It was Wednesday night at 1:30 in the morning, I just got off work and I was starving. The only logical, late-night food option was Tulane’s Rat. I was in the mood for something filling and satisfying—something without fats and carbhohydrates to drag me down.
I was skeptical, but the veggie wrap on the menu sounded perfect.
When I got this so-called veggie wrap it was dripping with grease and soaked in ranch dressing. Does ranch dressing sound like a vegetable to you? No? That’s because it’s not. Ranch is a dairy product, not a vegetable. Ranch is made from cheese, milk and other dairy products.
Humans, cows and mammals in general only produce milk when they give birth. Milk and its high fat content can turn a 90 pound calf into a 2,000 pound cow in two years. It is purposely incredibly fattening because babies need it to grow. By age 4, we lose roughly 90 percent of the lactase enzyme needed to digest lactose (sugar found in dairy). The undigested lactose and the acidity of pasteurized milk encourages the growth of bacteria in our intestines, creating the ideal conditions for cancer cells to strive.
Mother nature did not intend to have us suck on our mother’s teet for our entire life. We are the only species on the planet that drinks milk as adults.
Have you ever asked why we drink cow’s milk and not a gorilla’s? Money! Cows produce the most milk of any mammal that is easily cared for. It would be much harder to house a wild gorilla or elephant. It has nothing to do with health and nutrition. It’s about profits.
The dairy industry is a multi-million dollar industry based on the addictive taste of milk, butter and cheese; and brilliant ad campaigns that have successfully convinced even the best doctors that we need milk to grow and have strong bones to prevent osteoporosis. This is all bullshit. Doctors on average receive less than three hours of nutritional training in medical school. They’ve been fooled like the rest of us.
Researchers at Yale University found countries with the highest rate of osteoporosis consumed the most animal products. Only 250,000 African women have a bone disease as compared to 40 million in America. Of the 40 tribes in Kenya and Tanzania, only one, the Maasai, have members suffering from osteoporosis. The Maasai are a cattle-owning, milk-drinking tribe.
Dairy causes numerous problems including acne, anemia, anxiety, arthritis, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, headaches, heartburn, indigestion, joint pain, poor immune function, allergies, ear infections, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, autism, chron’s disease, breast and prostate cancers and ovarian cancer.
Cows are injected with bovine growth hormone allowing them to uncomfortably produce 10 times as much milk a day than natural. When you consume dairy you are ingesting the same antibiotics, pesticides, steroids and hormones as the animal. I don’t know about you, but I have plenty of my own hormones without adding more.
Farmers hook the cows up to machines with metal clamps attached to their utters, which often leads to infection. Yet, they continue sucking out the milk and collecting it for your fridge. Milk must be pasteurized to rid it of bacteria and all the other crap, but this destroys beneficial enzymes and makes calcium less available without even killing all the viruses and bacteria.
You can get much higher levels of manganese , chromium, selenium and magnesium from fruits and vegetables. Consuming high amounts of dairy blocks iron absorption, contributing to iron deficiency.
You’ll literally drop your pants, when you see how much weight you’ve lost from cutting out dairy. 70 to 80 percent of calories in cheese comes from fat. And please be smart, there is no fat free option.
You can still get your coffee fix with soy/rice milk or my favorite – almond milk. Have a sweet tooth? Try dairy free deserts; we’re in Sno-ball capital, so drink up. Don’t worry cheese addicts, there’s a solution for you too. Follow Your Heart’s Vegan Gourmet has many yummy substitutes.
If you demand healthy, tasty, animal-free, dairy-free products, your school and companies will supply it. Voice your desire and your body will be rewarded. Demand it at Loyola; I am. Do you want to feel fresh and rejuvenated from eating or like a slug with acne?
If you still want dairy, go for it, but I’d really appreciate it if Loyola offered me a healthy food option around the clock. This is college, and students are awake 24/7 and we need food for fuel. Putting dairy in our bodies is like putting tar in your gas tank. You’re not going to go anywhere quickly and it’s going to be one hell of a mess to de-clog. We need fruits, vegetables and nuts for brain food. Remember, we are up for a reason; we’re doing the papers and projects you assigned. We need our brains.
Elle Maloney is a mass communication senior and Photo Editor for The Maroon.
She can be reached at
In My Opinion is a weekly column open to any Loyola student. Those interested in contributing can contact
