Milk
Milk nourished the spirits as well as the bodies of the biblical peoples. Milk and honey
together symbolized good health, prosperity and blessings from God. Milk and milk products were an important part of the daily diet of biblical times. But it was difficult to keep the milk fresh. The solution was to use the same fermentation process with milk that
was used to make wine or sourdough bread.
The result was what we today call yogurt, cheese and what is sometimes called curds in
the Bible. Butter was seldom used for cooking then. Olive oil was used instead.
But even though the chosen people relied heavily on milk, they were hardly the first. Milk
has been considered necessary for survival – for perhaps millions of years.
It has been called “the perfect food” because it provides so many of the nutrients we all
need to grow, to fight off disease and to stay healthy.
Here are some of those recently discovered health benefits found in milk and milk
products:
• Calcium builds bones in children and helps prevent or slow the development of
osteoporosis in older women.
• Ingredients in milk lower high blood pressure and cholesterol, major factors of
heart disease.
• Milk attacks bacterial infections, especially those that cause diarrhea. It soothes
stomach linings irritated from drugs or harsh foods.
• Milk helps prevent dental cavities and chronic bronchitis.
• Researchers now say that while milk is stopping some cancers from developing, it’s
also giving us a boost in mental alertness and energy.
With all this, it’s no wonder that this “perfect food” was so important in the lives of biblical
people who had to depend on natural foods as healing medicines.
Milk can act like an antibody in fending off infections that attack our gastrointestinal
system – something that was a matter of life or death in biblical times when penicillin and
other drugs weren’t available.
These anti-infection chemicals help stamp out childhood diarrhea – which was very
dangerous in ancient times and is still often fatal among infants in underdeveloped parts
of the world.
Yet, for all its miraculous benefits, milk is not for everyone. People who suffer lactose
intolerance know they have to avoid it. Lactose is a sugar found in milk and may produce
intestinal and bowel disorders in people who are lactose intolerant.
