# Arthritis caused or exacerbated by goat milk?



## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

Has anyone had a problem with this?? I first noticed it in one of my dogs. I was feeding the extra goat milk to the dogs in their food everyday and after a couple of weeks the older dog could barely walk from pain in his rear hip. Then I noticed that I was developing some pain in my thumb joints when I drank too much milk. I quit giving it to the dogs entirely and now the boy doesn't even limp! Now my husband is complaining about his shoulders hurting. I just don't know what to think! 

Sherry in GA


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## susanne (Nov 4, 2004)

i experience the opposite. since i drink raw goats milk, i have no swollen hands anymore and my shoulder pain is gone.


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## southerngurl (May 11, 2003)

Is it pastuerized or raw?


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

Any kind of acid will make joints hurt, lactic acid included. 

I avoid milk, yoghurt, sourcream, apples, kiwis, tomatoes, coke, and orange juice.


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## Jillis (Sep 11, 2005)

No problems here! We all drink the raw milk and thrive on it!


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## steff bugielski (Nov 10, 2003)

many of my customers buy it for that reason. They claim it helps alot.


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

We have been drinking raw goat milk since February. My husband never had any pain from drinking store bought milk. I just try to make sure I don't overdo it. I do drink a milk/yogurt smoothie every morning and usually have some in my cereal in the evening then whatever amount I use in my coffee. If I go much past that then the joints flair up it seems.

Sherry in GA


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## susanne (Nov 4, 2004)

i really doubt this is from the milk you drink.


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## Caprice Acres (Mar 6, 2005)

I really don't think it would be from the milk drinking, either. We started feeding the dogs the extra milk this year. Our old dog who is 14 has hip dysplasia, skin problems, and general arthritis. The milk helped soften his food and kept his weight up. We started the milk in March and we noticed a drastic improvement in his health. He was able to get around better and he had fewer days that he struggled to stand. I dried up my does and now he is struggling again.


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

I KNOW it's from what I eat/drink. It took some time to figure out, but the aching joints that come at night and the reflections on what I ate during the day are proof to me.

My doctor agrees that jointpain is from what you eat, but he thinks it's protien, not acid.

He does say, however, that one cannot continue eating 'just til it hurts', because eventually the linings around the joints will be damaged irreparably.


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## prairiedog (Jan 18, 2007)

When I started drinking goat milk last year I noticed a great improvemnt in my arthrits and acid reflux


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## Mrs. Jo (Jun 5, 2007)

westonaprice foundation has some information on what they call "factor X" which is a an enzyme that helps with arthritis found only in raw milk. You might find that interesting.


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## Allan Mistler (Jun 1, 2004)

I don't know what to make of the effect you're experiencing from goat milk... I'm a very big milk drinker, perhaps 48 oz/day. I have however experienced and self diagnosed the onset of severe knee and back pain (I weigh in at about 245 lbs at 6' 3") lasting several days if I return to my old habit of drinking copious amounts of coffee.
I drank typically 20 cups of black coffee daily until last fall when I began experiencing heartburn. I dropped the coffee totally to avoid heartburn and within a week all the back pains and aching knee symptoms disappeared! I had become so used to the pain since I had knee surgery after Desert Storm (I used to be an avid runner) and suffer from cracked vertibrae etc. 
Anyway, I tested my theory several times over the past year and attest to its conclusion. I can tolerate a cup a day now without the pain returning and I'm convinced that the acid from it is what causes the arthritic pain.


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

I am also not a milk drinker. It makes my asthma worse with mucous, and gives me aches and pains. I have been playing with differing ideas for keeping my kefir going, coconut milk right now, but the 1/4 cup of GM each day for my kefir smoothy will come back if the coconut milk doesn't work. I have never had a likeing for milk, although I will eat my cheese now and then, so really tried to pay attention to my childrens likes and dislikes in their food choices as kids (not scewed with sugars). In your case milk simply isn't for you. If this is just happening only with milk from your farm I would maybe looking into my goats nutrition and their milk period. If you can purchse milk from someone else and reproduce the problems in yourself and your dogs, than perhaps it's something with a common thread being your water.

Do you have any problems making cheese with your milk, less cheese than others get, really firm curds? Vicki


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

Vickie, I have made cheese with it a few times but don't have the consistency down yet. It comes out on the rubbery side. The cream cheese is good but still a bit rubbery. I know we don't have a problem with our water as we have been drinking it for 20 yrs with no problems. I did wonder if changing the girls diet might help. Right now they get alfalfa pellets and sweet feed mixed with beet pulp and boss. I am thinking about starting to give it to the dog again to see if he has another flare up. As far as getting any other raw milk around here, seems I am the only one around with any dairy goats. Mostly boer and brush goats in this area. 

Sherry in GA


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## Jillis (Sep 11, 2005)

Sherry, add it back in and see what happens. Your body will be your best teacher. Pay attention to what your body tells you.


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## southerngurl (May 11, 2003)

Sherrynboo said:


> We have been drinking raw goat milk since February. My husband never had any pain from drinking store bought milk. I just try to make sure I don't overdo it. I do drink a milk/yogurt smoothie every morning and usually have some in my cereal in the evening then whatever amount I use in my coffee. If I go much past that then the joints flair up it seems.
> 
> Sherry in GA



I wouldn't discount milk causing it, some people come from genetic backrounds that just can't handle milk well, and it can be acidic to the body. But if the raw goats milk IS causing a problem, the store bought milk almost certainly would have too.

It could also be that the milk is actually cleansing to his body and causing things to flare up, but not really in a bad way.


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## dezeeuwgoats (Jan 12, 2006)

My thought was to check out the goat's diet. For example, if you are sensitive to corn, but feed the goats any corn - would your sensitivity show up drinking the milk of goat's fed corn? I don't know, just pondering. 

I've also heard that once you take the toxin load down in your eating, that your system starts to flush - which could cause reactions which actually aren't related to what you are eating, but your body getting rid of built up stuff.

The acid/protein theories make sense as well. I think you will have to experiment! We kind of use the process of elimination around here ourselves. I've never heard of too much milk causing joint pain before, but there's always a first. 

Niki


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

It might be the cheese...or whatever it is that you put into the cheese to make it. Milk hurts me, but sourcream almost kills me.


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## Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians (May 6, 2002)

I was thinking that since your cheese is rubbery, perhaps the acid in your does milk is really high. How about moving away from the molassas in your grain? And the beet pulp and anything else refined sugary in their diet? Vicki


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## Freeholder (Jun 19, 2004)

I've wondered if what the goats eat could come through in the milk -- ditto for human mothers. I know some things do come through in the milk; what I'd specifically wondered about was anything that could cause problems in people who have gluten intolerance. I asked a Dr. on a celiac newsletter, and she didn't think it would be an issue....I'm still not so sure, as one of my DGD's had what looked to me like symptoms of gluten sensitivity when she was still solely on breastmilk. 

Anyway, we do know that there are things that DO pass through the milk, so what the goats are eating could possibly be the problem. I can't imagine that someone sensitive to milk would ONLY be sensitive to goat milk, and not also have a reaction to cow milk.

Kathleen


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## susanne (Nov 4, 2004)

what is art on the whole story that every living beeing in that houshold, including dog, react to the milk.  does not make so much sense to me :shrug:


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

I remember screaming babies, from when I'd breastfed after eating certain things.


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

It doesn't make sense to me either Susanne! I just know what I have witnessed around here. Hubby swears his pains are gone since he stopped drinking the milk except for in his coffee. I am going to try the dog on it again and see what happens. I am also going to try switching to oats instead of the sweet feed to reduce some of the sugar in the diet.

Sherry in GA


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Yes, I'm thinking it's something in the goats' diet, too.

Fascinating thread. Keep us up to date on your experiments, please.


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## susieM (Apr 23, 2006)

Culprits:

milk and milk products
acid fruits
tomatoes
coke and sevenup
citrus fruits
chocolate
red meat
whiskey
spice


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## Sherrynboo (Mar 19, 2005)

I have been doing some research on milk and arthritis and in some people it does have an association as Susie is saying. I thought I had read that somewhere before. On the raw milk board a girl was saying to up the magnesium intake in us to combat the excessive calcium that may be settling in the joints. I do take some magnesium which is included in my daily vitamins and in the Ester-C but my husband doesn't take these so that could have some bearing on why it doesn't affect me as much as it does him. I am also going to be getting some plain oats to go in the girls feed and gradually reduce the sweet feed to see if that helps anything. I appreciate all the brainstorming here!

Sherry in GA


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