WHAT DO HORMONES DO?

Each hormone regulates one or more of the thousands of metabolic processes occurring every second inside of the human body. Hormones are chemical messengers. For example, adrenalin is a hormone. When danger occurs (the fight or flight response), the adrenal glands (located atop the kidneys) secrete small amounts of epinephrine/adrenalin into the bloodstream. We have all experienced the "adrenalin surge" in which the heartbeat increases. Superhuman feats often occur while under the influence of such hormonalaction (lifting a car off of an accident victim or fighting off a gang of attackers).

Estrogen and progesterone are hormones; the magic of female behavior is influenced by internal secretions of these steroids. The male equivalent is testosterone.

Various hormones have various roles. Prolactin is responsible for regulating milk production while insulin regulates blood sugar levels.

GROWTH HORMONES

There exists a separate group of hormones that regulate growth. These protein hormones (made up of amino acids) instruct cells to grow. The first one of these to be discovered was appropriately named 'Human Growth Hormone' (hGH) or human somatotropin (hST). Dogs have canine somatotropin (CST/CGH), pigs have porcine somatotropin (pST/pGH), and cows have bovine somatotropin (bST/bGH).

Human growth hormone was discovered just before World War II. It was so named because of what it did: promoted cellular proliferation and growth. Two decades after GH was discovered, an even more powerful growth factor was found, IGF-I.

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) received its name because its structure resembled insulin. However, its function is nothing like insulin.

HORMONAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SPECIES

Human growth hormone differs from chimpanzee growth hormone, dog growth hormone, pig growth hormone, and cow growth hormone.

VARIATION

Human and cow growth hormones both have 191 amino acids, but the sequence of amino acids on that chain differs by about 35%.

A MIRACLE OF NATURE

There are four thousand mammals in the animal kingdom and many millions of different hormones. Only one hormone is identical in structure between two species. That hormone is IGF-I.

IGF-I is a protein hormone that survives digestion, and is an identical match between human and cow.

IGF-I, the most POWERFUL growth hormone in the human body, is identical between humans and cows.

Eat their cheese, ice cream, yogurt, or milk and you take powerful growth hormones into your body. The increase in blood levels of IGF-I have been measured and confirmed by the dairy industry to be ten percent!

IS IGF-I IN MILK A DANGER?

By continuing to drink milk, one delivers the most powerful growth hormone in nature to his or her body (IGF-I). That hormone has been called the key factor in the growth of breast, prostate, and lung cancer.

At the very best, or worst, this powerful growth hormone instructs all cells to grow. This might be the reason that many peoples now a day are so overweight.

At the very worst, this hormone does not discriminate. When it finds an existing cancer, usually controlled by our immune systems, the message it delivers is: GROW!

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR A CANCER TO GROW?

Every cancer begins with one cell. That cell doubles, on average, every ninety days. After three months, it is two cells. After six months, four. After one year, the cancer is 16 cells in size. After twenty cycles, or doublings, that cancer will grow to one million cells, which is the tiniest lump a woman can feel in her breast.

It can take between eight and twelve years for a cancer to be clinically diagnosed. Somewhere along that timeline, the cancer stops growing, usually suppressed by the immune system's tight genetic control.

SOMETHING MAKES CANCER GROW

IGF-I has been called a key factor in the growth and proliferation of breast and prostate cancers and lung cancer.

Milk is a hormonal delivery system. Mechanisms in milk insure that lactoferrins, immunoglobulins, and protein hormones do indeed survive digestive processes, and exert biological effects. Even skim milk is implicated

While milk is designed by nature to help infants grow, it may be that the growth factors in milk can be risky for adults, perhaps encouraging the growth of cancer cells.

Human population studies have shown that dairy product use correlates with breast cancer rates.

Extra estrogens end up in milk because farmers have dairy cattle impregnated to boost milk production. Excess estrogen is well-known for making breast cancer cells multiply.  Because milk has no fiber at all, and fiber is part of nature's way of eliminating excess estrogens, the fat in milk-like fat in any food-rapidly produces excess estrogen in a woman's body.

Suspected to be more potent than estrogen is IGF-I (insulin-like growth factor). Functioning to stimulate growth in a child's body, IGF-I "not only encourages growth of normal cells, but it also encourages breast cancer cells to multiply" It may even "cause normal cells to transform into cancer cells."

There are about 30 micrograms of IGF-I in a liter of milk, and it remains present even after pasteurization. While little is known about how humans absorb IGF-I, some evidence suggests that the presence of casein (the principal protein in milk) may prevent the digestive system from destroying IGF-I.

GF-I is a normal part of mother's milk and of infants' diets prior to weaning.  However, milk consumption after the age of weaning means prolonged intake of IGF-I.

Milk in the diet is even more problematic if it contains BGH (bovine growth hormone), which some dairy farmers use to further increase milk production.

Pesticides and industrial chemicals [which contain organochlorines] tend to dissolve into fat, they end up in the mammary gland's fatty tissues and easily pass into milk. This is true for human breast milk and also for cow's milk.  Is it mere coincidence that breast cancer mortality dropped in Israel when the country banned three carcinogens found in milk: DDT, a-BHC and g-BHC?

Milk's one remaining selling point - its calcium content - is suspect as well. Research on Scandinavian countries suggests that high calcium intake through dairy products does not protect against osteoporosis.

In addition, only 30 percent of the calcium in milk can be absorbed by the body - a figure much lower than for leafy greens.

The above opinionated views and information serves to educated and informed consumer .  The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. .It should not replaced professional advise and consultation.A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions