No Gots Milk!
By: Juan "J.D." Davila
"I'm gonna cream you guys with this one! Ever wonder why the government puts out those ads on drinking milk and why? Is it because it's really that good for you and the government really cares about the overall health of it's citizens? We've all seen the "Got Milk?" ads with all these celebrities from the cheerleader from the tv show "Heroes" to our rock and roll gods of thunder, KISS. They wouldn't make those ads for money......would they?
Now that the new year us upon us and we've all decided to eat right and lose weight, many of us are switching to 2% milk thinking that it will magically melt away the layers of fat (milk fat?) around our bellies. If it's so good for us, why do we need to cut down on the fat? Could it be that milk makes you fat? It it's so good for you, why does it have to be "fortified"?
Years ago, I was diagnosed with hypertension by my doctor. I was fat and out of shape as well. The doctor took three foods away from me (along with giving me a good lecture about my weight). He took away: Pork products, table salt, and milk. I said, "Milk?!? I thought that was good for you?". The doctor replied that it was very high in fat and cholesterol and forbid me to drink it. Here I had foolishly been drinking at least a glass a day (sometimes a glass with every meal and one before bed time) thinking it was making me healthy. "Poison!" the doctor was saying. Could milk really be on the same level as pork and salt? According to this doctor it was.
Many of us have misconceptions about drinking milk, just as I did. Now, I don't want to be excommunicated from the church for preaching heresy and saying that milk is bad for you (though it really is), but if you are going to be putting it into your body as a source (one of many) for calcium and protein (better off eating tuna), be aware of the label. Let me say that again: "BE AWARE OF THE LABEL. The LABEL!!! Let's take a look.
On this actual label for a carton of 2% milke we bought at a local "health" store, we see the nutritional information. One thing to understand is that the fat in milke is only 2% by VOLUME. Ah! So, to see how much actual fat we are getting in one serving of milk, we take the amount of calories from fat per serving (41) and divide that by the amount of overall calories. So, we take 41/122 and that gives us the percentage of fat in that one glass of "2%" milk. What did you get? Wow! It is 34% fat!!!
That brings to mind the term "Holy Cow!". "But, all my idols drink milk, JD!", you say. That's just advertising. According to our webmaster, here is how advertisiment works:
"There are a few forms of advertisment but probably the ones that are the most succesful are the ones that use what is called "bandwagon" and "slogan" appeal. For example the big hysteria over President Bush. The media in the United States says he is a bad president and get the ball rolling. Soon we think, "Well, everyone else hates him, so I will to". So, if you take a product like Wilson balls and you hear over and over that everyone says they are the best, you tend to want to fit in and use them too. "Slogan" advertising has been around since the days of the traveling miracle cures. They would teach their slogans and when they would come around the following year, it would stick in the heads of the consumers and make repeat sales, or second-hand sales, easier. Slogans like Nike's "Just Do It!" or "Snap Into a Slim Jim" tend to catch on like a song's hook.....well....."hooks" you into liking it regardless of whether you believe in it's content or not."
There you have it from the milk horse's mouth. So, are we saying not to drink milk? Of course not, just don't think you are going to lose any weight by going to 2% is all. Instead, try non-fat milk. Or, just cut down on the overall amount of milk you are drinking. If you're worried about getting the amount of daily nutrition you need, take one a day vitamins or eat a bowl of "Total" cereal in the morning with NON-fat milk. I guess the point of this article, is that all milks are not created equal. Consider the label and see how much fat you are really injesting into your system. Good luck in your weight loss this year. - J.D.
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