee and these things wouldn't be on the market still if a majority of people in Japan were lactose intolerant.

Funny that. I had plenty of Calpico when I was in Japan. Tasted great when I tried it, so I stuck with it. I tried a lot of drinks in Japan, and I'm sure lots of it had milk in it (especially the hot chocolate).

I'm going to assume that the stats were done by a non-asian.

 

[Abstract]

Thank you for writing that. I was becoming increasingly frustrated with those puporting that 'all' the Asians they knew weren't LI.

All the Asians I know are lactose intolerant: yes, on a sliding scale. Yes the ABCs I know are much more able to drink milk and consume dairy prodcuts without as extreme of symptoms. Those who are first generation definitely show more symptomps. To the point of needing to drink Lactaid instead of milk, and even popping those pills that help digest lactase or whatever.

Well I have never met an asian person who has had a problem with milk. Seriously, we all eat ice cream, and we just live with dairy like everyone else. My cousin drinks around 10 cups of coffe per day (I know...bad habit, but she's a lawyer), and she has no negative effect. She's also from HK, not Canada.

Personally, I have never had a stomach ache after having dairy. My mum isn't allergic. Even my grandmother, who moved to Canada for 2 years a decade ago, wasn't lactose intolerant. I can drink as much milk as I want and not feel anything, not even several hours later or the next day.

I guess I'm not part of the 90% or 98%, although I seriously doubt that I'm just some sort of anomaly.

 

[devilot]

Well I have never met an asian person who has had a problem with milk...

Personally, I have never had a stomach ache after having dairy. My mum isn't allergic. I can drink as much milk as I want and not feel anything, not even several hours later or the next day.

I guess I'm not part of the 90% or 98%, although I seriously doubt that I'm just some sort of anomaly.

I think you're missing the point that Kernow was making-- the term lactose intolerant is more than just your own interpretation of how your body reacts to whatever you might consume. It's about the presence (or rather, lack thereof) of those specific enzymes and it does occur on a sliding scale (right, Kernow?).

You might not feel any particular way, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you are not lactose intolerant.

 

[Kernow]

I think you're missing the point that Kernow was making-- the term lactose intolerant is more than just your own interpretation of how your body reacts to whatever you might consume. It's about the presence (or rather, lack thereof) of those specific enzymes) and it does occur on a sliding scale (right, Kernow?).

You might not feel any particular way, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you are not lactose intolerant.

Spot on

 

[whooleytoo]

Whatever about eggs (only eat them occasionally), I drink a LOT of milk. Probably a litre or more a day, every day. (I love the reaction I get in restaurants when I ask for a pint of milk, with ice. I'd probably get less of a reaction if I asked them to take their clothes off and do a little dance! )

According to this thread, with that amount of milk entering my system, I should either be

a) dead

and/or

b) a superhero.

 

[Xyl]

I think you're missing the point that Kernow was making-- the term lactose intolerant is more than just your own interpretation of how your body reacts to whatever you might consume. It's about the presence (or rather, lack thereof) of those specific enzymes and it does occur on a sliding scale (right, Kernow?).

You might not feel any particular way, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you are not lactose intolerant.

Actually, I disagree to a certain extent. You DO feel it, either in forms of "more gas" or stomache aches or diarrhea or whatever (according to wikipedia). And I for one do not get more gas or have more stomache aches on days when I drink 3 glasses of milk and eat ice cream instead of 1 glass of milk. And this is the same for most of my relatives as well...this is why "lactose-intolerant" is really a bad measure, and according to wikipedia, it's the consumption of more than 1 glass a milk of day or less in order to exhibit symptoms.

Note that none of us Asians really know anyone lactose-intolerant but because there is a study, it must be so.

I've seen plenty of Japanese eating ice cream. I used to hang out with a group of Filipinos and Malaysians and we'd all get milkshakes. Calpico Soda has non-fat milk in it and so does UCC Milk Coffee and these things wouldn't be on the market still if a majority of people in Japan were lactose intolerant.

I think this is a good point...I have relatives that don't drink any milk but can eat a 2L bucket of Häagen-Dazs in one sitting (don't worry, they don't do this every day) without any ill effects.

 

[Gentile]

What do you think?

I had lunch with around 10 guys today, and one of these guys said that someone told him yesterday that milk was bad for you. Everyone at the table said it was b.s. immediately. Actually, I don't think it's good for you, but I'm not so sure. I want to hear other people say it too.

I definitely think it is a bad idea to eat milk or eggs and that is why I am a Vegan. Many studies show that milk actually reduces the calcium in your bones because animal protein with its high acidity leaches the calcium from your bones. Most milk and eggs sold is not organic and is full of hormones that was used to keep sick cows alive.

Animals such as cows and chickens are normally raised on huge factory farms, often kept in cages for their entire lives, never see the light of day, and consequently get sick easily. In response farmers have to pump animals full of hormones to keep them alive.

 

[macmama]

I outgrew the taste for milk once I learned to walk and talk.

I agree with all those who think milk is unnecessary once you reach adulthood.

Agreed, SpicyApple. Milk (human, cow, other) is designed to feed babies of the species who are growing at the most rapid rate they ever will (human babies triple their birth weight in a year. We don't triple our weight again from that point until we're around 10). Cow's milk specifically has 3-4 times the amount of protein human milk does, whereas ours has markedly more essential fatty acids. I wonder if the massive amount of milk that Americans generally give their children accounts for how "big" we are compared to other populations?

I just can't justify drinking the lactational secretions of another mammal in adulthood. It just strikes me as abnormal. That said, I do cook with milk in small quantities, eat cheese, etc., so I'm not entirely in the anti-dairy camp (like these guys, or these here); you just won't see me with a milk mustache anytime soon...