From: gts (gts_2000@yahoo.com)
Date: Tue Apr 22 2003 - 14:47:09 MDT
This is what I mean by "burden-of-proof," in this case concerning the claims
of the dairy industry:
THE DAIRY INDUSTRY ASKS THE QUESTION AND MAKES THE CLAIM:
"Got Milk? You need our milk and dairy products for strong teeth and bones."
THE TYPICAL FAT AMERICAN CONSUMER REPLIES:
"Yeah, Mr. Dairy Farmer, I got milk! Of course I got it! Doesn't everyone
drink milk and eat other dairy products? Milk is as American as Baseball and
Apple Pie! What would I do without dairy? I soak my Fruit Loops in milk in
the morning, and at lunch I tell Ronald McDonald to plaster my hamburger
with slabs of fatty cheese, and at dinner I slather my foods with creamy
cheese sauces. Besides, your other farmer pals tell me I need foods like
bread and potatoes and macaroni. I love starchy foods like bread and
potatoes and macaroni, but how am I supposed to eat these darned things as
they are? Someone please pass me more cheese and butter!"
THE PALEODIET THEORIST REPLIES:
"No, Mr. Dairy Farmer, I do not "got milk." I see no reason that I should
consume your milk or dairy products. Your claim that I need milk for strong
teeth and bones appears false. The evidence is that my paleolithic ancestors
had longer, stronger bones and healthier teeth than my parents and
grandparents had at the same age, and yet those ancestors of mine were
hunter-gatherers who consumed essentially zero dairy products. This is
explained easily by evidence from nutritional science that green leafy
vegetables provide plenty of calcium for strong teeth and bones. Also the
calories from dairy come mostly from saturated fat and sugar, both of which
are likely to increase my probability of heart disease, diabetes and other
diseases. Many of my fellow humans cannot even tolerate milk sugar
(lactose), and many others have difficulty digesting milk protein (casein).
No doubt this is because homo sapiens as a whole is not well adapted to the
non-paleolithic substances in dairy products. The human genome
down-regulates production of lactase, the enzyme for metabolizing milk
sugar, in the first two years of life. Apparently my genes do not want or
expect your milk during my adulthood, especially the milk of another
species. No other species on earth consumes the milk of another species. I
note also that the country with the highest per capita incidence of diabetes
is also the country with the highest per capita consumption of dairy
(Finland). America is thoroughly soaked in the milk meme thanks to you and
the billions you've spent on advertising, Mr. Dairy Farmer, but this
American is not impressed. The burden of proof is on you to show me exactly
why I should add these foods to the diet upon which my species evolved.
Please show me how dairy products will increase my health or longevity."
The dairy farmers are incapable of rising to the challenge. Instead they
plaster billboards and magazines with photographs of famous people sporting
milk mustaches.
-gts
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