MILK - Exodus 3:8

Milk – Exodus 3:8

Milk nourished the spirits as well as the bodies of the biblical peoples.

Milk and honey together symbolized good health, prosperity and blessings from God.

 Milk and milk products were an important part of the daily diet of biblical times. But it was difficult to keep the milk fresh. The solution was to use the same fermentation process with milk that was used to make wine or sourdough bread.

The result was what we today call yogurt, cheese and what is sometimes called curds in the Bible. Butter was seldom used for cooking then. Olive oil was used instead.

But even though the chosen people relied heavily on milk, they were hardly the first. Milk has been considered necessary for survival – for perhaps millions of years.

It has been called “the perfect food” because it provides so many of the nutrients we all need to grow, to fight off disease and to stay healthy.

Here are some of those recently discovered health benefits found in milk and milk products:

• Calcium builds bones in children and helps prevent or slow the development of osteoporosis in older women.
• Ingredients in milk lower high blood pressure and cholesterol, major factors of heart disease.
• Milk attacks bacterial infections, especially those that cause diarrhea. It soothes stomach linings irritated from drugs or harsh foods.
• Milk helps prevent dental cavities and chronic bronchitis.
• Researchers now say that while milk is stopping some cancers from developing, it’s also giving us a boost in mental alertness and energy.

With all this, it’s no wonder that this “perfect food” was so important in the lives of biblical people who had to depend on natural foods as healing medicines.

Milk can act like an antibody in fending off infections that attack our gastrointestinal system – something that was a matter of life or death in biblical times when penicillin and other drugs weren’t available.

These anti-infection chemicals help stamp out childhood diarrhea – which was very dangerous in ancient times and is still often fatal among infants in underdeveloped parts of the world.

Yet, for all its miraculous benefits, milk is not for everyone. People who suffer lactose intolerance know they have to avoid it. Lactose is a sugar found in milk and may produce intestinal and bowel disorders in people who are lactose intolerant.