The link between cow's milk and acne has long been controversial. As long ago as 1924 a doctor, Albert Hoge, in the Journal of American Medicine, talked about one of his young patients developing acne after his mother forced him to drink cow’s milk. Certainly many people develop an allergy to milk products which causes skin rashes as well as digestive disturbances.
It seems that more and more scientists, doctors and nutritionists are becoming convinced that cow's milk plays a large part in causing acne. A study undertaken by the Harvard School of Public Health in 2005 has come to the same conclusion. They found that people who drank three or more cups of milk a day had a 22% more chance of experiencing severe acne than those drinking less. Interestingly they found that skimmed milk was more likely to cause acne than full-fat milk.
So, why should drinking milk cause acne? There has been suggestion that drinking milk and eating dairy products originating from pregnant cows exposes us to extremely high levels of hormones. These hormones contain estrogens, progesterones and androgens which are metabolized by our bodies, leading to an over-production of oil in the sebaceous glands, one of the causes of acne. Additionally, milk contains pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers and added hormones.
What we know is that at least 85% of teenagers suffer with acne and what do teenagers love to eat - cheese pizzas and milk chocolate. Even though it's difficult for teenagers to give up dairy products, it may be worth eliminating them for a while to see whether this clears up their acne.
Of course, milk is rich in calcium, so it is important to make sure that dairy is substituted by other calcium rich foods.Here are some suggestive alternatives:
- Replace cow’s milk with soy milk fortified with calcium. I would certainly recommend that you buy organic soy milk.
- If eating cheese is one of your weaknesses, then there are non-dairy versions made from soy. Sprinkle it on your home-made pizzas – you won’t know the difference!
- Have to have a dessert? Give soy yogurt and desserts a try.
- If you crave chocolate then try dark chocolate. Dark chocolate is much healthier for you than milk chocolate as it contains antioxidants. Even though dark chocolate is good for you, it contains a lot of fat and calories so make sure you don't eat too much.
- Eat plenty of dark green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, collard greens and turnip greens since they are rich in calcium. Other foods rich in calcium include broccoli, brussels sprouts, sesame seeds, almonds, tofu, salmon and sardines.
If you suffer with acne and think that dairy is the culprit, then remove them from your diet and replace them with some of the suggested alternatives.
Cow's milk is not the only trigger for acne, so if you want to know more about acne and treatment, please make sure you take a look at my Clear Skin Guide website.
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