The Dairy Industry is a Staple in American Culture

Milk production is a major revenue stream for farmers all over the country. Over 750 million people from all walks of life, all across the globe, are engaged in milk production. From the Tasco dome barns to your local supermarket, farmers work tirelessly at their craft to ensure that they get only the highest quality products out on the shelves for purchase. These products must pass a rigorous quality check from the FDA before it can be packaged and sold to the American public.

When you look at the numbers, you can just see how hard at work the typical dairy farmer is. Cows are known to produce around six or seven gallons of milk per day. Each cow tends to be milked two or three times per day. That is around the clock, which means that farmers do not tend to get the same days off as the general public does in a typical 9-5 job. There is a lot that goes into being a farmer, in general, let alone a farmer that relies on producing enough dairy consistently to make a living. Furthering on these statistics, there are about 42,000 dairy farms total in the U.S. up and running today. These dairy cows are consistently milked in order to provide the necessary amount of dairy to feed the general public of the United States.

A Concern for the Public’s Bone Health

The truth is that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find natural calcium within your typical daily meals without the direct consumption of dairy products. There are alternatives to real milk, such as almond and rice beverages, but they are simply infused with calcium. Infusing a product with calcium or taking calcium supplements do not guarantee that you are getting the necessary amount of your required daily calcium intake. This is definitely important for children, who are still developing their bone density as they grow. Another group that are in dire need of enough calcium, in order to maintain their bone density as they age, would be middle-aged women. Children, teens, and middle-aged women are in prime phases of their life where an imbalance of any vitamins are more likely to lead to major complications later on in life.

Calcium Deficiency Can Affect Your Well-Being

In more than one way, your life can be greatly impacted by your lack of bone health. While a lot of people may not think about the long-term effects that a lack of any major vitamin can have on them over time, bone health is one that is commonly overlooked by Americans. When bones aren’t taken care of, this can lead to bone density problems later on in life, which doesn’t only include middle-aged women. This lack of bone density can lead to fractures, breakage of bones, and chronic conditions that have no cure and very little treatment. These issues can affect your family, social life, overall happiness, and even your work and career success can be affected.

Calcium Supplements and Their Disadvantages

The prevention of certain conditions has been on the minds of Americans for some time. It’s not just the most recent holistic mentality that so many adults in the United States are taking on nowadays. Calcium pills seem to be a popular supplement for those who are wishing to cut out the food category altogether from their diets. It has been circulating that adults should no longer consume milk once they reach a certain age. This has little to do with the calcium found in the foods and more to do with paranoia surrounding additives and hormones that are believed to be found in naturally processed milk products.

There is very little evidence backing up claims that dietary supplements do little, if anything at all, to help those who are cutting out calcium-rich foods from their diet. Many Americans are rethinking their dietary supplement plans completely, due to new research that has surfaced criticizing the effectiveness of supplements versus consuming dairy foods daily for our needed vitamin intake. There is simply not enough evidence to back up the fears that consumers have to outweigh the decline that your health can and will take if you are not getting enough calcium in your diet every day.