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Q: Traditionally did the Chinese not drink milk?
I've had Chinese friends (parent generation) say things like 'Oh you Westerners are so strong because you eat steak and drink milk every day'. Apart from being woefully inaccurate, does this mean that the Chinese didn't used to have the habit of drinking milk?
Most Chinese are allergic to milk and milk products.
The milk of a cow is a new thing here, although bean and goats milks are an old tradition. As Martin1947 points out, many adults, not just the Chinese are allergic to cows milk, thus the many pimples on the faces of young people. If you came here before the popularity of cow milk there were very few pimple faced and fat children.
Actually, you can't just generalise so easily. By "Chinese", you also mean Tibetans, Inner Mongolians and Uighers in Xinjiang and they have been relying on milk from their yaks for thousands of years. So to say that Chinese don't have a history of drinking milk is complete rubbish . Perhaps it's true that Han Chinese don't have a history of drinking milk and many are indeed lactose intolerant, but China's ethnic demongraphy and culture is too varied to simply say yes or no.
The death of cow milk is a little premature.
