Got Milk? Make Sure It's the Safest and Healthiest

Milk is a vital part of young children's diets, but childhood is a sensitive growth period for the brain as well as reproductive and immune systems. When toxins enter the picture, kids face a higher risk of cancer, thyroid and reproductive troubles, and reduced IQ scores. What milk should you choose for your kids?

"Conventional milk comes with the highest toxic load," says Dr. Gina Solomon, a senior scientist with NRDC's health program. "It is especially important to buy organic milk for kids and pregnant mothers. If you can find local organic milk, that's the best."

Why organic? Certified organic milk is:

• Produced without antibiotics. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rates overuse of antibiotics as a significant public health problem since it encourages the development of antibiotic-resistant strains. About 40 percent of all antibiotic use is agricultural, to prevent livestock infection and promote faster growth. According to Dr. Michael Hansen of the Consumers Union, the FDA has approved 30 different antibiotics for use on dairy cows, and there are more than 50 other antibiotics thought to be used “off label” (i.e., illegally) by farmers. According to the FDA, “the most likely source of most antimicrobial resistance is use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals." Organic milk comes from organic cows that have not been treated with antibiotics, so it doesn't contribute to the growing problem of bacterial resistance.

• Produced without synthetic hormones. Hormones are powerful. Even trace amounts can cause dramatic changes in living things. The most talked-about hormone used on dairy cows is recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH), which increases milk production. Among a number of health and animal-welfare concerns associated with rBGH, cows treated with it experience increased incidence of painful udder infections (mastitis). Antibiotics used to treat the infection are passed along in milk to humans, contributing to an increase in antibiotic resistance in disease-causing bacteria.

• Produced without harmful pesticides. Agricultural pesticides are now widespread. They can even be measured in raindrops falling from the sky, in fog rolling over the hills, in "fresh" snow and in the water we drink. Although organic milk can't avoid the chemical legacy of of persistent organic chemicals like DDE, PCBs and dioxins, it does contain fewer pesticides since it comes from organic cows that must be given100 percent organic feed (which was itself grown without pesticides).

• High in conjugated linoleic acids (CLAs). CLAs are important "good fats" that have been linked to decreased heart disease and diabetes.

• From cows that are pastured. Thought the rules are a bit vague, organic dairy cows are required at least some access to pasture. Animals that are grass-fed their entire life are healthier and their milk safer for you. A ruminant’s gut is normally a pH-neutral environment, best suited to a diet of foraging on cellulosic grasses. It is not well suited for a diet of corn and other grains, the primary fare of conventional dairy cows. High in starch, low in roughage and a poor source of calcium and magnesium, corn upsets the cow’s stomach, making it unnaturally acidic. Not only is this acidity harmful to the cow, giving it a sort of bovine heartburn or, worse, making it very sick, but it allows a whole range of parasites and diseases to gain a foothold, including the pathogenic E. coli 0157:H7 bacterium. Grazing also boosts nutrition in milk by increasing key fatty acids. Omega-3 aids vision and reduces blood clots and inflammation, while CLA helps prevent tumors, obesity and viral infections.

If you can't get organic milk where you shop, or if it's too expensive, choose:

• rBGH-free milk. The growth hormone is banned in Europe, and several major U.S. brands now offer rBGH-free milk. In 2007 and 2008, several major chains also acted to remove rBGH milk from their store-branded milk products, including Wal-Mart, Safeway and Kroger.

• Low-fat milk for kids over age 2. Toxins accumulate in milk fat, so buying skim or 1 percent milk lowers the chemical dose. Also, in the May 9, 2005, issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard School of Public Health reported that low-fat dairy products, including milk, might lower the risk of type 2 diabetes in men.

• The local brand from grass-fed cows. The healthiest choice of all is local milk from 100 percent grass-fed cows. The smaller regional dairies tend to be organic or follow organic practices. They're also big winners for the environment since they avoid crowded feedlots, manure lagoons and long-distance shipping. Get help identifying 100 percent grass-fed dairy products using Label Lookup: Dairy.

So put low-fat, organic milk on your shopping list . It's the right choice for your health and the environment.