Perhaps one of the more controversial organic products, the question about what health benefits are really provided by buying organic milk is much debated in the health food world. Several countries, including the U.S., don't even recognize organic milk as being healthier for you than the mass market milk. Still, health food enthusiasts around the world insist that organic milk isn't just better for the environment, but better for you, too.
Organic Production Methods
For some mindful shoppers, simply knowing that buying organic milk supports organic farming practices is reason enough to eat the extra cost in their weekly grocery bill. Organic dairy cows have to be grazed entirely on organic fields that aren't treated with pesticides. Any extra feed they are provided must be grown organically. What's more, animal cruelty issues are immediately lessened when you realize that organic dairy cows aren't allowed to be given any synthetic growth hormones to force additional production of milk. These hormones often keep cows in a painful state of over production that many animal enthusiasts find repugnant.
What It Means For You
Of course, there are customers who want more than generic assurances that they're helping the environment by spending extra money - they want to know that they're helping themselves. Luckily, there's ever growing proof that organic milk provides a lot of health benefits for the average consumer. Obviously, pesticide residues are less of a problem with organic milk. Perhaps even more impressive, though, is that tests are proving the organic milk actually has more vitamins and healthy components. With more vitamins, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids, milk from organic cows provides a nice boost to our bodies. It can even improve the quality of a mother's breast milk and has been known to help protect children against asthma and eczema.
