Does Milk Really Do The Body Good?

We Have always been told since we were little and for many many generations we have all been told that milk does the body good,but is this infact true?

For years and generations now milk has been pushed on our families as to be a very important part of a health strong growing body,yet they do not disclose to their consumers that too much milk doesn't do the body good and how much is too much?

In September 2009 my now 6 year old daughter was experiencing growing like pains so I took her to the doctor and after the doctor hear the symptoms and doing an examination our family doctor concluded that it looked like it was growing pains.So we left and continued on our everyday lives as we usually did.Then within the coming weeks the symptoms were still there and her hair was getting brittle and falling out so I rushed her back to the doctor as this is something I had never experienced before and it freaked me out.The doctor examined her and asked how she was as in her everyday life,I told him not much had changed she was still eating just as well as she had always ate and was still quite active,but was complaining of pain in her legs.He reported to me that she didn't look much different a little pale and he couldn't figure out why the hair loss and said it could still be growing pains but with the hair loss he said we better get her to the lab for blood work.

I was sitting on pins and needles all kinds of horrible thoughts kept coming to mind and thought I would die by Monday for the doctor to call with the test results,so at 9:00pm that night I tucked her into bed with her My Little Pony movie playing and went back downstairs to tidy up,when the phone rang and it was the doctor urging me to get her to the hospital right away as she was going to need emergency blood transfusions.I broke down crying not knowing what to expect but ran up the stairs grabbed her out of bed and went right to the hospital.

At the hospital they rushed her right in and started to do more blood work and the doctor there examined her and asked a load of questions.My poor baby girl was crying and I was crying with her not knowing what to expect and praying for the best.When the doctor told me that he thought she would have to be rushed to Toronto's Sick Kids Hospital because he was thinking the worst that she might have leukemia .That just killed me hearing those words as that was the words that I was dreading to hear the most.

A little while later which felt like a lifetime the doctor came back in with the test results and said that she didn't have leukemia and did not need to go to Toronto but would have to stay in the hospital to get blood transfusions.I was relieved that she didn't have leukemia and that the hospital could do what she needed there,but was still shaken and scared for her with the blood transfusions.

The doctor explained to me that she was anemic which is something that happens when you drink too much milk or dairy products.That milk has no Iron in it and for that fact the milk would suck out the Iron from my daughters blood and that would lower her hemoglobin levels.I was shocked with this new found knowledge and questioned the doctor how is this possible when they always advertise that milk does the body good.He told me yes milk can do the body good but that it can also do harm if overly digesting it.He then asked me how much milk and milk products did she eat/drink daily.I told him no more then usual she loves her milk and cheese,always having milk with her meals and with snacks and that she ate cheese as a snack alot as she loves her milk and cheese,but that she ate a regular diet like the rest of the family.So then obviously he questioned if anyone else in the family had any of her symptoms and I told him no it was just her.

She was admitted and stayed in the hospital for 4 nights 3days and was put on an Iron enriched diet and was told that she could no longer have dairy at all.She had 3 blood transfusions which helped raise her hemoglobin levels and was released,but I had to closely monitor her to make sure she didn't over do herself as too much activity would wear her out so she was home from school for a week and had regular doctors appointments and many visits to the lab for blood testing to make sure that her hemoglobin levels didn't drop.

She quickly recovered and almost 2 years later she is going strong and living a happy healthy life and our family has gone completely from dairy milk to Almond and Soy milk and although she is allowed to have dairy again she gets very little dairy as does the whole family because once bitten twice shy on something like that to every happen to my family again.

That is why I pose the question Does Milk Really Do The Body Good? Me myself am a little milk/dairy shy now from that tragedy that happened to my family,and makes me wonder why or where do we as parents draw the line with milk/dairy for our children.

Sometimes what is good for us and our children can also be harmful.

 Picture of her Day 1 after eating a blue popsicle

 1 week after being home from the hospital