I think we’d all agree that 2020 has been a peach.
In a mere 203 days, it feels a little more like a Lord of the Rings “There and back again” journey than your regular old’ July 21.
The masking, distancing, hand washing, canceling, canceling, canceling, sanitizing, testing, quarantining, stay at home-ing, social avoiding, hide-in-a-hole-ing really begs an obvious question that few are actually asking:
How is YOUR immune system?
I’m not a scientist, or a doctor, but it’s obvious that they are concerned about what America’s immune system can or can’t handle.
Never before have we cared so much about ridiculously simple things like scratching our faces without washing our hands. Why? Because scientists and doctors have come to question what our (or other’s) immune systems can fend off.
So my question is, how are we building that system?
Are we doing something to actually strengthen the immunity of our kids, or are we just throwing a mask on it and hoping for the best?
Reading that last sentence maybe sounds daunting, but what if fortifying your immune system is easier than you think?
What if something as simple as drinking raw milk could dramatically benefit your immune system?
Studies show: It can.
5 Immunity Benefits of Raw Milk
(from people who are smarter than me :)
1. Immune Support
According to a 2019 study on Diet and Immune function, “Nutrition is of prime importance in strengthening the immune system." (1) Raw milk plays a very important part in building and strengthening both the innate and adaptive immune systems.” (2)
It seems obvious what nutrition affects immunity but it is so easy to forget; Especially when we’re barraged with millions of other “most important” details every day.
The simple question is - how are we feeding our immune system?
Are we taking care of it, or are we eating garbage, throwing a mask on and calling it good.
Now more than ever, I would think that immune-building super-foods are of utmost importance. Why not strengthen our immune systems so they have a fighting chance if we DO get sick?
If you like gritty details, check out the links below.
2. Lung Health
“There are multiple peer-reviewed, scientific studies which correlate raw milk with improved lung health, both in childhood and adulthood.” (3)
I think it’s safe to say that ANY sickness is dramatically worse for people who are immuno-compromised or people who have unhealthy lungs.
IF my family were to get something like Covid, I know I want it to fall on the healthiest lungs possible.
So what can we do to ensure healthy lung function in ourselves and our kids?
According to the PARSIFAL study of over 14,800 European children, “regardless of which environment the children lived in, those children who drank raw milk had significantly lower rates of asthma than children who did not drink raw milk.”
If you’re a details person, and want to read more studies, check out the link below (3)
3. Protective against respiratory infections
According to the The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, “Early life consumption of raw cow's milk reduced the risk of manifest respiratory infections and fever by about 30%”
I grew up with asthma, allergies, and “weak” lungs. I was constantly fighting
respiratory infections every time I got a cold. If I could help this not be the case for my kids, you better believe I’m going to try.
Respiratory infections are too scary to be taken lightly and they are far too life-prohibitive to call normal. According to the study below, raw milk can help help protect against those respiratory infections. (4)
4. Allergy Prevention
No one likes allergies. As a child/young adult, I used to have debilitating seasonal allergies. When our kids (or ourselves) can’t function, we often turn toward allergy drugs (which I’m THANKFUL to have). But what if there was a simpler approach? What if there was a safer answer?
According to an article published in the PMC of the U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine, “There is no doubt that the components of raw milk can influence the immune function...Undoubtedly, even if the final understanding of the role of raw cow’s milk seems to be a distant prospect, it is one of the most intriguing and promising paths to be studied in allergy prevention.”(5)
5. Super Food Material
If we’re looking to strengthen our immune systems, super-foods are where it’s at!
If you haven't tried making kefir from Fresh Milk, you're missing out!
Beyond being ridiculously easy and incredibly tasty, “Raw milk kefir is a powerful immune-building food which has been shown to stimulate and modulate the immune system, have a beneficial effect on the composition of the gut microbiome, and reduce allergies. Fermented milk has also been shown to reduce the duration of respiratory infections and colds in the elderly.” (6)
Kefir is “packed full of beneficial bacteria that can colonise the intestinal tract and can help to support optimal digestive health and boost immunity.” (7)
At the end of the day, we’d all agree that our immune systems are exceptionally important.
So why not do everything we can to make them strong?
Especially when it is as easy & delicious as raw milk and kefir :)
(2) https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/updates/immunity-the-immune-system-and-raw-milk (3) https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/updates/raw-milk-asthma-and-lung-health
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