Raw milk — milk that has never been pasteurized — is purported to have unique health benefits by some influencers. There is no valid scientific evidence for any of these claims, but there are very real and serious health dangers associated with raw milk.
Raw Milk Has No Meaningful Nutritional Advantage
One of the most common claims is that raw milk is more nutritious than pasteurized milk because heat processing (pasteurization) destroys vitamins and enzymes. In fact, pasteurization causes only minimal nutrient loss. Nutrients like calcium, protein, and most vitamins remain largely intact. The small reductions that do occur—such as slight decreases in vitamin C—are nutritionally insignificant. As for enzymes, while raw milk does contain them, they’re not essential for human digestion. Your body produces its own digestive enzymes and does not use the enzymes in raw milk.
Raw Milk Does Not Boost Immunity
This is another false claim. This idea is based on observational studies of farm populations, where children who drink raw milk show lower rates of allergies. But raw milk isn’t the only difference for farm kids, who are also exposed to diverse microbes, outdoor lifestyles, and other factors that can influence immune development. When researchers isolate raw milk as the cause, the supposed immune boost is weak or nonexistent. There’s no good evidence that drinking raw milk improves immune function.
Raw Milk’s Real Danger: Disease
The risks of raw milk are well documented. Raw milk can carry dangerous pathogens such as Salmonella, E. coli, streptococcus, and Listeria. Tuberculosis too, in fact TB prevention was the main reason pasteurization was first used.
The danger is real. One study in Emerging Infectious Diseases (link below) found that people who drink raw milk were 840 times more likely to get sick and 45 times more likely to be hospitalized than those who drink pasteurized milk. While raw milk is consumed by only about 3% of the US population, that small group accounted for 96% of all dairy-related illness outbreaks.
Why Do Some Raw Milk Drinkers Feel Better?
There’s no doubt that some people honestly report feeling better after starting to drink raw milk. Why is this if there are no real health benefits? There are two possible reasons. One is the well-known placebo effect. If a person really believes that drinking raw milk will make them feel better, then they likely will feel better even if their health has not actually improved. This is a well-documented and powerful effect!
It is also the case that people who switch to raw milk often make other health related changes at the same time. They may start exercising more, eating less junk food, and getting more sleep. The healthier feelings they are experiencing actually come from these lifestyle changes, not the raw milk they are drinking.
Bottom Line? Stay Away From Raw Milk!
With no health benefits but real and serious dangers, this is what they call a "no brainer!"
