Cheese is a favorite food for many people, it seems like cheese goes with just about anything. You can top your burgers with cheese or go for a cheese cake. Since cheese is found in so many different dishes and is a popular dairy product, it is probably a food that you crave from time to time. Did you know that most Americans actually eat more than 30 pounds of cheese each year? This is more than 3 times what cheese consumption was just 40 years ago. Even though many people find cheese to be appetizing, there are those that do not think eating cheese is good for your health. Cheese might be a popular food, but it might be having and adverse effect on your health.
Before you decide to cut cheese out of your diet altogether, it might be a good idea to take a closer look at the pros and cons of eating cheese. This will help you gain more information and decide for yourself is cheese is a food that you should be eating regularly.
Different Types of Cheese
There are a variety of different types of cheese that you can choose from. From American cheese to cobalt cheese and including cottage cheese, the cheese options that are available seem to be endless. Some types of cheese are seem to be healthier options than others, but there are people claiming that all cheese can be bade for your health. Here are some of the pros associated with eating cheese:
Pros of Eating Cheese
1. Nutritional Benefits
Many people assume that cheese is bad for your health, but there are a number of health-related benefits that can be gained by eating cheese. In fact, most cheese contains more essential nutrients than other food options. The essential nutrients that are most prevalent in cheese are proteins and calcium. Other nutrients that are found in cheese include zinc, vitamin A, and vitamin B12. This makes cheese a very nutritious options for people looking to consume foods with high amounts of calcium and proteins.
2. Prevent Cavities
Another great benefit of eating cheese can be noticed in your dental health. Since cheese contains such a high amount of calcium, it can help make your teeth stronger. Lactose is the ingredient in many dairy products that can be harmful to your teeth, but cheese contains very small amounts of lactose. This means that just snacking on cheese from time to time will actually help you to prevent tooth decay and will help you obtain stronger teeth. If dental health is something that you are concerned with, eating cheese is a huge benefit for your teeth. This is one pro associated with eating cheese regularly that doesn’t get enough attention.
3. Prevent Disease
Cancer is extremely common and is one disease that you never want to be diagnosed with. There are many foods that have been proven to be linked to cancer prevention and cheese is one of them. Cheese contains conjugated linoleic acid and sphingolipids that have been found to help prevent cancer. This means that simply eating cheese can be a part of your daily diet that keeps you healthy and less likely to be diagnosed with cancer. Since cheese is filled with Vitamin, it is also great in helping your body maintain proper body functions. If protecting your body from disease is something that you are concerned with, eating cheese is a good idea.
4. Add on Weight
There are some people that struggle with maintaining their ideal weight. Cheese contains many natural fats that can be linked to weight gain. This means that if you are looking for foods that will help you keep on weight, cheese is a great option for you. The best part about cheese is that the fats are natural and good for your health. If you are trying to add muscle or increase bone density, cheese is a great source of natural fats for you. Balancing your metabolism overall is a huge benefit that eating cheese can offer.
5. Strong Bones
Haven’t you ever heard that cheese does a body good? Since cheese is so jam packed with calcium it is perfect for helping you to obtain stronger bones. Cheese is a great source of calcium for both really young children trying to get stronger bones and elderly individuals that are trying to prevent against brittle bones. Strengthening bones is something that cheese can offer in high doses. If you want the body to get high amounts of calcium that can be easily absorbed, you should be eating cheese often.
6. Osteoporosis Treatment
Osteoporosis is a disease that is connected to a calcium deficiency. If you want to help increase the density of your bones when dealing with osteoporosis, eating treatment can be a great option for you. Osteoporosis is treated in a number of different ways, but eating high amounts of cheese can be a great addition to any treatment plan. The best part is that since cheese tastes great, it won’t be a hassle to add it to your diet.
7. High Blood Pressure Treatment
It seems like cheese is always getting a bad reputation for being bad for your health, but this isn’t really the case. Sodium and cholesterol are the ingredients that are linked with high blood pressure, but there are many types of cheeses that are low in both fat and sodium. These are great options for people that are dealing with high blood pressure.
Not everything surrounding cheese is seen to be a positive. There are many people that believe strongly that eating cheese is not good for your health. It is time to take a closer look at the cons associated with eating cheese regularly.
Cons of Eating Cheese
1. Health Risks
There might be some small ways that cheese can be beneficial to your health, but it can actually put your health at risk. Even though cheese has been said to help with some cancer prevention, it has also been linked to the onset of breast cancer. Studies show that cheese consumption can increase the risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer in both women and men. Since many cheeses have a high fat content, they are also shown to put heart health at risk. Eating cheese has been linked to heart attacks and this means cheese can be harmful for your health. The small health benefits that eating cheese offers, might not be worth the health risks that you are opening yourself up to.
2. Not So Natural
One of the biggest cons associated with eating cheese is the misconception that cheese is natural. Cheese might not be as natural as you think. Dairy products like cheese contain ingredients that are not natural including Bovine Growth Hormone that cows are treated with. Consuming high amounts of BGH can be harmful to your health and have a lasting effect.
3. Harmful to Children
You probably have heard that cheese and dairy products are good for kids, because they help to build strong bones. However, this might not actually be the case. Children do not actually need cheese to thrive and be healthy. Cheese consumption has actually been linked to a number of health problems in children. This means that giving your child cheese to help build healthy bones might actually be impacting their health negatively. Cow’s milk has actually been linked as factor attributed to the onset of diabetes. Children that eat high amounts of cheese have been seen to develop chronic ear problems and even deal with many respiratory ailments. Giving your child cheese might not be such a good idea.
4. Ethical Issues
Beyond just the health aspect of eating cheese, there is also the ethical issue. Many people that choose not to eat cheese do so for ethical reasons. This is due to the cruel practices that are used by the dairy industry. A cow’s natural lifespan can normally be decades, but many cow’s on dairy farms are killed within 5 years. There are also issues with what cows are fed and how they are stored. Taking a closer look at the common practices on dairy farms can be really eye opening. People that do not eat or buy cheese do not support these practices. This means that many people choose not to eat cheese for mainly ethical reasons.
5. Alternatives to Dairy
Another reason that eating cheese isn’t necessary can be linked to the many alternatives that exist. There are many non-dairy alternatives and vegan substitutes that are much better for your health. This means that you no longer have to simply eat traditional cheese because it is the only option. There are many other alternatives that you can consume that taste great and are better for your health. These alternatives are more readily available than ever before, which makes it easy for people to make the switch from eating cheese.
Final Verdict
As you can see, both the pros and cons of eating cheese are important. Even though cheese is seen to be healthy for you in a number of ways, it can also put your health at risk in others. It is important to carefully consider the types of cheese that you consume and look to monitor the amount of cheese that you and your child eat. If you are looking to increase your calcium intake, cheese can be a great option. However, you do need to be aware of weight gain that does coincide with eating cheese regularly. If you each cheese sparingly, it should not impact your health in a negative way.