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Monday, November 09, 2009

Milk Doesn't Cause Mucus

The claim that milk creates mucus or phlegm that may or may not be the result of a milk allergy has been around for years, so I suppose that it's not surprising that we'll need years to dispel it. I keep trying. I posted Udder Confusion in 2006 and Milk: No Mucus, No Asthma in 2007 so it's time to attack the myth yet again.

I'm getting help from Dr Raymond Mullins, an allergy specialist interviewed by Genelle Weule for ABC.net.au.

[W]hile many people swear milk produces mucus, the effect can't be explained by science, says allergy specialist Dr Ray Mullins.

A 2005 review of studies concluded that there was no link between milk consumption and mucus production or asthma. In one study, participants infected with the common cold virus reported symptoms of increased in mucus production after drinking milk, but when their mucus production was actually measured there was no statistical difference. In another study, there was no difference in the sensation experienced between drinking soy milk and cow's milk.

This doesn't mean people don't experience the sensation, says Mullins, but rather that there is no actual increase in mucus production.

He puts the sensation down to the texture and viscosity of milk, and notes that most people do not report similar effects with other dairy products such as cheese.

If you believe that milk will cause mucus, then any feelings of mucus you get from milk will simply reinforce that belief whether or not any true increase is present.

There's no scientific connection, though, nothing that can be found in theory or isolated in tests. If you can drink milk, then know the facts about it and make your own decisions based on those facts, not unfounded beliefs.

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7 comments:

Anonymous said...

where are you from the milk board? NICE TRY. Humans were never “designed” to digest cows’ milk. Our bodies are meant to consume (human) mother’s milk for the first several months or years, and then move on to other foods. Many people only become lactose-intolerant as teens or adults, when the enzymes to digest any kind of milk stop being produced by the human digestive system.
Most cows milk products are loaded with synthetic hormones and other additives that can cause allergic and toxicity reactions. If you suffer from asthma, chronic inflammation.Hormones given to milk-producing cattle in their feed and supplementation can also make their way into the milk, cheese, and yogurt that we eat. Synthetic hormones in meat and milk products are believed to contribute to the increasingly early onset of puberty in many Western countries, as well as growth issues in children and adult fertility problems.

Steve Carper said...

Sigh.

Can you tell me which foods humans were designed to digest after weaning?

Of course not. Because there aren't any.

Starting a comment this way discredits everything else you have to say.

Anonymous said...

Yes milk causes mucus sinuses cause I already experienced it my self..
I used to drink milk a lot who doesn't like milk everyone does I guess.. As I drank milk my sinuses were just not getting better they got worse till I had to go to the doctor and prescribed me with an antibiotic I did a bit better when I took it but when I stopped drinking lactose milk everything went away and now I'm better off with my lactose free milk.. I drink it alone with cereal or however I want it I don't suffer from sinuses anymore'' So who ever drinks regular milk and is suffering from sinuses and mucus simply stop drinking lactose milk and start the lactose free milk instead you won't regret it.
Thank you..

Anonymous said...

Just blatantly incorrect information and propaganda. Humans, other than a small population who have dairy farm ancestors, are NOT meant to digest any other mammal's milk. As for alternatives... there are many. Rice, almond, coconut to name a few. Milk and dairy are not integral parts of the human diet, unecessary and causes far more damage than benefits.

Manda said...



Wrong first commenter #1, anyone that is a newcomer should read this:

http://biblehub.com/topical/m/milk.htm

Kimber said...

I have sometimes found that clear liquids help me with my mucas, but I also find that when I'm hungry, lactosse free milks such as Lactaid or soy or Almond milk agrees with me. And since they are very nutritious they help children get the vitamins and minerals they need. I also drink regular milk often and don't have any problems. I'm sure there are those that can't drink some forms of milk, but generally, I feel its,a very nutritious helpful food for calcium and many vitamins we need.

A Marvelous Massage Palm Springs-photo by massage nerd said...

I really want to believe that’s true because I love cheese but every time I eat it, in the middle of the night I am spitting enormous amounts of mucus into Kleenex again and again , sorry for TMI . Its really annoying when you’re trying to sleep. I eat a very simple diet and that is the only thing that is different so there is nothing else that I can attribute it to. And when I don’t eat it for a long time I do not have that problem
Any ideas as to why that happens if it’s not the cheese?