What's In That Glass Of Cow's Milk?

This fact about cow's milk is a bit hard to swallow...

"According to the USDA, 1 in 6 dairy cows in the United States suffers from clinical mastitis, which is responsible for 1 in 6 dairy cow deaths on U.S. dairy farms. This level of disease is reflected in the concentration of somatic cells in the American milk supply. Somatic cell counts greater than a million per teaspoon are abnormal and "almost always” caused by mastitis. When a cow is infected, greater than 90 percent of the somatic cells in her milk are neutrophils, the inflammatory immune cells that form pus. The average somatic cell count in U.S. milk per spoonful is 1,120,000.

So how much pus is there in a glass of milk? A million cells per spoonful sounds like a lot, but pus is really concentrated. According to my calculations based on USDA data released last month, the average cup of milk in the United States would not be expected to contain more than a single drop of pus.
As the dairy industry points out, the accumulation of pus is a natural part of an animal’s defense system. So pus itself isn’t a bad thing, we just may not want to have it in our mouth.

And you can taste the difference. A study published in the Journal of Dairy Science found that cheese made from high somatic cell count milk had both texture and flavor defects as well as increased clotting time compared to milk conforming to the much more stringent European standards. The U.S. dairy industry, however, insists that there is no food safety risk. If the udders of our factory-farmed dairy cows are inflamed and infected, industry folks say, it doesn’t matter, because we pasteurize—the pus gets cooked. But just as parents may not want to feed their children fecal matter in meat even if it’s irradiated fecal matter, they might not want to feed their children pasteurized pus."

From Dr. Michael Greger, www.nutritionfacts.org

All About Non-Dairy Milk & Pancake Recipe

Did you know we are the only species to consume another species' milk?
No wonder so many of us cannot tolerate cow's milk well. Around age 5, we stop producing the lactase enzyme which enables our bodies to break down lactose, the sugar present in milk. In fact, more than 80 percent of the world's population is considered lactose-intolerant.

In the animal kingdom, it is highly unusual for animals to continue to consume their own species' milk once they are several months old to a few years of age.

Fortunately, for those of us conditioned to consume cow's or goat's milk and products made from these, we can still enjoy our cereal, lattes, and baked goods with cruelty-free, non-dairy alternatives. There are several non-dairy milks on the market, including soy, rice, almond, hemp, hazelnut, oat, and coconut. These come in organic, unsweetened, plain, or vanilla. Many are enriched with additional vitamins and cost no more (and sometimes less) than dairy milk. You can locate these products in most grocery stores, either on the shelves or in the refrigerated section. 
It can be fun to taste-test the different non-dairy milks, finding the ones you like best. Personally, I like using hemp and almond milk in cereal and baked goods. My children prefer soy or rice milk. I often include soy milk in mashed potatoes and coconut milk in creamy soups.

Below is an easy pancake recipe, using your choice of non-dairy milk. This is my family's favorite weekend pancake batter that doubles as a waffle mix. Hope you enjoy it, too!


Vegan Pancakes from the cookbook "Vegan With A Vengeance" by Isa Moskowitz
Makes 6 six-inch or 10 4-inch pancakes
Ingredients:
1-1/4 c flour (I favor a combo of whole wheat pastry and spelt or buckwheat)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1/3 c water
1 to 1-1/4 c plain non-dairy milk (I like almond or soy)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
(You can add a cup of blueberries as a variation, as well as adding a tsp. of ground cinnamon to the dry ingredients. I add about 1/4 cup ground flaxseed and/or dark chocolate chips)

Directions:
1. Sift or stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Mix the remaining ingredients in another bowl.
3. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Mix just until combined.
4. Lightly grease a large skillet and heat the skillet over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes.
5. Add batter and cook until the pancake has some bubbles on top and is browned on the bottom. Turn pancakes and finish (until bottoms are browned). Repeat until batter is used up. Grease skillet between pancakes or as needed.