Hormones in the Milk – Do You Know What Your Kids are Drinking?

The food kids eat today will have a lasting impact on their health. Unfortunately much of the food kids eat today is produced with harmful chemicals, genetically engineered ingredients, and artificial hormones. We’ve got a great opportunity to affect what kind of milk is in the National School Lunch Program.

Roughly 15 percent of all dairies (mostly large dairies) in the United States inject their cows with an artificial, genetically engineered growth hormone called recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH) that increases cows’ milk production. Besides the documented increase of infections in dairy cows injected with rBGH, which necessitates increased use of antibiotics, there are ongoing questions about links to cancer in humans.

Most of the industrialized countries in the world have banned rBGH. But here in the United States, we’re giving it to our most vulnerable citizens—our children! It is possible that at least 84 million gallons of milk from artificial hormone-treated cows were distributed through the school nutrition programs in fiscal year 2005-2006 – or about one out of five pints of milk offered in school cafeterias nationwide.