Dairy is NOT a health food

Find your inner athlete, your inner strength, and your inner TRUTH by following the informed path chosen by the world’s most respected and accomplished athletes, who exemplify and embody the benefits of ditching dairy.

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Switch4Good is a strong and growing coalition made up of dairy-free athletes, trainers, doctors, nutritionists and influencers. Some of us have won Olympic medals and some of us simply take the stairs instead of the elevator. We have all learned that cow’s milk is not a health food and understand that ditching dairy is a straight path towards living a longer, more fulfilling life.

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Why So Many Athletes are ditching dairy

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Our Athlete Ambassadors

Below we highlight Switch4Good athletes who have been working relentlessly to ignite the fire in all of us to seek and share the TRUTH. These all-stars are inspirations to the entire Switch4Good community.

Rebecca Soni

Rebecca now advocates for a vegan lifestyle citing its impactful benefits on her mind, body and spirit.

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Dotsie Bausch

As a plant-based athlete, Bausch stood on top of the podium at the Olympic Games just five months shy of her 40th birthday, the oldest athlete ever in her discipline.

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Kendrick Farris

Kendrick credits his record-setting performance and control of his mood to his vegan lifestyle.

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Trans Fat

Trans fats in milk block blood flow to muscles and inflame our bodies
What if the Institute of Medicine, one of our nation’s most prestigious group of scientists, declared a substance be completely omitted from our diet? Would you listen? This is what they said about Trans fats, the most harmful fat in our food supply, yet more than 2% of dairy’s calories come from these destructive fats! Trans fats cripple arteries, cutting blood flow to our muscles by 29% compared to saturated fat, another destructive fat in dairy, and promoting inflammation.

Our tip to you: Eat more berries instead of dairy! Berries boost artery function and soothe inflammation, allowing you to have better blood flow and less inflammation. This will help with you perform better and recover faster.

References →

USDA. Fat and Fatty Acid Content of Selected Foods Containing Trans-Fatty Acids ARS. ND

IOM. 2006. DRI.

N Engl J Med. 2006 Apr 13;354(15):1601-13

Nutr Rev. 2010 Mar; 68(3): 168–77

Hormones

ESTROGEN

It is common knowledge that it is important to hydrate prior to any form of exercising. Did you ever stop to think that if you are consuming dairy you may be hydrating with glass full of sex hormones? Cow’s milk and dairy products are full of estrogen hormone. In fact, these products supply 60-80% of the estrogen in our diets! Furthermore, in just 30-60 minutes after drinking milk, estrogen levels can increase by 26%!

Our tip to you: Pomegranate juice! Pomegranate juice has been shown to promote more desirable estrogen levels. Compared to drinking a placebo, pomegranate juice can increase Olympic weightlifting performance by 8%, decrease how hard training felt by 4%, and decrease muscle soreness by 13%!

References →

Iran J Public Health. 2015 Jun; 44(6): 742–58

Pediatr Int. 2010 Feb;52(1):33-8

Nutr Cancer. 2015;67(7):1113-9

PLoS One. 2016; 11(10): e0160305

CORTISOL

Let’s face it, we are always trying to find ways to decrease our stress levels. We all know the terrible effects stress can have on our minds and bodies. Stress is often controlled by a hormone known as cortisol. Well, this stress hormone is consistently found in cow’s milk. To make matters worse, high cortisol levels cause us to store belly fat and are linked to lower muscle mass and bone density! Consuming excess cortisol is definitely not going to help us lower our stress levels and no one needs more stress in their lives!

Our tip to you: While dairy-laden meals have been shown to increase cortisol, research shows that barley soup and vegetable stir-fry with rice can lower levels of this high stress hormone!

References →

Iran J Public Health. 2015 Jun; 44(6): 742–58

Obes Rev. 2001 May;2(2):73-86

J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2015 Sep; 100(9): 3313–21

Psychosom Med. 1999 Mar-Apr; 61(2):214-24

Prostate Cancer

Research links cow’s milk to increased risk of prostate cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, American men have 1 in 9 chance of developing prostate cancer - second most common to skin cancer! Consuming cow’s milk, or cow’s milk products, like cheese, yogurt and ice cream, during adolescence can actually make this already high percentage even higher. Drinking cow’s milk each day can increase a boy’s risk of advanced prostate cancer threefold! Moreover, a study of men across 42 countries revealed that cow’s milk was more closely linked to the development of prostate cancer than any other food!

Our tip to you: Research shows that men who ditched dairy and opt for a plant-based diet were able to cut their risk of prostate cancer by 35%. Now that sounds a lot less riskier!

References →

American Cancer Society

American Journal of Epidemiology

Int J Cancer. 2002 Mar 10;98(2):262-7

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2016 Jan;103(1):153-60

Ovarian Cancer

Research links cow’s milk to increased risk of ovarian cancer. In a study examining the incidence rates of ovarian cancer in 40 countries across 5 continents, researchers found they were most closely correlated with cow’s milk intake. The researchers suggest that women who drank just 1 or more glasses of whole cow’s milk per day were at three times greater risk for ovarian cancer! It is not just whole cow’s milk, even skim milk has been tied to this deadly disease.

Our tip to you: Eat more vegetables! Although dairy consumption can increase risk of ovarian cancer, vegetables can reduce it! Eating 3 or more serving a vegetables per day can decrease risk by 39%.

References →

Med Hypotheses. 2005;65(6):1028-37

OCRFA.org

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2004 Nov;80(5):1353-7.

Br J Cancer. 2004 Jun 1;90(11):2167-70.

Asthma

Guess what? Cow’s milk and other dairy products can exacerbate symptoms of asthma including increased mucus production!

Why might this be? Asthmatics need more antioxidants to protect their vulnerable lungs, as they have far fewer antioxidants than most. By eating more foods that contain these antioxidants, they can cut their chance of symptoms worsening in half! Sounds so simple! But not for those who still consume dairy products. Unfortunately, there are not many antioxidants in dairy, so relying on dairy products may actually worsen symptoms!

Our tip to you: try some vanilla soymilk! Vanilla soymilk more than doubles the antioxidant content of cow’s milk and yogurt. This may explain why an astounding 92% of people with asthma who cut out dairy and other animal foods for one year improved their symptoms enough to go from 4-5 medications to just 1!

References →

A/ J Am Coll Nutr. 2005 Dec;24(6):448-55.

B/ Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Sep;96(3):534-43.

C/ Nutr J. 2010; 9: 3.

D/ J Asthma. 1985;22(1):45-55.

Bone Density

Don’t be fooled by advertisements claiming that cow’s milk helps strengthen bones - research begs to differ! A 2018 meta-analysis involving over 250,000 subjects found no link between drinking cow’s milk and a reduced risk of bone fractures. In fact, according to a 12-year prospective study, drinking 2+ glasses of cow’s milk per day increased women’s risk of hip fracture by 45% compared to those drinking 1 glass or less per week. Furthermore, those getting the USDA “recommended” 3+ glasses per day had a whopping 60% greater hip fracture rate. Yup, cow’s milk could actually make bones more brittle, not stronger.

Our tip to you: for truly strong bones eat more fruits and vegetables! The foods highest in calcium and 50% more bioavailable than the calcium in cow’s milk are almonds, tahini, kidney beans and most dark, leafy greens. Diets higher in fruits and vegetables have been shown to lead to denser bones in younger and older adults.

References →

https://www.bmj.com/content/362/bmj.k3225
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9224182
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4212225/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10197575
https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/83/6/1254/4633160

Dairy Intolerance

How can cow’s milk be considered a health food when 65% of the world's population is intolerant to it? According to the National Institute of Health, 65% of adults experience dairy intolerance, a generally lifelong, inherited condition characterized by varying levels of difficulty digesting lactose (dairy sugar), also known as lactose intolerance.

Once someone who is lactose intolerant consumes cow’s milk or other lactose-containing dairy products, symptoms can happen fast! Within 30 minutes to two hours, things can get quite nasty! Think - abdominal pain, bloating, gas, nausea and diarrhea. No one wants that!

Our tip to you: completely avoid lactose by passing on the milk, cheese, butter, cream, and other dairy products. Remember, while a product may be labeled “lactose free,” it still may have cow’s milk in its ingredients, which comes with its own set of dangers. Continue reading to learn more.

References →

A/ NIH. 2010 May; Genetics Home Reference. Lactose Intolerance.

B/ Am Fam Physician. 2002 May 1;65(9):1845-50.

C/ Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Jan 15;27(2):93-103.

Cow’s Milk Allergy

Did you know that cow’s milk allergies might be more common than allergies to peanuts, shellfish, and eggs? Cow’s milk allergy mostly affects infants and children, but also as many as 1 in 13 adults! Even more so, a meta-analysis of 51 studies on the the prevalence of food allergies, found that up to 17% of people self-report an allergy to cow’s milk.

In addition to the immediate symptoms that can occur, such as wheezing, hives , vomiting and life-threatening anaphylaxis, some symptoms can actually occur up to several days following dairy consumption, including eczema and acid reflux. This means people may not even realize their symptoms could be an allergic reaction to the cow’s milk they consumed days prior! Unfortunately, there is no proven method for reversing a cow’s milk allergy, which why doctors recommend avoiding dairy products entirely. To learn more on what doctors and nutritionists think about ingesting cow’s milk, go here.

Our tip to you: avoid all forms of dairy to manage symptoms, including milk from sheeps and goats. Click here to learn about alternatives to cow’s milk.

References →

A/ Small Ruminant Res. 2007;68(1-2):64-72.
B/ Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2010 Jul;21 Suppl 21:1-125.
C/ Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2012 Feb; 17(2 Suppl1): S65–S71.

Dairy is NOT a health food

Our Athlete Ambassadors

Rebecca Soni

Dotsie Bausch

Kendrick Farris

Thinking about going dairy free?

Success!

Success!

Trans Fat

References →

Hormones

ESTROGEN

References →

CORTISOL

References →

Prostate Cancer

References →

Ovarian Cancer

References →

Asthma

References →

Bone Density

References →

Dairy Intolerance

References →

Cow’s Milk Allergy

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