Got the Facts on Milk? Film review
A new film made it’s debut recently, and it aims to shake things up like a dairy-free milkshake.
Filmmaker Shira Lane has produced a film called Got the Facts on Milk?, otherwise known as “The Milk Documentary,” that made its debut on August 24 in L.A.. The film won numerous awards at international film festivals and sparked rioting in Korea. Shira Lane’s proudest moment was following the screening in Korea when a doctor stood up and thanked her in front of a huge audience for revealing the truth about milk.
Shira is highly allergic to dairy, something her mother discovered when she was three-years-old, while searching for help for her daughter’s severe asthma. Her mother could not have imagined that something as “wholesome” as milk was the culprit, yet Shira’s health changed dramatically for the better. After living in Israel, where dairy is separate from other foods and it’s easy to live a dairy- free lifestyle, Shira moved to America and found herself getting sick all over again.
She discovered that in America, milk is in almost everything, and for someone as highly allergic as Shira, even the smallest amount was enough to trigger an inflammatory response. She was incredulous at how much dairy the U.S. consumes, and appalled by the lack of information on the potential hazards of all that milk and cheese.
As Shira puts it, “Americans are getting their health education through ads paid for by the Dairy Industry-where movie stars and celebrities pose with a white moustache.” She believes that milk’s so deeply a part of the American culture that most people find it impossible to believe it could be a problem. They don’t realize that frequent colds, sinus, acne, skin flare-ups and other inflammatory conditions can all be related to dairy.
As a result, Shira Lane set out to do something: to educate Americans on the possible side effects, and to give voice to some of the studies that had influenced her.
The film is hysterically funny in parts, and unsettling in others. Shira and her companions travel cross-country and interview the man and woman on the street, and we hear those TV ads recited back to us.
The film exposes the downside of dairy with guest appearances by Professor T. Colin Campbell of Cornell University and author of the China study, and Dr. Neal Bernard, head of the organization Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine to help reinforce the message.
“I’m not promoting a particular lifestyle, I’m not a nutritionist. My goal is merely to inform the public about something that I feel they’ve been misinformed on for many years. This movie is a platform for the reports and scientific studies that don’t have the funds”
Got the Facts on Milk? does just that. Shira chose to distribute the film directly to DVD worldwide, so that everyone would have immediate access. It launched August 30th with a streaming version available to download as well on the film’s website.
My advice? Get the movie, and get the facts. This film might change everything for you or someone you love.
(note: my son and I are dairy intolerant, a discovery that eliminated a lifetime of chronic sinus issues for myself and asthmatic symptoms in my child)
Stephanie / 9.7.2011
Thanks for this post! Can’t wait to see the movie – as a child, I had massive stomach aches to which my poor mother kept saying, “Have a glass of milk, you’ll feel better.” Finally, the 5th doctor I was taken to suggested I stop drinking milk/eating dairy. Viola! Within 2 days, I was pain free.