Source: Raw Family

Gluten and dairy are some of the common foods that have been termed as harmful. In most cases, eating a “clean diet” is often equated with the idea of cutting down gluten and dairy or just altogether eliminating them from your diet. There is also the idea of cutting on processed foods as well as refined sugars. However, a lot of young people who are jumping onto these trends may not know what they are getting into. A 2017 survey done by the Food Standards Agency confirmed that at least 46% of young people who are aged between 16 and 24 said that that they reacted badly to milk. This could potentially explain the reason why they have been trying the “clean diet.” But is the clean diet really that clean? Could it be doing more harm than good? Cutting out on milk in particular has been brought into question. The National Osteoporosis Society says that eliminating milk from the diet or cutting down on its intake could lead to weaker bones.

This is simply because of calcium deficiency. Professionals in the medical field call this a ticking time bomb, saying that the lack of enough calcium intake could lead to serious bone conditions later including osteoporosis. Bones officially stop developing once someone grows 30 years old. Osteoporosis is currently affecting nearly 3 million people in the UK alone. Even though the process of losing bone density happens as people age, with the current diet habits, there is a fear that young people could lose it at a much faster rate.

Source: Social Samosa

The idea of clean eating has been promoted online by bloggers as the best choice for a healthy living. They have claimed that it’s possible to get calcium from other food sources including greens and nuts. But in reality, this is often easier said than done. There has also been criticism that the idea of clean eating has long been used by young people as a way of hiding eating disorders. This is not the first time though that the so-called clean diets have been described as negative. The National Osteoporosis Society in particular has said that the reason why many young people are cutting back on milk is not because of any scientific backing, it’s simply because they are following advice from bloggers who have no actual medical experience, let alone authority to speak on matters of nutrition.

A survey done by the Society noted that at least 4 out of 10 people between the ages of 18 and 24 had tried a clean diet and that 1 out of 5 young people in this age bracket had reduced the total intake of milk. NOS says that these numbers are a clear reflection of the influence bloggers have had on young people with regards to diet and sadly, these bloggers have spoken about nutrition topics they know nothing about. Cutting down on milk is not as healthy as it seems and the sooner young people realize this, the easier it will be to prevent serious bone conditions in the future.