Milk
is an exceptional food. It has been described as the "nearest
thing to being a complete single food that we have". The
facts below speak for themselves.
The
supply of nutrients in milk is high in comparison to its calorie
content. Milk is an important source of calcium, protein,
riboflavin, vitamins A and B12. It also helps our intake of
a number of other vitamins and minerals, such as niacin, zinc,
iodine and Vitamin B6. It also contains most of the important
trace minerals that our bodies require.
Milk
helps prevent tooth decay. Protein from the milk is deposited
on the tooth enamel, which acts as a buffer against the harmful
acids formed after sugar fermentation.
An
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition study found
that dieting women between the ages of 44 and 50 also lost
bone density, particularly at the hip and the spine. This
would put them at greater risk of contracting osteoporosis
- or brittle bone disease. Three 250ml glasses of skimmed
or semi-skimmed milk as part of a calorie-controlled diet
could greatly reduce this risk.
In
order to get the same amount of calcium as one glass of milk,
you would have to eat about four cupfuls of broccoli or six
oranges.
Potassium
and Calcium, especially from milk products, has been shown
to help control blood pressure. A normal blood pressure is
good for overall heart health.
UHT
treatment of milk is considerably more severe than pasteurisation
due to the higher temperatures involved. Therefore the loss
of vitamins including B1, B6, B12, C, folic acid and thiamine
during UHT processing is much greater than during pasteurisation.
Research into calcium absorption into the body concluded that
the absorption of calcium from UHT milk was some 20 per cent
lower than fresh pasteurised milk.
Recent
studies have shown that milk sampled from cattle in Shetland
contains higher quantities of CLA (conjugated linoleic acid
- an unsaturated fatty acid found only in food produced from
ruminants) than normal. In America research into CLA's have
shown that higher levels of the CLA can have anti-carcinogenic
properties, and can decrease the proportion of fat to lean
tissue. The implications for improvements to health are encouraging.
The research continues.
