As soon as the fat content of a food is lowered, the protein value will automatically increase. High intakes of cottage cheese and low fat yoghurts may not be such a good idea after all. These foods do not occur in nature. Neither is it vital for humans to eat animal produce at all, though small quantities of high quality animal produce is unlikely to do any real harm. Vegans, those that do not eat any animal produce are amongst the healthiest people.
Many factors can contribute to poor absorption of minerals, besides too little stomach acid.
The small intestine is lined with thousands of minute structures called villi, that waft about maximising the ability for the body to absorb nutrients. Foods rich in gluten which are wheat, rye oats and barley, can damage the villi, decreasing the surface area for absorption. High intakes of dairy produce can also aggravate the gut wall leading to poor absorption. Although dairy produce is a rich source of calcium, it is not too easy for the body to absorb this form of calcium, known as calcium lactate. Cultures that do not consume dairy foods have little incidence of osteoporosis.