Why Organic Milk is a Better Choice

Organic milk is unfortunately a bit more expensive than regular versions, but it is worth it, especially for kids in development. Here's why organic milk is a great choice for your family:

"Organic milk is produced without pesticides. Testing by the USDA's Pesticide Data Program found industrial chemicals in nearly all of the conventional milk it examined. Among the most alarming: DDE, a breakdown of the now-banned toxic insecticide DDT, was discovered in 96 percent of the samples. Ninety-nine percent contained diphenylamine (DPA), a chemical used in plastic and rubber manufacturing, and 18 percent contained the endocrine disruptor endosulfan, which EPA moved to ban this year.

Organic milk is produced without added hormones. You wouldn't give human growth hormone to your healthy 5-year-old, so why would you expose her to milk that's filled with bovine growth hormone (linked to an alarming rise in calf deformity)? While the US continues to allow the injection of the genetically engineered hormone rBGH (or rBST) into lactating cows to increase milk production, the potential risks are enough of a concern that the European Union, Canada, Japan, and Australia have all banned its use.

Organic milk is produced without antibiotics. The antibiotics routinely given to dairy cattle to discourage mastitis may never make it into your milk (conventional milk is tested for antibiotic residues), but they could lead to you catching a life-threatening disease later in life. Sound implausible? The FDA has called the overuse of antibiotics in food animals "a serious public health threat," linking it to the emergence of super-scary superbugs like MRSA.

Organic milk is healthier. A study by Newcastle University found that organic dairy cows in the UK produce milk that is higher in vitamins, antioxidants, and "good" fats -- including conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has been linked to lower rates of heart disease. The healthier milk is the result of cows grazing on fresh grass; since USDA recently passed strict regulations requiring the pasturing of organic dairy cows, it stands to reason that American organic milk offers the same increased nutritional benefit."

Sources: Yahoo, Huffington Post