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the days they ran out of chocolate milk before I came through the line were the days I didn't drink any milk at school.

I did sometimes drink plain milk at home, generally with ice cubes, because really cold was the only way I could stand it. (Or, over cereal. Mom bought only unsugared things like shredded wheat & grape nuts, but we were allowed to add sugar or honey. so, yum.) the milk at school was never cold enough for me.

My weight gain didn't begin until I was nearly 20 years out of school. When I no longer habitually drink cow's milk.

@therealchiffonade - I was joking about kale. But I think the fact that parents are raising kids who don't eat fruits and vegetables is a problem. It's just accepted that kids won't eat healthy food - yes they will, if their parents eat well and they can't spend their lunch money in a vending machine.

As a kid, I loved food like butternut squash puree (granted, it was my grandmother's, so who knows what badness she put in there), broccoli, spinach (usually in pasta), corn, carrots, tomatoes, and every fruit ever. I used to love giving classmates zucchini chocolate muffins, and then telling them - gasp!- they were eating vegetables. And I loved vegetables in spite of my mother's cooking, not because she was an amazing chef.

I enjoyed plenty of junk, too, of course, because kids freaking love sugar. I am just saying that kids not eating vegetables is a far bigger problem than kids not drinking milk (let me once again point out that people from non-dairy cultures rarely shatter). Milk does provide calcium - but you also get saturated fat, cholesterol, lots of calories, and proteins that prevent calcium absorption.

@Robyn Lee - Maybe we should start a powerful lobbying grop on behalf of kale?

My mother was raised on a dairy farm and is fairly sure that not drinking milk is a slow form of suicide – I drank a lot of milk growing up. It wasn't until I was in college that I put greater thought into it, looked into the research and decided that it's wrong to push milk as a miracle health drink. It's not.

@KarynMC: That's how I feel too. Kids/people in general don't need to be encouraged to drink milk. Unfortunately there isn't a hugely powerful fruit and vegetable board who can be like, "EAT FRUITS AND VEGGIES, LOTS OF EM, here's an ad featuring a celeb eating an orange, etc." Sigh. When I was in 9th grade I did a report in my health class about how milk could be bad for you, and most of my class seemed to think I was nuts except for my teacher.

@therealchiffonade:

My mom drinks a lot of 1 or 1/2% milk, and just turned 50. While she has broken her arm and tailbone (fell out of a tree, etc - really no avoiding it, lol) she has 112% bone density for a woman her age.

I'm not going to try and convince anyone that we need milk because if you believe otherwise, nothing I have to say will make a difference. We will all perpetuate our beliefs to the next generation and let the chips fall where they may.

But this I know...

My brother and I not only drank oceans of milk as kids, my dad worked for Polly-O Dairy AND we're Italian so cheese factored into our diets quite regularly. Milk (unflavored) was my beverage of choice until I was 12 years old and then I switched to diet soda - then water (fizzy or flat).

* My brother has never broken a bone (and he's quite active).

* I have never broken a bone (and I'm quite active). I'm 50, workout regularly with cardio and do weight bearing exercise. I've played sports on and off throughout my entire life. I sit up straight and I stand up straight. I have never broken a bone.

Do I still drink milk? You better believe it.

Cornbread Stuffing Muffins with Ham and Sage, from 'Bon Appétit'. The recipe is just ho hum but the idea that every person maximizes their stuffing crispy bits due to the muffin tins is amazing.

I could stick my whole face in the pumpkin pie brulee right now.

I'm surprised more people aren't on the "Do we need milk?" side. I'm not a nutritionist, but as someone who didn't drink milk growing up, I came out relatively okay...(pokes self)...granted, I'm only 24 so my bones could disintegrate later. Of course the milk board wants to push milk; it's their product. They'll make it seem as healthy as they possible can. [...end cynical 'boppy]

I should probably add that I grew up with a health nutty mom (probably more common now, not so much 10+ years ago) and most of the schools I went to for elementary and middle school didn't have cafeterias full of unhealthy food. I had to bring most of my food from home.

Perfect mashed potatoes!

I can't wait to try the apple stuffing!

Squash Spaetzle with Maple Glaze

My mom works in a school cafeteria. From what she tells me they make for the kids, chocolate milk is the least of the evils. Half their menu comes breaded in a bag. Get rid of the processed meat products (like chicken nuggets), trade the fake cheese for real, stop selling cookies and brownies, and dump the Gatorade.