Got Milk? Concerns about the use of growth hormone Recombinant Bovine Growth Factor (rBGH) are re-surfacing after many years of debate. Cows are injected with rBGH to increase milk production, but often develop mastitis. To treat this condition, the cows are then given antibiotics. Consumers can ingest these antibiotic residues from dairy products such as milk, ice cream, yogurt and butter. Monsanto Corporation, manufacturer of the growth hormone, claims that rBGH is digested and therefore poses no danger. But there is significant concern that rBGH triggers increased production of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1). Elevated levels of IGF-1 in the body were studied in connection with colon, breast, ovarian and prostate cancers. Some studies showed that small tumors could be stimulated by IGF-1. Others revealed that IGF-1 prevented programmed cell death of cancer cells. Although the General Accounting Office, the research arm of Congress, had advised the Food and Drug administration (FDA) not to approve the use of rBGH until the effects on humans were studied more extensively, the synthetic hormone was approved in 1993. Before its approval, the United States was already over producing milk--and dairy farmers were receiving the same price for milk as 16 years earlier. Monsanto claimed that rBGH would improve the economics for dairy farmers. BABCN addressed this issue in the Fall 1995 and Winter 1996 Newsletters. These articles questioned the safety of bovine growth factor and we worked with Food and Water of Vermont in urging dairies, Land O’Lakes in particular, to stop using rBGH. At the time of our original articles, Monsanto, also the producer of Agent Orange and PCB’s, had invested $500 million in r-BGH, brand name Posilac. At the same time, the 14 nation European Union had refused to allow the use of r-BGH because of health risks, and Canada had called for a 2 year moratorium on the hormone. The United States was the only country to approve its use. Got rBGH-free milk? Consumers need to take action by refusing to buy rBGH treated milk. Look for labels that say the product is hormone free (you will notice these labels also say the absence of rBGH is "not necessarily based on any health issue"). Ask the managers of your grocery stores if their milk companies are rBGH free and let them know that you will not buy products with rBGH.
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