It may not just be bad luck if it seems that you’re getting more than your fair share of stomach bug issues or food poisoning. Rather, it has everything to do with the balance of gut flora in your intestines but also, what you are eating.
Folks who rarely eat processed foods and take great pains to make their own meals from scratch with quality ingredients can still be plagued with more than their fair share of stomach bug woes. I used to ponder this very question as to why I kept catching so many tummy bugs despite eating everything organic. While important, it appears that food quality is not necessarily the best way to prevent gastrointestinal illness.
Could it be the composition of the foods that we eat is a major contributory factor in the frequency of intestinal illness? For example, is it possible that a very simple change such as increasing the amount of butterfat in the diet could actually be of benefit in avoiding gastroenteritis?
Milk Fat Protects Your Gut From Stomach Bug Issues
Glycosphingolipids are a special type of lipid found in bovine milk fat (sources: butter, cream, whole milk, whole yogurt, kefir, ghee whole cheeses) that offer protection against gastroenteritis.
Children who drink lowfat or skim milk suffer from acute gastrointestinal illness at a rate *five times higher* than children who drink whole milk.
This is an incredibly significant difference!
I experienced this same effect. Once I switched to whole milk products and butter and away from butter substitutes and lowfat dairy, my tendency to succumb to stomach flu vanished. In fact, in my household, no one has had a tummy bug or gastrointestinal illness of any kind in over 3 years! This is pretty amazing to me considering that my kids all attend school and are exposed to these types of illnesses on a frequent basis. This is not to say that consuming plenty of milkfat in the diet will guarantee complete avoidance of gastroenteritis, only that it will significantly increase your resistance to it.
According to in vitro studies of milk fat, glycosphingolipids not only appear protective against pathogenic bacteria such as salmonella, listeria and others, but also against viruses and fungi as well. Butterfat can then be classified as a broad spectrum anti-microbial agent, although how this exactly works in the intestines is not yet completely understood.
Concerned that all that butterfat might be bad for your health? Take heart .. it’s all a myth! Unfortunately, it’s taking decades for the public to finally awaken to the fact that those who eat butter and drink whole milk have half the heart attack risk as those who drink lowfat milk and eat margarine (New Scientist 1991; 129(1759):17)! The study followed 5,000 men between the ages of 45 and 59 for 10 years! Of those who drank at least a pint of whole milk a day and ate butter, there existed only a 1% risk for heart attack!
It’s not just any milk that does a body good, it’s whole milk!
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Sources and More Information
Bactericidal Activities of Milk Lipids
Milk Fat and Gastrointestinal Illness
Sarah Pope has been a Health and Nutrition Educator since 2002. Her work is dedicated to helping families effectively incorporate the principles of ancestral diets within the modern household. She is a sought after lecturer around the world for conferences, summits, and podcasts.
Her work has been covered by major media including USA Today, ABC, NBC, and many others.
Full Throttle or “Om”?
My issue is that my gallbladder has a problem processing the fat. I generally drink skim milk or fat-free Lactaid. Is there something else I could eat or take
?
I came across this article, searching for a cure to my mild food poisoning I get too frequently. I could get food poisoning once every two weeks!!! It is insane! Although it is a simple as having abdominal pain and going to the toilet.
The food poisoning relates to my intolerant to milk as well as raw fish (sashmi) which I have cut out of my diet. I still seem to easily be intolerant to normal foods I eat..so I’m guessing I have a very temperament, weak stomach/digestive system.
Your article is an interesting read, unfortunately milk cannot be a cure for me as I am lactose intolerant. I am thinking of probiotic supplements to anyone out there having issues like me.
So this is the same question I have. What if you are lactose intolerant? Probiotics like yakult drink is the alternative?
The vast majority of those who think they are lactose intolerant can drink raw milk as the enzyme to digest the lactose is still present … it gets destroyed by pasteurization.
People who get food poisoning frequently and have milk intolerance should get a hold of some kefir. It is similar to yogurt but with much more probiotic bacteria. From what I been reading about it is ok for people with milk intolerance to drink it, something about the kefir bacteria removing stuff from milk in the fermentation process that causes milk intolerance in people. I have been drinking kefir for over 5 years but I’m not milk intolerant so I dont know if all these claims are true. I would suggest people do their own research as it could help them a lot if their gut bacteria is causing issues for them.
I had to avoid all dairy for a few years, (my daughter was sensitive and I am breastfeeding). We consumed lots of fermented foods and did not get sick. There was one time when all of our friends were were sick for 24 hours from food poisoning and we didn’t get it. Kimchi, sauerkraut, real pickles, water kefir, etc. Also, many people who are sensitive to cow’s milk may only be sensitive to A1 casein, (not A2). Goat milk is A2, and some cows produce A2 milk, you just have to find them.
We eat LOTS of full fat dairy and I always cook with my homemade stock (complete with chicken feet simmered 12 hours), and we were DOWN with it. In fact, I had a bad cough for 45 days!