Organic milk has all the nutritional goodness of non-organic milk but, due to the cows’ more natural diet, it also has some additional potential health benefits.

Learn more about giving babies an organic start in life with our Toddler Feeding Guide

Science - understanding food and health

Scientific understanding about nutrition and health is always advancing. Results of scientific studies on the potential health effects of different substances in our food are being published in scientific journals all the time. These studies are checked by other scientists before they are published - this is called ‘peer reviewed’.

At OMSCo we take an active interest in the results of scientific research and want to keep you informed about the latest information published in peer reviewed journals. We know that there is uncertainty in science and that scientists don’t always agree on the health effects of the different components and contaminants of food - it can take time for consensus to be achieved.

A balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and little processed food is the most important route to health. We believe organic food is better for your health because:

• There is increasing evidence that it has more beneficial nutrients
• It contains far fewer additives
• It is produced without the use of almost all chemical pesticides.

Here are some examples of research outlining some of the health benefits of organic milk:

Organic milk and eczema

A recent study published in the British Journal of Nutrition and carried out in the Netherlands showed that the incidence of eczema in young children was reduced by 36% where the children consumed organic dairy products. The scientists studied 2834 women from the final weeks of pregnancy through to when the children were two years old. One-third of children in Western societies have one or more allergic-type reactions like eczema. Some parents have observed that changing the child’s diet can help reduce the problem. We at OMSCo think that this study provides some scientific evidence to back this up.

Organic milk and Omega-3 essential fatty acids

Organic milk is naturally higher in certain nutrients than non-organic milk and one such nutrient is the “Omega 3” essential fatty acid Alpha Linolenic Acid (ALA).

The results of independent research funded by OMSCo and carried out by Dr Kathryn Ellis at the Universities of Liverpool and Glasgow from 2002 to 2005 looked into the compositional differences between organic and non-organic milk. The results, published in the Journal of Dairy Science in 2006 , showed that organic milk is on average 68% higher in total Omega-3 than non-organic milk. Following this research, 11 independent scientists wrote to the Food Standards Agency in the UK, and the Agency now acknowledges that organic milk contains more Omega 3 essential fatty acid than non-organic milk.

Organic milk is thought to contain more Omega 3 because of the high levels of natural red clover fed to the cows on an organic dairy farm. In 2003 Dr Richard Dewhurst, Joint Leader of the Nutrition and Microbiology Team at the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, published a peer reviewed study which showed that cows fed red clover produced milk with higher levels of Omega 3 fatty acids.

ALA is a poly-unsaturated fatty acid, different from the poly-unsaturated Omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish such as mackerel and salmon. These have well accepted benefits for heart health, functioning of the immune system and are important components of our brain and nervous system. The Food Standards Agency recommends that we eat two portions of fish (one oily like salmon or mackerel) each week, although nutritionists acknowledge that we do not achieve this recommended level of consumption.

Scientists do not agree on the direct benefits of ALA to human health. The Food Standards Agency considers that there is insufficient evidence to conclude that ALA is important for cardio-vascular health. However, some studies do show that ALA can help protect against heart disease , and contribute to healthy bones , but until there is more evidence we can’t be sure that ALA has direct benefits for human health.

A workshop convened by the Food Standards Agency to discuss the health implications of the greater amount of ALA found in organic milk concluded that ALA can be converted in the human body to the types of Omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish – important for a healthy heart, immune system and brain. Rates of conversion are much higher in women than in men. The scientists at the workshop concluded that increasing the consumption of ALA could be particularly important in women during pregnancy when the foetus has a high demand for these fatty acids for brain development. They also stated that higher intake of ALA could be important for children who also have a huge demand for these types of fatty acids for brain development.

Vitamin E, Vitamin A and Antioxidants

Research has shown that organic milk has higher levels of vitamin E, vitamin A and antioxidants. The research was carried out by Jacob Holm, a senior biochemist at the Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences, in conjunction with the European Union funded Quality Low Input Food (QLIF) project at Newcastle University.

Organically reared cows, which eat high levels of fresh grass, clover pasture and grass-clover silage, produced milk which was on average 50% higher in Vitamin E (alpha tocopherol), 75% higher in beta carotene (which our bodies convert to Vitamin A) and two to three times higher in the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthine than non-organic milk.

Drinking a pint of organic milk a day provides 17.5% of the required intake of vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) for women and 14% of that for men, and as much beta carotene as a portion of some vegetables such as Brussels sprouts.

Pesticides

Organic dairy farms do not use artificial pesticides (insecticides, fungicides or herbicides) on pastures where cows graze. By contrast, there are about 500 different pesticides licensed for use on non-organic dairy farms and 1,550 which can be used on non-organic mixed farms (farms which have both dairy cattle and grain crops). All pesticides must be tested and approved by the government who set 'safety limits'.

Almost no research has been carried out on how these chemicals react when combined. This is known as the 'cocktail effect' - it has been estimated that in the Western world, our bodies contain traces of at least 300-500 potentially harmful chemicals absorbed from our food.

Dr Vyvyan Howard is a pathologist based in the Department of Human Anatomy and Cell Biology at the University of Liverpool, and he specialises in toxicology and the cocktail effect of agri-chemicals on the human body. He is a strong supporter of organics, in particular, organic milk.

He believes that we should be concerned about the increase in dangerous chemicals in our body since the Second World War when farming became more intensive.

“We have traces of 300-500 potentially harmful chemicals in our bodies which have only been around for the last 50 years and which we have ingested through our foods.”

“At present official safety limits are based on studies of agri-chemicals acting alone. There are no toxicological tests of chemical combinations, despite the fact that studies have suggested that their combined impact, or cocktail effect, can make their impact much more powerful. Eating organically grown food is an efficient way for people to avoid these chemicals.”

Due to the strict organic food standards in the UK organic dairy farmers are at the forefront of European organic agricultural practices. British organic dairy farmers use no synthetic chemical pesticides, which means that you can be sure that your food has no traces of chemicals that could damage the health of you and your family.

Some experts believe that children may be particularly susceptible to pesticide residues - they have a higher intake of food per unit of body weight than adults, have immature organ systems and may have limited ability to detoxify these substances.

The British Society for Allergy Environmental and Nutritional Medicine believe there is good evidence linking the rise in incidents of allergies with a general over exposure to chemicals including pesticides, because of their immune-deregulating properties.

The rise in human fertility problems has been linked to pesticides. Five out of the 12 most commonly found pesticide residues are suspected to be hormone disrupting chemicals.

Antibiotics

Organic cows are only given antibiotics when they are ill, while non-organic farms often routinely treat cows with antibiotics as a preventative measure, whether they are ill or not. If an organic cow needs to be treated with antibiotics then the ‘withdrawal period’ for the milk is at least double the recommended non-organic milk period.

The topic of possible links between the routine use of antibiotics in non-organic farming and increased antibiotic resistance in humans is being hotly debated. The most well-known of the potentially lethal ‘superbugs’ resistant to antibiotics is Methicillin Resistant Straphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) which is affecting some UK hospitals. The House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology concluded in 1999 “There is a continuing threat to human health from imprudent use of antibiotics in animals.”

GMOs

Organic cows are not fed GM cattle feed, and their feed is also free from solvent extracts and urea. This means that there is no possibility of GM or solvent residues being found in organic milk.

BSE

Organic cows are never given any animal-derivatives in their feed which was thought to be the source of BSE. No case of BSE has ever been found in an organically born and raised dairy cow

Fertility Hormones

On organic dairy farms the use of fertility hormones is rare. The cows can only be treated in this way on an individual, therapeutic basis, and the use of this form of treatment as a management aid is banned.