The calcium found in milk is essential for life, according to Robert Heaney, M.D., and professor of medicine, Creighton University, speaking at the Calcium Summit. In addition to its well-known benefits in bone health, research is unveiling even more potential health benefits for this supernutrient. Getting too little calcium has been linked to osteoporosis, high blood pressure, colon cancer, kidney stones, obesity and even premenstrual syndrome. The evidence of milk's role in helping lower blood pressure is especially strong. David McCarron, M.D., professor of medicine at Oregon Health Sciences University, reviewed a range of studies showing that calcium can lower blood pressure, but that milk has an even stronger effect.
Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States.
In a randomized controlled human clinical trial, Peter Holt, M.D., professor of medicine, Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons, found that lowfat dairy products produced beneficial changes on biomarkers for colon cancer. This effect, he said, was higher than what was expected based on the calcium content alone. Other components in dairy foods, including vitamin D, may work together with calcium to produce these positive changes. And in fact, many teens start dropping milk in favor of soda and other drinks, setting the stage for osteoporosis and other chronic disease later in life. Bones grow the most during the teen years, so leading health organizations are trying to prevent this drop off in milk.