Here’s What Kind of Cow Milk Experts Consider The Healthiest

Recommendation from USDA advises that the daily intake of milk for adults and children from nine years and above is three glasses of milk to meet their daily dietary needs for some nutrients like calcium (for strengthening bones) and vitamin D. But what is the best cow milk to choose from and does it go with your diet?

Kinds of Cow Milk and their benefits

Almost every grocery store provides consumers with all kinds of milk, but do they really know the terms accompanying the numerous kinds of milk there is? When processing milk, you can remove (or skim) various percentages of fat.

• Whole milk is cow milk that is not skimmed — it retains fat of about 3.5% and is a little bit viscous.
• Low-fat milk retains 2% of its fat.
• Skimmed milk ( non-fat or fat-free milk) does not contain any fat — the skimming process reduces calories and slightly changes the flavor of the milk.

Low-fat and skim milk loses its nutritional value during processing. After that, most milk producers enrich their milk with solids to replenish it with vitamins and thickness, but it is controversial. Also, the practice of giving cows supplementary growth hormones to help milk production is very controversial. Some dairy farmers are beginning to provide hormone-free milk from free-range pasture cows to address these concerns.

Benefits 

Milk meets some important nutritional needs, but the nutritional levels of each type of milk may vary slightly. Take, for instance, reduced and skimmed milk retains about the same quantity of protein as that of whole milk but loses some of its vitamin content while being processed and fat removed. Fat solubles, vitamins A and D are added again by concentration.

Quantity of potassium, protein, and calcium contained in a cup of each kind of milk:

• Whole milk contains 8g of protein, 9% of the daily requirement for potassium, and 27% of the daily requirement for calcium.
• Reduced-fat milk contains 8g of protein, 9% of the daily requirement for potassium, and 29% of the daily requirement for calcium.
•  Skimmed milk contains 8g of protein, 10% of the daily requirement for potassium, and 29% of the daily requirement for calcium.

Quantity of vitamin A and vitamin D contained in a cup of each kind of milk:

• Whole milk contains 5% of the daily requirement for vitamin A and 24% of the daily requirement for vitamin D.
• Low-fat milk contains 9% of the daily requirement for vitamin A and 29% of the daily requirement for vitamin D after fortification.
• Skimmed milk provides 10% of the daily requirement for vitamin A and 25% of the daily requirement for vitamin D after fortification.

What Is The Best Kind Of Cow Milk For Your Health?

Low-fat and skim milk has less more calories and is higher in vitamins — because of fortification than whole milk. Studies have also shown that low levels of saturated fat increase bad cholesterol and increase the risk of heart disease. However, lean and skim milk often contains more sugar than whole milk — which is equally frowned at.

Skim milk and low-fat milk may look attractive to those trying to lose weight, but there is much controversy as to whether they have more benefits than whole milk for weight loss; while some have issues with the amount of sugar added to skimmed and low-fat milk, and others have problems with the possible health implications that come with the fortification process, some feel more satisfied with whole milk than skimmed or low-fat milk.

Conclusion 

Milk can be an important part of a healthy diet, so when choosing the right milk type for you, it's best to put into consideration your personal nutritional needs — your recent weight, current diet, activity level, and age. If you have questions about your diet, dairy consumption, alternative non-dairy resources, and any changes you would like to make to your diet, consult a dietitian.