ANEMIA DUE TO DAIRY

Yesterday, I received an EMAIL request from Jack, one of my
readers.

"An outstanding local 17 year old male athlete, and partial
vegetarian is anemic. I could use some backup on the exact
detrimental effect that milk consumption has on causing iron
deficiency anemia."

Here's information for Jack and millions of Americans who
suffer from anemia:

The most common cause of anemia is iron deficiency. Red
blood cells have a life of about four months, and lack of
iron leads to an inability to manufacture new cells.
Hundreds of ailments can result from too-little iron, and
milk consumption has been shown to cause intestinal
bleeding, which ultimately results in lowering one's
hemoglobin count. The result: weakness, depression,
irritability. The cure: NOTMILK.

The May, 1995 issue of the Townsend Medical Letter reported
that cow's milk causes hemoglobin loss.

In 1990, the Journal of Pediatrics (Vol. 116) reported:

"Cow's milk can cause blood loss from the intestinal tract,
which over time, reduces the body's iron stores. Blood loss
may be a reaction to cow's milk proteins."

Eight years earlier, Pediatrics (1982; 89 ) reported:

"Babies who are fed whole cow's milk during the second six
months of life may experience a 30% increase in intestinal
blood loss and a significant loss of iron in their stools."

THE CURES

Here's the good news, as reported in the October, 1999 issue
of the Journal of Pediatric Surgery:

"Cow's milk-induced intestinal bleeding is a well-recognized
cause of rectal bleeding in infancy. In all cases, bleeding
resolved completely after instituting a cow's milk-free
diet."

Here's a better cure:

Soymilk contains eleven times the amount of iron as does
cow's milk. A 100-gram portion (3.5 ounces) of cow's milk
contains 0.05 mg. of iron. The equivalent portion of soymilk
contains 0.58 mg. of iron.