You may be surprise but it is complete possible for a child to develop healthy bones and teeth without drink cow's milk. Some people drink a soya milk or amasake (a rice beverage). Some babies can have a milk allergy if their mothers are drinking cow's milk.
Paul Zane Pilzer in his book The Wellness Revolution writes:
A typical cow in nature can produce up to 10 pounds of milk per day whereas today's torture modern dairy cows produce up to 100 pounds of milk per day are given massive amounts of specialized hormones like bovine growth hormone to increase milk production - making udders so large they often drag on the ground. This result in a frequent infection and the need of constant antibiotics _ the USDA allows drinking milk contain from 1 to 1.5 million white blood cells (that pus to non-biologists) per milliliter.
The bovine growth hormone BGH, pus, and antibiotics remain in the milk after processing and result in all kinds of health problems for those who consume dairy products, especially children. Gas, constipation, allergies and ear infection are common. It is not always clear if the symptoms are from lactose intolerance, antibiotics in milk or allergens in the milk itself.
Dr. Christiane Northrup author of Women's Bodies, Women's wisdom recommend instead of cow's milk that children receive a calcium/magnesium supplement. Magnesium is a mineral that is as important to bone health as calcium. It also helps calcium assimilation. In fact, there is evidence that children are more apt to be magnesium deficient than calcium deficient.
Personally, I still believe very young children should not take tablets at all but have a very good diet with all those food which could provide all the vitamin and nutrients the body need.
Beans, blackstrap molasses, sardines, and dark green leafy vegetables are also rich in calcium, as are a whole host of other foods. The problem is parents allow children go without vegetables for weeks. If this is the case, the supplements are a good option.
