Cheese Fix:
There’s a reason we love cheese. It contains tiny amounts on potentially addictive substances. Some of the feel-good chemicals come from casein, a milk protein that’s concentrated during cheesemaking. Our digestion breaks down casein, creating morphine-like chemicals called casomorphins. But that’s not all. Milk may also include traces of morphine itself, produced in the cow’s liver. Such natural drugs are likely beneficial to calves for two reasons: They have a calming effect, and they hook the calf on milk, compelling it to nurse so it gets all the nutrition it needs. –A.R. Williams, National Geographic June 2014
