What is rBGH?
Posted on September 25, 2008 by
Since I’m busy getting ready for my format change, please check out the following article, which I originally posted on August 21, 2007.
rBGH, or recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone is a synthetic form of growth hormone injected into cows to increase growth rates and milk production. Manufactured by Monsanto, rBGH was introduced to the market in 1993 under the product name Posilac. rBGH is also referred to as rBST (recombinant Bovine Somatotropin).
Cattle naturally produce BGH. In the 1930’s, farmers discovered that injecting this hormone from slaughtered animals into dairy cows increased their milk production. But the difficulties in getting BGH limited this practice. Recombinant DNA technology allows for the production of rBGH commercially.
When used in lactating cows, rBGH can increase the milk production by 10-15%, by limiting mammary cell death. So while an untreated cow’s milk production will begin to decrease roughly seventy days after the start of lactation, a cow treated with rBGH can continue producing at peak levels.
The increased milk production in cows can lead to mastitis, an infection that is treated by antibiotics. While it is illegal to sell milk contaminated with antibiotics, many people are concerned that contaminated milk still gets into distribution and can cause antibiotic resistance in the population. rBGH can also inhibit the cow’s ability to reproduce later on, cause bone weakness, and possibly premature death.
While many studies show no increase in health risks associated with the use of rBGH, cows treated with rBGH do have increased levels of bovine insulin growth factor 1 (IGF-1). rBGH is said to be removed from milk during the pasteurization process, but IGF-1 is not. According to the Organic Consumers Association,
Eli Lilly, in its application for registration of rBGH, admitted that IGF-1 blood levels of injected cows are increased up to ten-fold. IGF-1 is resistant to pasteurization and digestion, and is readily absorbed from the small intestine. Monsanto’s own data revealed that feeding IGF-1 to adult rats for only two weeks significantly increased body and liver weights, and bone length.
While IGF-1 is naturally occurring in humans, increased levels of IGF-1 have been found in patients with certain types of cancer, including breast cancer, although other studies have shown that IGF-1 levels in the blood are not linked to milk consumption.
There is no requirement for milk produced through the use of rBGH to be labeled as such. Organic standards do not allow for the use of rBGH or antibiotics in milk production, so milk that is certified organic is also rBGH free.
The FDA maintains that “no significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rBST & non-rBST treated cows,” but the European Union, Canada, New Zealand and Australia all prohibit the use of rBST/rBGH.
The range of reports is wide and conflicting, and both sides may be heavily biased. Organic farmers stand to gain business from consumers who are concerned about the use of rBST, but the FDA has interesting connections to Monsanto. Michael Taylor, former FDA commissioner for policy was an attorney for Monsanto prior to joining the FDA, and went to work for Monsanto directly upon leaving the FDA.
rBGH-free dairy production is better for the health of the cow, and organic farming practices prohibit the use of pesticides in cattle feed, so there are other benefits to organic milk beyond the issue of rBGH’s effects on humans.
No matter where you fall on the rBGH issue, it’s important to make educated food choices and feel confident in the products you and your family consume.
How do you feel about rBGH? I’d love to hear your opinions.
Hi Allie, this is a very well informed article. To give you some background on who I am, I’m just a regular mom who’s trying to be eco-friendly, and I read a lot of ‘green’ blogs to get ideas and tips on how to become more so. I just happened to see the topic of this post through a feed on “Going Green,” and thought I should read it, because I have a family member who owns a dairy farm that uses rBGH in their cows, so I’ve learned a little about it. Basically, everything you said about rBGH is exactly what I was told, as far as it not really getting into milk any more than BGH. I didn’t know about the IGF-1, so that is interesting and I think I will be asking more questions about it. I do know that rBGH and BGH are chemically and biologically identical, and there is really no way to differentiate the two in tests.
On the dairy farm my family member owns, they do not allow cows who are being treated with antibiotics to be in the system with the healthy cows. Usually on dairy farms, they are even separated completely so as to keep them out of the system until the antibiotics are completely out of their milk.
What the real concern I think should be is not whether rBGH is safe for people, but whether it’s humane to the dairy cows. Quite possibly, it’s a banned hormone additive because it causes the cows to become “overused” and stressed out. This is bad for them, and can cause other problems as well.
So for me, I am concerned that our laws are inhumane, seeing as we allow animals to be treated with hormones in order to get continuous performance for a period of time that is far beyond what their bodies can handle. I liken it to a baseball player using steroids when he should really just retire. If you push your body too hard, it isn’t good for you, and I don’t think rBGH is unsafe for the cows, it’s just not GOOD for them.
Hope that gives maybe another perspective?
Thanks for letting me share!
We should all be concerned about any practice which consequently increases the use of antibiotics. “Whenever antibiotics are used, there is selective pressure for resistance to occur.” (according to the AMA director of the department of Drug Policy and Standards: http://www.fda.gov/Fdac/features/795_antibio.html). For me, this is the most substantive scientific argument against the use of rBGH and other factory farming practices. That in addition to the increased likelihood of it causing illness and suffering in the animals treated with rBGH makes the question of whether or not to buy rBGH-free products a no brainer!
I feel almost terrible offering a comment so useless, but…no, it must be said. Look at the cute cow! And yet: I eat them. Difficult to reconcile.
Aaron’s comment made me laugh so hard! It’s a very cute cow.
That whole article is one of the reasons I stopped drinking milk awhile ago…
I think the whole antibiotic thing is very scary. I very rarely touch milk but I do eat a lot of cheese. Antibiotics were such an amazing discovery, have saved so many lives and now we are squandering them and making them useless. It makes me very cross and actually rather scared.
I buy an rBGH-free milk, but, yes, I’m aware that it may contain antibiotics. Even though I live in a major metropolitan area, I’d have to go out of my way to purchase organic milk – and I don’t feel it’s worth it to me.
One of my sons (21 years old) has been a rabid milk drinker most of his life. As a teen, he began having skin problems. He spent several years going to the dermotologist trying out different antibiotics and topical medications with little success – but eventually found a combo that seems to work for him – for the most part….
All the while, I told him: “Hey, bud, why don’t you lay off the milk and see what happens?” He refused again and again. Recently, he admitted to me that he has spent the last year weaning himself off the white stuff (yes, I noticed I wasn’t buying milk every other day) and that it has really improved his skin.
Wow. Mom just might know something after all…..
I think rBGH is delicious. In fact, I wish Monsanto would branch out into the food production business directly. Sometimes I like to sprinkle a little Round-Up onto my salads to add some zing. Tasty!
Seriously, is there a scarier corporation out there?
Hey- I just checked back… and look at the new layout! Snazzy!
Also, I didn’t read Regular Lady’s comment the first time around, but I’m thinking that her son’s skin problems were probably the same ones we all had as teens. And it usually starts clearing up around the college years, whether we quit drinking milk or not. I seriously doubt it was the milk.