Women Urged To Avoid Organic Milk During Pregnancy Over Health Risks To The Unborn Baby

A latest research has revealed that organic milk can harm the brain development of the foetuses in the womb of the pregnant mothers. Therefore, health experts have issued a warning for the expecting mothers to not to consume organic milk during pregnancy.

According to the healthcare experts, the “healthy” organic milk contain a third less iodine than the normal milk which is produced conventionally. The same appears to be true for the processed milk, also known as the ultra-high temperature (UHT) long-life milk. Since iodine is a crucial source for brain development of the babies, its deficiency could have serious impact on the normal mental health of the unborn babies.

“People are increasingly buying organic and UHT milk for perceived health benefits or convenience. But our research shows that this trend could have serious implications for public health. Iodine deficiency ought to be a health problem from the past. But unless this situation is carefully monitored, we risk sleepwalking into a new health crisis in the 21st century,” said Professor Ian Givens, the lead researcher from the University of Reading.

The researcher further added on to clear that organic or UHT milk is not at all harmful for the health, however, they just have less amount of iodine as compared to the conventional pasteurised milk. Since milk is considered as one of the primary source of iodine, consumption of pasteurised milk is suggested to meet the daily nutritional requirements. Or else, drinking one and a half pint of organic or UHT milk is suggested to compensate for the deficient amount of iodine, as compared to a single pint of conventional milk.

Appreciating the recent research findings, Catherine Collins from the British Association stressed on the nutritional importance of iodine, saying, “Iodine is important as it's an absolutely essential component of thyroxine, the ‘master’ hormone that controls all metabolic processes, and in particular our metabolic rate. Thyroxine cannot be made without sufficient iodine. Low levels of thyroxine are associated with a lower metabolic rate and weight gain.”

The study findings have been published in the journal Food Chemistry.

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