Thinking about enjoying the benefits of raw milk for the first time (at 8 months pregnant). ...

[Dot-to-Dot]

(Cross posted in Traditional Foods)

I'm considering switching the family over to raw milk, mostly for my 1.5 year old.  (DH and I don't really drink a lot of milk to begin with).  I'd probably use it in smoothies mostly.  But, my daughter would drink more like 15oz a day.  Do you have to start little kids slowly?  I've heard of people getting sick since their bodies weren't used to the bacteria?  Which makes me wonder...is this really something I should be starting when I am 8 months pregnant?

I personally drove out to the farm and toured the place.  I talked with the woman who operates the farm and checked the milking area and all that.  I think I trust the source...I mean I trust her more than I do Horizon milk...but, I don't know enough to say I 100% trust the source.  She does have the milk tested monthly (which I think is all they can afford on such tight budget - there are only like 5 cows and she's mostly breaking even and not making a lot of profit). 

It's the only choice we have for raw milk around here.  I'm just not sure if I should dive into this while pregnant if your body needs to get used to the specific bacteria found in raw milk.  Nor do I really want to risk listeria...but, I still risk e. coli and such with all of the raw fruits and vegetables I readily consume.  So is this no big deal?

Any preggo's out there who know a thing or two about raw milk?

[JamieCatheryn]

I quit raw milk while pregnant, but only because I had to take tums, etc for my acid reflux. Lowered stomach acid means reduced immunity to listeria. Well also because of the cost of raw milk. Otherwise I would trust is so long as it was a trustworthy dairy, clean and good handling practices. I didn't find there was any adjustment period to the raw milk when I and my toddler and husband first began, though I was used to yogurt already so that made it easy I guess. My son was in the process of weaning from breastmilk though so drank very little dairy back then.

[~Amy~]

Our family switched to raw milk within the last 2 months.  I was around 30 weeks pregnant when we made the switch.  All 3 of us (me, DH & our 3 year old son) switched cold turkey.  None of us have had any stomach issues whatsoever from the switch.

[lovemybabyboy]

My Family and I only drink raw milk, Goat milk when we can get it in the summer and Jersey Cow Milk during the winter.  We are lucky enough to live in an area where we have many choices of farms to get milk from.  I would maybe suggest the goat milk for your little one at the beginning as it is much closer to human milk as far as the protein structure goes.  Raw goat milk is also naturally homogenized so you don't get the cream separating on the top like you do with Cow's milk, although the cream is great for tea and coffee.  I am currently pregnant and due in April.  I have been drinking raw milk through out my pregnancy with no ill side effects.  Many of the studies done on bacteria found in "Raw milk"  were done using milk from large facilities where the milk was destined to be pasteurized anyways.  Small scale farms just do not have the same contamination issues that large dairies have.  Check out www.realmilk.com for some information and you also might be able to find some other sources in your area.    Good Luck! 

[livvie97]

I'm on my second raw milk pregnancy, and our 15 month old has been drinking raw milk since about 8 months.  We love it, haven't had any issues, and totally trust our dairy.  I make raw milk cheese and yogurt too, which we all love.  I say go for it, but make sure you're 100% comfortable. 

[Italiamom]

I think it's important to know that there are various forms of milk.  The Horizon milk you mentioned is ultra-pasturized (heated for a long period, at high temps) and then homogenized.  I know for us, we can buy pasturized (heated to a lower temp, for a shorter time), non-homogenized milk at our local health food stores.  This milk spoils more quickly, but also tastes loads better.  It's still more expensive than Horizon, but it's also cheaper than the raw milk, and I don't have to spend so much time driving each week to get it.  When I can get raw milk easily (most often in the summer time), then I do, although I personally won't be drinking it during my pregnancy.  Just personal preference.

I think there are other good ways to introduce good gut flora that carry fewer risks during pregnancy.  I'm not sure if the above is an option for you, but I would check into it if you're worried.  I've never had any problems with the raw milk that I've drank, nor have any of my family members.  But when I'm pregnant, I worry enough about so many things, and I'm okay with the non-homogenized, low-temp pasturized milk as a compromise to save myself worry during those months.

As a pp said, have you looked into raw goat's milk in your area?  I think that goat's milk carries a lower risk of e-coli than cow's milk, although that could just be something I heard.  And it's far more easily digestable, and doesn't separate.  I do kind of love the way that cow's milk separates though...  We skim the cream off the top, and give it to DS.  He loves it!

[Mamatoabunch]

We have our own milk cow, been milking her 6 years. Raw the whole time. We have been drinking raw milk from other sources for 11 years before that.

[Dot-to-Dot]

Thanks for the replies.  Unfortunately, I can't get any raw goat's milk around here.  The health food store sells Organic Valley milk, which is what we buy currently since I consider it to be superior to Horizon (the only other organic option).  But, I still felt like raw local milk would be even healthier.  And they even will deliver it to the health food store so I don't have to drive out to get it!  This particular farm is considering getting some goats in the next few years, though.

Gosh, I am so tempted to go for it - it tasted SO good and creamy at the farm and I've been wanting some every since we left!  But, at the same time I still feel pretty timid since I'm pregnant.  Still waffling I guess....

[BHappy]

i drink raw milk, and am pregnant. i wouldn't hesitate switching, nor have i read or experienced anything about adjusting to raw after drinking only pasteurized. if you have any fears or doubts, make sure you address them first. no need to be worrying; that would probably have a detrimental effect! i think it sounds great to have been able to tour the farm. i would totally start on raw milk ! :)

[MrsBone]

I started on raw milk before I got pregnant with DS, so I wasn't worried about continuing with it. I honestly think you're safer drinking raw milk than some of the other foods out there that can be potentially contaminated with bacteria. The great thing about raw milk is that it contains live bacteria to help you digest it. I've been drinking it for 2+ years with no problems. I'm pregnant again and have been drinking it this whole time. I honestly wouldn't worry about starting on it. Even if you do heat raw milk, it's still better for you than homogenized pasteurized milk is. Heating it will kill any bacteria that may be present.

[BirthIsAwesome]

I drank raw milk throughout my pregnancy with no ill effects, but then again I had drunk it for years prior. I don't know if there would be any health adjustment for you or not. 

[KittyKat]

I have been drinking raw milk off and on for the last 8 years or so. We went through a time where we could not afford it, and I missed it SO much. I was pregnant at that time, so I wasn't able to get it during my pregnancy, but if I could have I would have! We never experienced any stomach upset at all switching between raw milk and commercially farmed pasteurized milk.

Right now I am currently pregnant, about 15 weeks. I've been drinking raw milk the whole time. The milk we get comes from a farm that has a small Jersey/Jersey cross herd. The cows are on pasture, and are fed a small amount of organic hay/feed mix when they come in to be milked. The farmers are a family business, and they are SUPER nice. Not only do they have great grass-fed milk, they also sell eggs, veggies during the summer, and pastured beef and pork. We have been consistently impressed by the quality of their product, and we have never once had any stomach upset or illness from eating or drinking anything from them.

Some nutritional belief systems (hee hee) state with great conviction that drinking raw grass-fed milk during pregnancy is ESSENTIAL to proper nutrition, and healthy development of the unborn child. I just know it tastes a HECK of a lot better than the watery sour smelling stuff from the grocery store, and here I am referring to the organic brands! Don't even ask me to drink the non-organic, that stuff tastes icky. Yes, I guess I have been "spoiled" by raw milk.

Did you experience any ill effects from the taste you had at the farm? If not, why do you think you would experience a problem from having it on a regular basis? If the cows are grass-fed and healthy, it is less likely that you will become ill from drinking their milk than that you will get contaminated commercially farmed milk. I believe the realmilk website has info about food-borne illness reports from California, where raw milk sales have been legal for a while. There were many more reports of illness from commercially farmed pasteurized milk than from raw milk.

[CookAMH]

Go for it. I haven't heard of any adjustment needed. I've had it through two pregnancies.

Straight milk actually helps my reflux.

The good bacteria in raw milk keeps other bacteria in check.

[JudiAU]

I live in California where legal raw milk is tested up the wazoo, like daily bacteria counts on the website. It is thus very expensive at $9 quart. We drank it occasionally before I was pregnant but I wou,d drink it pregnant or give it to a small child. Contamination does happen. In fact it is safer to say it will happen. You have to be physically able to weather ecoli or the other super nasties. If you get ecoli or other and your are pregnant if can cause termination or preterm delivery. They can kill small chi,children even with best quality health care. Too dangerous a risk.

Sally Jackson, a very respected raw milk cheese maker had ecoli last year. She has her own goats, eveyrthing top notch, wonderful

cheese. I dont think she took shortened or wasn't careful. She just had a problem that cannot be avoided. I'll buy her cheese again without question but even the best best producers will have problems and you need to be able to physically handle the "side effects".

I support raw milk and raw dairy products but I would not take the risk for someone who wasn't in peak physical condition.

Organic Valley is much much better quality than horizon.

[Naturallove]

My midwife insists that her clients drink raw milk during pregnancy because of all the health benefits. So, we recently made the switch.