HEART DISEASE, ARTHRITIS, GALLBLADDER AND KIDNEY STONES
Quiz
Check your answers below.
1. Easy Question:
All Canadians are very healthy.
a) True b) False
2. Easy Question:
Only milk and dairy products contain calcium.
a) True b) False
3. More Difficult:
Which of these foods contain calcium?
a) salmon b) tofu c) chickpeas d) kale e) all of these f) none of these
4. More Difficult:
To absorb calcium from your food, you need
a) Vitamin D b) Vitamin F c) Vitamin K d) a, b and c
5. Difficult:
Many diseases like kidney stones, gallbladder stones and cataracts, are caused by too much calcium in the body.
a) True b) False
6. Difficult:
Too much free calcium contributes to the calcification of the arteries (heart disease).
a) True b) False
Heart Disease, Arthritis, Kidney and Gallbladder Stones
Immigrants to Canada will hear that milk is healthy and so they will start buying more milk products than they used to do before immigrating. Their diets change but, unfortunately, so does their health – many years later they develop common ‘Canadian’ health problems: heart disease, osteoporosis, kidney stones, gallbladder problems, arthritis, etc.
Dangers of too much calcium
Many Canadians get a lot of calcium from their food (cheese, salmon, broccoli, spinach) but that calcium doesn’t go into their bones. In the absence of vitamins D3, vitamin K2 and vitamin F, in combination with low acidity in the stomach and insufficient bile, the calcium you eat will go into other parts of your body and you can develop kidney stones, gallbladder stones, arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, hill spurs and cataracts. It also contributes to calcification of your arteries and results in heart disease. If you want to listen to a doctor talking about this, click HERE to watch a YouTube video.
Because of their weak bones, some Canadians take calcium supplements many of which are low quality and are made from lime stone (e.g. calcium carbonate). This could be dangerous because humans cannot digest stones.
Government wants you to buy dairy
If you live in Canada already, you can see the advertisement and commercials on TV and in the magazines and newspapers about ‘Canadian milk’. You need to know that in Canada, farmers are subsidized by the government (the governments gives them a lot of money – billions of dollars). So, the government wants you to buy Canadian milk, yoghurt and cheese, and will tell you that it is healthy.
Vitamins D3, vitamin K2 and vitamin F
Many Canadians don’t get enough vitamins that are needed to absorb calcium. Vitamin D is produced when the sun rays touch your skin. Unfortunately, there is very little sun in winter in Canada and taking a supplement is often the only way to deal with that. Also, in summer people are told to put sun blocking lotion on their skin which prevents them from making vitamin D naturally. While many Canadians now take vitamin D supplement, majority still cannot absorb calcium because of lack of vitamin K2 and F.
Many foods contain calcium
Many foods contain more calcium than a glass of milk. Among these are kale and other green leafy vegetables, chickpeas, tofu, salmon, sardines, etc. Some Canadians don’t even know that vegetables contain calcium and, unfortunately, often don’t like to eat them. However, if you eat beans, tofu, almonds or canned fish, you already have enough calcium in your diet – you don’t even need milk and yoghurt!
Heart Disease in Canada
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in Canada, with estimated 29% of Canadians dying from it every year. That means every 7 minutes someone dies in this country from heart disease or stroke. Currently, 1 in 12 Canadians are living with a form of heart disease.
According to Statistics Canada, the third leading cause of death in Canada is stroke. Blood clots and hemorrhages produce 14, 000 deadly strokes a year in Canada. The second leading cause of death in Canada is heart disease. Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart attacks cause heart diseases that kill 50, 000 Canadians a year. The leading cause of deaths in Canada is cancer. Breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, and other types of cancer kill 80, 000 Canadians a year. Please click HERE to read about cancer in Canada.
Osteoporosis rates in Canada
An estimated 1.5 million (10%) of Canadians age 40 and older reported having been diagnosed with osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is when your bones are weak and can break easily. Yet, Canadians eat more yoghurt and cheese and drink more milk than people in many other countries! Milk contains calcium, so Canadians should have very strong bones – but they don’t.
Lactose intolerance is Normal
Finally, to digest milk, your body needs an enzime called lactase. Humans have this enzime until they are 2-5 years old. So, children can digest milk but many adults have upset stomach if they try to eat more dairy. If you come from a country where you used to eat none or little dairy products, don’t change your eating habits – don’t start eating the ‘Canadian way’!
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