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Over the past several weeks we have started to weed out processed food and our the majority of our food from local farmers. It has been great seeing our food bill go down while our health goes up. The food quality from our local farmers and farmers market is so much better and we get a lot more for our money compared to what we were getting at our local grocery stores.
We are starting to make things from scratch that my son misses such as pop tarts to show him that he can still have foods he loves, in moderation, and in a much more healthier way. He LOVES going to the farmer's and learning about their lives and is really into eating more healthier too.
Anyway, I found a few places that are licensed to sell raw milk. I wanted to try to make my own butter- husband said it can't be beat when it is made from milk right from the cow. Since we will be looking into buying cream at the dairy, was going to try some raw milk.
I know there is controversy about raw milk- which I don't understand. It is in its most natural form when straight from the cow and way back when, milk wasn't always pasteurized like it is today. What I am wondering though, since my young son has only had pasteurized milk (me as well, but not worried about me), will making a 100% switch over cause any stomach issues? Should we do it half and half for awhile at first? Does it really need to be cultured with a tablespoon of store bought buttermilk first and fermented before allowing him to drink it like I have heard some people say elsewhere?
Thank you for any tips if you have made the switch for you and your family
Having worked at a place that treated kids who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, which causes blood vessels to break up, become meshed with blood platelets and then damage filters in the kidneys, ALL because of raw milk, NO thanks. Horrible, awful stories and I got to see those kids WITH MY OWN EYES -- they were terribly sick and the parents were beside themselves with guilt. You could not pay me to roll those dice.
Did you read the article you linked to? The farmer wasn't practicing and adhering to sanitary conditions and handling of the milk. Umm, don't you think that is the reason people got sick? Sorry, that doesn't convince me. I don't believe everything put out by the FDA, who has no issue with high fructose corn syrup being in all of our foods (a major reason why we started eating from farms in the first place) and I am going to college to become a Registered Dietitian where so many people in the field claim the FDA as gods...not me
Quote:
Originally Posted by Idlewile
Having worked at a place that treated kids who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, which causes blood vessels to break up, become meshed with blood platelets and then damage filters in the kidneys, ALL because of raw milk, NO thanks. Horrible, awful stories and I got to see those kids WITH MY OWN EYES -- they were terribly sick and the parents were beside themselves with guilt. You could not pay me to roll those dice.
No. And I would not do it. Have you done all your research and talked to your doctor? The controversy is due to the health risks involved. I tend to trust Marion Nestle on all matters related to food safety, and here's her take:
The bit about kids, specifically:
"The risk may be small, but it is finite. Putting a child at risk of hemolytic uremic syndrome from toxic E. coli just doesn’t make sense to me."
It sounds like you have already made up your mind, but this is a HUGE risk. Why specifically are you against pasteurization, a practice in place globally since the early 1800's?
I know you have reservations about the CDC, but they are the greatest repository of reports of foodborne illness, that's just a fact. And the FDA has controls in place to ensure reduced incidence of foodborne illness, another fact.
One of the major contributing factors to eradicating Tuberculosis in the US was the widespread pasteurization of milk.
My family owned a dairy going back multiple generations, and even in the mid-1800's on a different continent they boiled the milk before consuming it.
Another very important point, if it is the nutrients in milk that you are seeking, then look for smaller dairies that utilize alternative pasteurization techniques. There are many different techniques. Organic milk and raw milk are not one in the same.
Did you read the article you linked to? The farmer wasn't practicing and adhering to sanitary conditions and handling of the milk. Umm, don't you think that is the reason people got sick? Sorry, that doesn't convince me. I don't believe everything put out by the FDA, who has no issue with high fructose corn syrup being in all of our foods (a major reason why we started eating from farms in the first place) and I am going to college to become a Registered Dietitian where so many people in the field claim the FDA as gods...not me
Unless you own and milk the cow yourself, you have no way of knowing whether or not the milk you're getting on the farm, is going to make your child sick. That's WHY those kids got sick. Their parents got the milk from what they believed were safe places. They turned out to not be safe, afterall. Just because a dairy says "we're safe, we guarantee it or your money back!" doesn't mean it's safe. Personally I wouldn't risk my -own- life, let alone a child's life, on something that is -known- to have such serious risks involved. If I wanted raw milk badly enough, I'd buy a cow and milk it.
Since I'm not a big milk drinker anyway, the reward isn't worth the risk at all, to me. I prefer cheese, and cheese is already processed (with bacteria or rennet) so the risk of contamination is miniscule.
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