Heather Mills McCartney Calls on Minister to End Free School Milk

A letter from Heather Mills McCartney to Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Health, (see below) calls on the Government to take immediate action to end the subsidy and promotion of milk and dairy products, including stopping subsidised milk for primary school children. It will be presented at the Department of Health, along with a copy of the scientific report, White Lies, on May 24, by Juliet Gellatley, a friend of Mrs Mills McCartney and director of the health charity, Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation. Alongside Mrs Gellatley will be a large graphic image highlighting one of the aspects of dairy consumption of great concern to the public.

A photo opportunity will be provided from noon until 12.15pm at the Department of Health, Richmond House, Whitehall, London SW1. Further information and for photos: Juliet Gellatley 0117 970 5190. Dr Justine Butler 07835 323207. The Right Honourable Patricia Hewitt MP Secretary of State for Health Department of Health Richmond House 79 Whitehall London SW1A 2NS 24 May 2006,

Dear Patricia Hewitt Enclosed is a copy of the newly-published White Lies scientific report by Viva Health which reviews part of the mountain of research linking milk and dairy products with ill health.

This report, authored by Dr Justine Butler, concentrates on those scientific papers that have been published in the last five years but the science has been accumulating for decades – hence we have examined more than 200 published papers. The conclusions are clear: dairy products make a significant contribution – perhaps the major contribution – to degenerative diseases which are at epidemic proportions in Britain and which kill most people. These include coronary heart disease, strokes, some cancers, obesity and even osteoporosis. The people who are targeted most aggressively in order to establish the milk-drinking habit – children – are also at risk. They face an increased likelihood of diabetes (type 1, if genetically predisposed, and 2), allergies (including eczema, asthma and allergy induced anaemia) and acne. The extremely worrying epidemic of obesity, which threatens to destroy our children’s health while they are still young but even more so as they enter adulthood, is linked to dairy consumption. The fattest children eat the most saturated fat and the UK National Diet and Nutrition survey states that the majority of this fat in their diet comes from dairy. A major review of recent scientific studies on calcium and bone health shatters the misleading notion that children need cow’s milk for good bone health. This review examined the effects of dairy products and total dietary calcium on bone health in children and young adults and found that dairy products are not needed for strong bones. An increasing amount of evidence now shows that cow’s milk is not the best source of calcium at all and in fact our bone health would benefit enormously if we switched to plant-based sources.

In addition, research suggests that physical exercise is the most critical factor for maintaining healthy bones, followed by improving the diet and lifestyle; this means eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, and for young adults cutting down on caffeine and avoiding alcohol and smoking. Considering this, it is extraordinary that milk is still being pushed so energetically at children. There is no health reason to support it so the conclusion has to be that the decision is commercial. Professor Colin T Campbell has attached his name to this report – a giant in the field of diet and health, whose landmark China Study is the largest piece of epidemiological research of its kind on the subject ever undertaken.

He says: “Of course, dairy foods have nutritional characteristics and disease associations that are consistent with other animal-based foods. Indeed, if anything, cow’s milk and its products appear to be even more problematic than other animal-based foods. It is not that these various dairy effects are independently proven to be true beyond doubt, any more than tobacco use is independently proven to cause lung cancer and heart disease. Rather it is the weight and breadth of the evidence.”

Distinguished international scientist Professor Jane Plant has also attached her name. She has been granted life membership of the Royal Society of Medicine for her books on cancer and six honorary doctorates from UK universities. She says: “This report exposes the nature of the modern industrialised dairy industry and the serious implications this has for our health. I do hope that White Lies receives the recognition it deserves and that this will embolden politicians to take a stand against the dairy industry. To do so would improve human health, improve the environment, address serious issues of animal welfare and save the taxpayer a great deal of money” All this begs the questions as to why it has taken so long for anyone in Europe to review this mountain of science – and why it has been left to Viva Health to do it? On behalf of Viva Health and all those associated with this report, I call on the Department of Health to: stop its promotion of milk and dairy products, issue health warnings about the diseases linked to them; advise parents to stop giving cow’s milk formula, replacing it with soya milk formula if the baby cannot be breast fed and to advise that children obtain calcium from plant sources.

We are also calling on the government to: stop subsidising the provision of milk in primary schools; stop EU subsidies to dairy farmers and channel this funding into the organic growth and promotion of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, pulses, nuts, seeds; end the statutory levy on milk which funds the Milk Development Council; end its support of the MDC; end its support of the Butter for Manufacture scheme which give subsidies to food manufacturers to encourage them to use surplus butterfat instead of healthier vegetable oils in various food products. In conclusion I would add that the government’s concentration on cures rather than prevention, such as the increasing provision of statins to reduce heart disease deaths, is not the solution to a massive public health problem. Rates of heart disease and cancer continue to increase remorselessly.

This report provides the framework for a revision of public health policy and we would all urge the minister to supply the political will to accompany it. Yours sincerely Heather Mills McCartney Patron, Viva Health

About the author
Dr. Justine Butler
Justine joined Viva! in 2005 after graduating from Bristol University with a PhD in molecular biology. After working as a campaigner, then researcher and writer, she is now Viva!’s head of research and her work focuses on animals, the environment and health. Justine’s scientific training helps her research and write both in-depth scientific reports, such as White Lies and the Meat Report, as well as easy-to-read factsheets and myth-busting articles for consumer magazines and updates on the latest research. Justine also recently wrote the Vegan for the Planet guide for Viva!’s Vegan Now campaign.

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