Dairy products, especially milk, are part of the daily diet for most people. Milk is the primary food for children and an important part of diet for growing individuals and adults. Given the demand of the rapidly growing population, cattle have been injected with synthetic hormones to increase milk production. In the Unites States, about 80% of commercial cattle farms use hormones for increasing milk production. That is why an average cow on a commercial dairy farm, today, produces more than three times the amount of milk than did cows over 50 years ago. Such an increase in dairy production is indeed impressive. But is there some price to pay for it? It turns out that the price for more milk is something we can hardly afford to pay – our health!

The harmful health effects of hormones used for increasing milk production in commercial agriculture can be seen most clearly in the case of rGBH, or recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone, a protein hormone branded commonly as Posalic®. Despite the strong and persistent concern of scientists and farmers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the hormone in 1993. Research on health-effects of rGBH has revealed that milk produced by cows injected with rGBH carries elevated levels of IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor), another protein hormone, which may be responsible for colon and breast cancer. While further research is needed to verify these initial findings, the safety of rGBH is strongly disputed.

Synthetic or genetically modified growth hormones have also been linked to early pubescence in girls, some of whom have been found to hit puberty as early as in their eight year of life. Other studies have found a decrease in sperm production in boys as a result of exposure to these hormones. Growing children are, therefore, vulnerable to reproductive abnormalities on account of artificially engineered growth hormones for increasing dairy production.

Yet another dark side to the use of growth hormones on cattle is the health risk of antibiotics. The hormones injected into the cattle frequently cause mastitis, which is a painful inflammation of the udders. To treat this condition, the dairy industry injects the cattle with antibiotics that remain in the milk obtained from them. Children fed on this milk get the antibiotics in their blood, something that weakens their natural immunity to fight bacteria and other pathogenic microbes. Continued feeding on antibiotic-containing milk compromises the immunity of children, making them easy victims to all kinds of infections and diseases.

The health risks associated with the use of growth hormones in cattle, for the purpose of increasing milk production, call for the urgent need to discourage such practices on dairy farms. Organic farm communities, which promise natural and safe dairy products, are the ideal solution to this problem. Organic agriculture is eco-friendly, healthy, and conducive to life in the long run. Consumers of dairy products living in urban areas can choose to buy organic, hormone-free dairy products at many superstores. In rural areas, safe milk and other dairy food is easily available at organic farms.

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