Hormones in my Greek yogurt?

Sometimes you don't realize you should be aware of something until you become aware of the contrary opinion, if that makes any sense. Long story short: it never occurred to me to know whether or not the milk used in my Greek yogurt came from cows treated with growth hormones.



But now that I know that's a factor, what the HELL do I do with that information???

Well considering the fact that I've eaten "hormonal meat" (ew...that did NOT sound right) almost my whole adult life, I don't think having it in my Greek yogurt will compound any problems nor will I think changing JUST Greek yogurt will take any problems away. But it is nice for me to know there is a choice.

Today on Bariatric Foodie, I review a hormone-free Greek yogurt and share some thoughts about how I approach what's in my food. Check it out!

 Just gotta opine on this.... yes, we were probably all fed conventional (non organic) foods for most of our lives. But why not change if you can? Other than the good it may do for our bodies and the planet, some of it just really does taste better. There's a huge difference in meat - comparing standard meat I get at Safeway vs the free-range/hormone free/organic fed meat I get at Whole Foods. The flavor brings me back to buying as much organic/hormone free as I can afford. The karmic bonus is just a plus to my "smug". 

For me the answer would be, "Nik's pouch and meat don't usually play nicely no matter how it was grown!"

I get the lion's share of my protein in food from dairy unfortunately. Ground meats sit ok if they are broken up rather than in some sort of mass (think spaghetti sauce vs. a burger) but in general my pouch seems offended by meat if it is largely unprocessed. Now that McCrap they give you at the drive-through? That seems to go down fine but obviously I don't want to rely on THAT.

But you're right. It is worth giving a try and I don't feed my children "hormonal meat." :)

Thats the yogurt I just picked up. It had the higest protein/lowest calories...and what Im having with lunch.

It does need a little extra fixing up though.

As I'm determined to eat healthier (to live longer and fight off disease), I'm getting fussy about my food.

I don't eat much processed food.  I get eggs that are not from caged chickens, no hormones, antiboitics and feed on grasses.

I'm not eating much meat - but have found some that are grass fed, organic, no pesticides, hormones or antibiotics.  (I do live in Amish country).  I'm not vegetarian but fussy about meat - just won't eat any fast food meat - yuk.

I'm also choosing organic fresh veggies and fruits.  I'd like to go to eating "raw" but don't think I can.

I'm using essential oils for headache, pain and nausea now (no Tylenol or Compazine.) And I'd like to get off antidepressants, and Splenda - I'm working on those right now.

Just don't like Stevia yet - but I'm choosing to keep trying.

I eat greek yogurt every day - have been buying some organic - but don't know about the hormone in the milk.

We are so screwed up in American.  Food is big business - it isn't about a healthy population and the government keeps approving things that are deceptive labeling and just not good for us.  Sometimes I think they want us sick - but don't want to be a conspiracy theorist type.

Gotta stop = I'm giving myself a headache!!

I try to do 80-20. 70% of the time I try to get healthy organic food or wild harvested when it really matters, 30% of the time I just try to get the best food I can buy (maybe non organic but with as little no-food additives I can) in a store near me.
I will not buy anything with Splenda, soy protein, and artificail stuff in them. So manytimes I pick-up food, look at it, and put it away.
My body has to deal with so many different issues right now that I try to select the best food I can buy for my money.
I do use Stevia..

I am an Ag person and hearing about the issues with hormones drives me crazy. Without the use of hormones, our beef and milk prices would be even higher through the roof. The cattle that are given hormones (usually slow release hormone pill given in the ear) almost always have around the same level of hormones (in the meat or milk) as one that was not given the hormones. It is nothing more than a marketing ploy to target people that have very little idea of what actually goes on in agriculture.

Thanks for that perspective.

What then, would you say of the studies my pediatrician has shown me that are trying to determine if the artificial introduction of those hormones is having an effect on the maturity of girls and childhood obesity? I haven't read anything terribly conclusive but still.

And I think the costs of eating hormone free meat (if one chose to do so) might actualy be partially offset by eating more locally. I eat locally raised meat and it costs less to get the hormone free stuff than it does in the grocery store.

I am not a picket sign carrier or anything. I'm just more partial to eating things the way God made them and not messing around with them but so much.

I truly believe it is the lack of activity along with unhealthy diets that are leading to childhood obesity. It is also known that overweight girls enter puberty sooner. So...if these girls are eating pop-tarts for breakfast, pizza for lunch, and an unhealthy dinner, they are going to gain weight especially if they are sitting around playing on the computer and xbox. My sister ate like this and ballooned up during the school year because she was allowed to sit around and do nothing when she lived with my mom.  As soon as summer rolled around(and she moved to my fathers) she lost all that weight because she was eating healthy and working on the farm. 

If meat and milk full of hormones are supposed to make us gain weight and cause issues then why are we techinically on a meat and milk type diet?

Basically, every research I have found has been inconclusive. So as far as I am concerned the there is no issue. I will continue to implant our beef cows that we slaughter and drink milk with hormones in them. I do not have any kids yet but I will not hesitate to feed them milk or meat that has been given hormones.

Also, did you know that
-There are 8 nanograms of estrogen found in an untreated steer; there are 11 nanograms in an implanted steer.

-Peas contain 2,000 nanograms of estrogen, soybean oil has a whopping 1 million nanograms, and one birth control pill has the same amount of estrogen as 125,000 lbs. of beef from an implanted steer.

Just something to think about.

Here is a link to Cornell's site regarding hormones
http://envirocancer.cornell.edu/factsheet/diet/fs37.hormones.cfm

From what I’ve read, scientists are taking behavioral changes into account but that, as a society, there has been in tandem a rise in the percentage of the population that is obese alongside the rise in hormones used in meats, which is why they are studying it. There isn’t necessarily a correlation yet (I don’t think…I should double check) but there are theories.

 

My kids don’t eat any of the things you described and are active and at 9 and 12 are obese. They have been tested for thyroid problems and have none. Their doctor of course things that hormones can be contributing. I remind him not to rule out genetics, although I wasn’t quite as big as a child as they are.

 

At any rate, food for thought. I think there are a multitude of things contributing to childhood obesity, but I think it is noteworthy that in countries that attempt to mass produce food by way of things like hormones, they are all experiencing higher rates of childhood obesity, even in countries known to traditionally have smaller people (parts of Asia). So it’s something to think about at least.

I await conclusive studies myself. And it’s easy enough to find hormone-free meat for me to just incorporate that into my life. I figure it won’t kill my children so why not?

For the record, I'm not a big fan of synthetic hormones anywhere. I do not take the pill (I was blessed with a perfect 28 day cycle. The only time it has ever not been 28 days was when I was preggers or when I was rapidly losing. The only reason I got preggers was ignoring what I KNOW to be true about my cycle).

I also stay away from giving them too much soy. Just because too much of anything is too much.