Page 98 - Fall2020

mised health. For most modern Americans, the Mark McAfee is co-founder of Organic Pastures,
competitive advantage of raw milk consumption the world’s largest organic raw milk dairy. Mark
has never been a reality, and raw milk’s immune- founded the Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) in
building properties and microbiome-friendly 2011 to assist farmers in producing very low
traits have been largely forgotten. Instead, we risk raw milk through farmer training, raw milk
live in the age of biome-destructive pharmaceu- Risk Analysis & Management Plans (“RAMP”),
ticals and antibiotics. Although life-saving in test standards for raw milk and ongoing testing.
certain applications, these drugs also depress and
damage the immune system and gut microbiome. Sarah Smith is a director and board secretary for
Antibiotic resistance is now responsible for the the Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI). Sarah is also
deaths of tens of thousands of people every year a homeopathic practitioner, homesteader, food
in the U.S. alone. Furthermore, pasteurized and health writer (NourishedandNurturedLife.
15
milk is now recognized as difficult to digest and com) and homeschooling mother of two.
a top food allergen.
Fortunately safe raw milk has been redis- REFERENCES
covered by those who study history and know
the role of raw milk as a nourishing whole food 1. Weitzel EM, Codding BF. Population growth as a driver of
initial domestication in Eastern North America. R Soc Open
that contributes to a strong, healthy immune Sci. 2016;3(8):160319.
system and healthy gut microbiome. That 2. Helmer D, Vigne JD. Was milk a “secondary product”
in the Old World Neolithisation process? Its role in the
competitive advantage from thousands of years domestication of cattle, sheep and goats. Anthropozoologica.
ago is being rekindled in people who consume 3. 2007;42(2):9-40.
Charlton S, Ramsøe A, Collins M, et al. New insights into
raw milk, fermented raw milk such as kefir and Neolithic milk consumption through proteomic analysis
yogurt, and raw milk cheeses. of dental calculus. Archaeological and Anthropological
Sciences. 2019;11:6183–6196.
Raw milk that is carefully and intention- 4. Spiteri CD, Gillis RE, Roffet-Salque R, et al. Regional
ally produced for direct human consumption asynchronicity in dairy production and processing in early
farming communities of the northern Mediterranean. Proc
is wholly different from milk being produced Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016;113(48):13594-13599.
for pasteurization. Organizations such as the 5. Zeder M. Domestication and early agriculture in the
Mediterranean Basin: Origins, diffusion, and impact. Proc
Raw Milk Institute and the British Columbia Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008;105(33):11597-11604.
Herdshare Association mentor farmers in the 6. Kindersley D. The Visual Dictionary of Ancient Civilizations.
Stoddart, 1994.
production of low-risk raw milk, relying on 7. Burger J, Kirchner M, Bramanti B, Haak M, Thomas
many of the natural methods that humans suc- MG. Absence of the lactase-persistence-associated allele
in early Neolithic Europeans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A.
cessfully used for thousands of years while also 8. 2007;104(10):3736-3741.
Dunne J, Rebay-Salisbury K, Salisbury RB, et al. Milk of
implementing modern technologies. Raw milk ruminants in ceramic baby bottles from prehistoric child
farmers carefully manage the cleanliness and 9. graves. Nature. 2019;574(7777):246-248.
Salque M, Bogucki P, Pyzel J, et al. Earliest evidence for
hygiene of the farm from grass to the glass, with cheese making in the sixth millennium BC in northern
Europe. Nature. 2013;493(7433):522–525.
much care to ensure that the animals are healthy 10. McCormick F. Cows, milk and religion: the use of
and the milk is clean. This type of raw milk is dairy produce in early societies. Anthropozoologica.
tested often and held to rigorous standards to 11. 2012;47(2):101-113.
Goddess Hathor Suckling Amenhotep II. Egypt Museum
ensure that it is being produced in a way that website. https://egypt-museum.com/post/181897574541/
discourages pathogen growth. hathor-suckling-amenhotep-ii#gsc.tab=0. Accessed
7/15/2020.
So the next time that someone says, “milk is 12. Itan Y, Powell A, Beaumont MA, Burger J, Thomas MG.
for cows and not for humans,” share with them The origins of lactase persistence in Europe. PLoS Comput
Biol. 2009;5(8):e1000491.
the intricate link between civilization and raw 13. Ranciaro A, Campbell MC, Hirbo JB, et al. Genetic origins
milk, and the competitive advantage that raw of lactase persistence and the spread of pastoralism in Africa.
Am J Hum Genet. 2014;94(4):496-510.
milk provided to humanity for ten thousand 14. Heckman JR. Securing fresh food from fertile soil,
years. Many of these misinformed humans are challenges to the organic and raw milk movements.
Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems. 2019;34(5):472-
in dire need of gut microbiome rescue like never 485.
before. Reach out to them with love, compassion 15. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “More people in
the United States dying from antibiotic-resistant infections
and humanity. They need our support, nourish- than previously estimated.” https://www.cdc.gov/media/
releases/2019/p1113-antibiotic-resistant.html. Accessed
ment and education. 7/15/2020.
96 Wise Traditions FALL 2020