I am now swinging back to support the suggestion that dairy products increase the risk of breast cancer…
‘’this article was in canceractive this week…and I happen to believe there is enough doubt over this issue to deter me from using milk as a major source of protein or calcium…
‘’this is purely my opinion and for the moment,I’m sticking to it.’ Moijan
Does consuming milk cause cancer?
Back in 2003, CANCERactive presented Epidemiology studies from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden showing that, for prostate cancer, there was a straight line graph for cows’ milk consumption and risk – the more milk a man consumed (including butter, cream, cheese) the greater his risk of prostate cancer.
The same held true for breast cancer, although the correlation was not quite so exact. Then in Cancer Watch we covered several studies linking a heightened risk of ‘serious’ ovarian cancer with just a cup of milk a day (Suzanne C. Larsson, Leif Bergkvist, Alicja Wolk).
But, a few years ago Gosia Desmond, Director in Nutrition and a lecturer at The College of Naturopathic Medicine in the UK and in Ireland, wrote an article for us showing that the consumption didn’t have to be current – her research evidence showed a heightened risk of breast cancer where excess saturated fat was consumed during a woman’s formative teens. In Cancer Watch in 2011 (Johanna E Torfadottir et al, University of Iceland) and again in 2014 there is research saying the same holds true for teenage boys going on to develop prostate cancer later in life; with a finding that this prostate cancer can be more aggressive.
We warned against milk. And we adopted a ‘no cows’ dairy’ stance. But. The issue isn´t black or white. Maybe that´s not entirely correct.
What’s so bad about cows’ dairy?
Of course, it is true that cows grazing on land which last year grew a mass-market crop, may consume any pesticide used. And fat is a wonderful solvent, so the fat in milk products will likely bring the pesticides to your body. One answer might be to consume low fat milk and/or certified organic milk.
The next problem is the lactose contained in the milk. A basic sugar, which, like glucose, can be used as a fuel by cancer cells. It will also fuel yeast infections like candida and this can lead to leaky gut syndrome, fatigue and even depression. Yeasts can get into the blood stream and stick to cell membranes causing blockages of important messages.
Then there’s the protein. The extensive China Study (Professor T. Colin Campbell) warns against high consumption of milk protein and the links with cancers (such as liver cancer).
And the hormones. It doesn’t help that roughly 80 per cent of mass-market milk is derived from pregnant or recently pregnant cows; bringing a number of hormones you would rather have avoided. Again, fat is a wonderful solvent and can dissolve compounds you´d rather not have in your body.
For example, a ten-year study by the University of Helsinki (Adlercreutz et al, 1990) showed that increased milk and saturated fat consumption was linked with an increase in female oestrogens in the body. Another concern is growth hormone; specifically, Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1). It may help a calf become full size in about ten months but do you really need growth hormone helping your cells grow at this rate?
Breast cancer will often attack the patient’s bones. It has now been shown that the attack stimulates growth hormone production in the body, as the bones attempt to toughen up and withstand the attack. But the cancer loves growth hormone – it uses it to grow essential blood supplies to a tumour.
Finally, there is research (Nature, Dec 13th 2013) on the bacteria in your gut. When you consume milk products, the volumes of constituent bacteria in your gut change significantly and rapidly and the new colony has lowered plant-loving bacteria (for example, Firmicutes) but increases in protein-loving bacteria - and these produce highly inflammatory compounds. These are not confined to the gut but may pass into the blood stream. Inflammation can be the precursor to many chronic illnesses including cancer – it may also encourage metastases.
In 2016, research showed gut bacteria could even arrive in the breasts and bacteria may well play a role in breast cancer - there was a very different profile in a breast with cancer, to a breast that was healthy.
The benefits of cows’ milk?
So, does milk have anything going for it?
There is some evidence that the calcium in milk can reduce the risk of inflammatory polyps in the gut. You will find some cancer charities recommending consuming cows’ milk for this reason.
But you could gain more than enough calcium through eating one good helping of greens. Indeed in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPICN, 2008), the UK study concluded that both protein and calcium consumption from cows’ milk were linked to prostate cancer, whereas calcium from plant sources was not. One theory is that the flood of calcium in cows’ milk reduces magnesium absorption and blood levels of essential vitamin D.
The supportative evidence for cows’ milk also runs counter to the latest research on inflammatory gut bacteria, above.