Somewhere between studying clinical nutrition, tending a garden in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and trying to navigate my own health struggles, I realized that wellness was never meant to feel so disconnected.

While becoming a mother is often portrayed as a joyful and beautiful transition, the postpartum period can also bring overwhelming emotional, physical, and hormonal changes. For many women, those changes develop into postpartum depression, a condition estimated to affect approximately 10–20% of mothers within the first year after childbirth.

When we think about infant nutrition, we often focus on whether babies are getting “enough” nutrients. But emerging research suggests that how those nutrients are delivered may matter just as much as the nutrients themselves.

Depending on who you ask, it’s either a dangerous public health concern or a nutrient-rich traditional food unfairly demonized by modern food systems. Social media has only amplified the debate, with some praising raw milk for its perceived health benefits while others strongly warn against consuming it altogether.