Why Go Dairy Free?

As a whole, we consume unbelievable amounts of dairy products including milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt and others. You may find this a surprising fact; humans do not require nutrition that comes from processed cow’s milk. There are many plant-based sources for nutrients such as calcium that are healthier and lower in fat, producing benefits of living a dairy free lifestyle.


Dairy products contain such high amounts of fat that they can almost be considered as unhealthy. If you were to take cow’s milk directly from the udder, it would contain about 55% fat. Don’t be fooled by the product packaging, 2% milk actually contains 35% fat per serving.

Additionally, dairy products such as cheese can contain up to 77% fat content. Not surprisingly, butter is nearly 100% fat. When you consider how unhealthy these high levels of fat content are for human consumption, you can definitely understand how a dairy free lifestyle is a healthier choice. It is unfortunate that dairy products are labelled in a misleading way, as most people do not know that these products contain such high amounts of fat and saturated fat.

Regardless of whether it is whole milk, 2% milk, or even skim milk products, dairy items contain unhealthy cholesterol. Cholesterol that comes from a cow was certainly not intended for humans, it was intended for their own offspring.

Human cholesterol is quite different from the cholesterol in dairy products. Many scientific studies have shown that those who consume dairy-rich diets are more prone to cardiovascular disease and even problems with gallstones due to these levels of cholesterol.

Cholesterol free products such as vegetables, fruits, and legumes are a much healthier way of getting the nutrients needed without ingesting this harmful substance. The absence of dairy products in your diet then, can certainly lead to a healthier existence and a lowered chance for these specific health problems.

For the amount of fat and cholesterol that dairy products have, one would think it would be made up for by being rich in other important nutrients. This is not the case, however. Dairy products lack sufficient amounts of substances such as iron, which are necessary for correct bodily function.

The nutrients that can be found in processed milk, namely Vitamin A and Vitamin D, are not naturally found in dairy products. They are added in afterwards for higher nutritional value of the product, and in some areas, these things are added as a requirement of the law.

These are just a handful of reasons that going dairy-free can improve your health. There are so many benefits to living a dairy free lifestyle. Just by doing a little bit of research on the foods you consume will show you that all of the nutrients your body needs to remain healthy and active can be found in healthier foods that are of the non-dairy variety. If you are looking to change your diet for the better, getting dairy products out of your refrigerator is a good first step.