Since getting his first herd in Alta Dena, CA in 1944, Bernard Jensen has had a love affair with goats. In 1994 he wrote the book "Goat Milk Magic", which light on content and references nonetheless is an enthusiastic account of what the author considers one of the most healing foods on the planet. The book is a little over a 100 pages with many photos of Jensen and his beloved goats whose milk he credits for having saved his life and made it possible for him to have reached age 87 (in 1994) in fairly good health. Jensen recommends eating 60% raw with raw goat dairy no more than 5-12% of the diet. According to Jensen man started domesticating goats 7000 years ago in Southwest Asia and with now over 375 million goats spread all over the world (India has 65, China 55. Nigeria & Turkey 20 and Iran 18 million - in these countries the goats are not only used for milk but used as work animals and for their meat, hides and hair as well. ) he estimates that about 65% of all milk today comes from goats. He claims that in many of the regions around the world where people are known for their longevity, there are often long traditions of consuming raw and/or cultured goat milk. One of his employees at his ranch in Escondido CA he says lived on a diet raw goat milk for 30 years supplemented with only small amounts of other foods - mainly figs and nuts. Jensens books, video and audio tapes can be ordered by contacting: Dr. Bernard Jensen 24360 Old Wagon Road, Escondido, CA 92027. Phone (619)749-2727 Fax: (619)749-1248 Below follows the chapter from the book "Why I Drink Raw Goat Milk." "I believe the human body was designed to be nourished and kept by foods (with some exceptions) as nature made them. Pasteurization of milk not only kills germ life but destroys enzymes and changes the chemical balance of the milk, so it is not the same as nature made it. I believe a calf raised on pasteurized milk would become sick over a period of time, if it survived at all. In fact, my opinion that raw milk is superior to pasteurized milk is based on scientific evidence. In the 1930s, I had the privilege of visiting Randleigh Farm in Lockport, New York, the most scientific and advanced farm of its kind in the country at the time. The owner, William R. Kenan, Jr., conducted a series of experiments in 1941 that compared the health-building qualities of raw milk to those of pasteurized milk and boiled milk. (Pasteurized milk is not boiled, but heated to 140-150 degrees F. and kept there for 30 minutes, then quickly cooled.) Groups of laboratory rats were put on a diet of the different kinds of milk supplemented with minerals for four-and-a half months, while control groups were fed regular commercial rat food. The examination of the rats was done by a medical doctor, Dr. Francis M. Pottenger. Jr. Keeping in mind that milk is not a natural diet for rats, the raw milk-fed rats were in much better condition than either the pasteurized milk-fed rats or the boiled milk-fed rats. The 27 rats in the raw-milk fed group were generally healthy, with lung lesions in two rats, a kidney lesion in one and mottled livers in three. Of the 27 rats in the pasteurized milk group, two showed evidence of heart injury, five had kidney lesions, 3 had gross liver conditions, five had severe lung pathology and three others pulmonary disturbances. There were six lesions in the 14 boiled milk-fed rats, four lung lesions , and two liver disturbances. Dr. Pottenger also found that the livers were smaller, the bones stronger and the muscle tone was better in the raw milk-fed rats as compared to the others. This experiment was done with raw cow milk, but I believe the same superiority of raw goat milk over pasteurized goat milk would have been shown if it had been done with goat milk. Raw goat milk builds the brain and nervous system. When we provide the cholesterol, phosphorus, amino acids, silicon, sulfur and vitamins needed by the brain and nerves, we are not only feeding the brain but helping the whole body, and when the brain is taken care of, it takes better care of every organ, gland and tissue in the body. {The most important fats in goat milk are olein and myristin, as those fats favor nerves and brain cells, mainly. This fat is a highly-evolved animal fat, a fat that is unknown to the entire vegetable creation. It is believed that it contains "mind stuff", as one great chemist called it.} I believe in raw milk for many reasons. I know it has kept me healthier and stronger than I would have been if I hadnt used it. Ive seen it help bring thousands of men, women and children back to good health. I feel there is solid evidence that it increases longevity, and that many, many lives have been healthier and happier because of it." In comparing goat to cow milk he writes: "Goat milk digests in 20 minutes, in comparison with cow milk, which takes 2-3 hours to digest. Goat milk is nutritionally balanced to nourish a kid weighing 6-to -10 pounds, about the same as the weight of a human baby. Cow milk is for a calf weighing 65 pounds at birth. The fact globules in cow milk are 5 times larger, which is why cow milk is much harder to digest than goat milk. It is also the reason why so babies get colic after drinking cow milk. A goat is an exceptionally healthy animal, immune from tuberculoses, consequently gives healthful milk of uniform consistency. The goat is a very particular animal. It likes to eat only the top or honey leaves. " Best, Peter [log in to unmask]