Milk, healthy or not?
60Milk is the first nutrition all of us consume. All mammals supply their newborn infants with milk. But humans are the only species that go on drinking milk after infancy, and drink other animals milk. Do we really need cows milk to stay healthy?
Lets have a look at nutrition value of milk. Milk contains Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin 12, Riboflavin, Pantothenic acid, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, zinc. The most important of these nutrients is probably calcium. 2 to 3 glasses of milk (500ml- 750ml) is enough to supply the daily recommended intake of calcium that is 700mg according to UK government.
Most known health benefit of milk is regard to bone health as it contains vast amounts of calcium. There is controversy over if calcium from milk is absorbed better than calcium in vegetables. Today we know that calcium in milk is absorbed better than calcium in some type of vegetables like spinach but worse than some like kale.
Milk is really good for bones but it's not mandatory. You can take calcium needed from other sources. Regard to bone health it's not simply calcium intake, things like calcium/magnesium ratio or physical activity plays role.
In cases of osteoporosis, an illness that manifests itself as bone loss, calcium supplements are generally recommended but again there are other factors.For instance we know that animal protein increases calcium loss from bones. Also the main treatment for severe osteoporosis is specialised drugs.
Mİlk is also said to be beneficial for tooth decay. There aren't many research to back this claim though.
There are some studies showing milk consumption reduces colon cancer. But relation of nutrition with cancer is complicated and studies must be approached cautiously.
Studies state that a diet high in fruits and vegetables when combined with low fat dairy foods helps with high blood pressure.
There are two concerns about milk consumption. Lactose tolerance and milk allergy.
Lactose is a kind of sugar found in milk. Naturally an enzyme called lactase breaks down lactose so it can be absorbed by bloodstream. Some people don't produce enough lactase to break down lactose, this causes the situation called lactose intolerance with symptoms like gas, bloating, pain and dierrhoia. There are significant number of people who have lactose intolerance. An interesting thing to mention is rate of people who have lactose tolerance to overall population..That changes according to race.
In case of milk allergy body's immune system perceives milk proteins as enemies and attacks them. The result is excessive mucus production, so uncomfortable nose and blocked ears.
Also pasteurisation of milk is important. Pasteurisation of milk is heating it then cooling to get rid of the bacteria. You can see milk in the markets with the label UHT. That means milk is pasteurised at ultra high temparature making it possible to keep fresh for a longer time.
When we were children our moms told us to drink milk. According to them milk could even lengthen our height. (Actually not just moms, its claimed scientifically too but ı haven't witnessed any study about this claim) What makes them think milk is so beneficial for their kids is provably the fact that it's the natural, first food of babies. But babies, in a very special period drink human milk. But we are talking about cow milk here..
Anyways you are the one responsible for your health and nutrition is an important factor for your health. You should make the decision to drink milk or not, recommending it to your kids or not..In doing so you can consider the information presented here.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Milk_the_facts_and_fallacies
http://www.milkmyths.org.uk/health/index.php
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/milk-nutrition-facts.html
