For health: Is it better, cow’s milk or any other milk?

Milk has great importance in the life of all mammals. As soon as the baby is born, it starts drinking milk from the mother’s breast. The children of the animals leave the mother’s milk after a while and then start eating other things like other animals. But even after leaving the mother’s milk, human children continue to drink the milk of other mammals like a cow, buffalo, goat, sheep etc.

A human being is such a creature that monitors the milk of other animals. He argues that milk is very important for his health, especially for bones. While new research says that drinking the milk of other animals is non-essential, unnatural and harmful.

Humans started breeding cows some 11 thousand years ago. However, humans developed the ability to digest lactose sugar present in milk only ten thousand years ago.

It originated in South-Western Asia, which gradually spread to Europe. This is the reason that today only thirty per cent of people in the world make lactase enzyme, even after becoming adults.

The rest of the people stop drinking breast milk in childhood, the production of lactase enzyme in their body also stops. After this, these people cannot digest the sugar lactose present in the milk. Reactions occur in their body.

Barring the exception of Europeans, some Africans, Middle Easterners and South Asians, humans are allergic to milk sugar lactose in most of the world’s population. Only 9 per cent of European-origin population is able to digest milk in America. They also want to avoid milk.

However there are many reasons for this. Such as the environmental damage caused by health and animal husbandry, etc. This is the reason that the market for products offered as an alternative to dairy products and cow milk in the US is growing rapidly.

The question arises that how beneficial is health for giving up cow’s milk and trying its options? The nutrients we get from cow’s milk, can we get them from alternative products? And, does drinking milk increase lactose allergies in people?

Cow’s milk is the main source of protein and calcium. Also, through this, we get a lot of vitamin B-12 and iodine. It also contains magnesium which helps in the growth of bones and the working of muscles. Research has found that dairy products such as whey and casein help control blood pressure.

Britain’s National Health Service says that 350 milligrams of calcium should be taken daily for the correct development of bones in children from one year to three years old. It is obtained by simply drinking a glass of milk daily.

But research has reached different results on how effective cow’s milk is in keeping the bones of adults healthy. There is no doubt that calcium is very important for bones. But whether high calcium foods are helpful in preventing bones from breaking, it is difficult to say.

Research also does not say anything clearly about this. Rather some research results suggest that drinking more milk increases the chances of breaking bones.

According to research conducted in Sweden, women who consume less than half a glass of milk per day have a higher risk of bone fracture. However, people who do this research, say this with caution. One of their beliefs is that women who have more tendency to break bones drink more milk.

But, calcium in adolescence is very important for the development of our bones. If our bones are not able to develop properly at this age, then after middle age we start having problems related to bones. Especially women feel more lacking in it.

After menstruation stops, the release of the estrogen hormone in them stops. Due to which the work of repairing bones is slowed. That is why the bones of women become very weak.

In recent decades, another concern about milk is being expressed. A cow gives milk even during pregnancy. However, during this time the amount of estrogen hormone in milk is 20 times more. High levels of estrogen have been linked to cancer.

Researchers see its direct relation with breast cancer, uterine cancer, and pregnancy cancer. But researcher Laura Hernandes of the University of Wisconsin, USA says that there is no need to be afraid of cow’s estrogen milk. Female milk also contains hormones. It is a part of mammals.

The amount of lubricant in milk is high. So, the notion is that drinking more milk increases the risk of heart diseases. Research shows that only 3.5% of the milk is lubricated. Lightly skimmed milk has about 1.5 per cent lubrication, while skimmed milk has 0.3 per cent smoothness. Drinks made of soy, almond, ganja, coconut, oats and rice without sweetness have less lubrication than milk.

Professor Jessica Virtanen of the University of Finland says that milk contains abundant protein. Those who drink more milk, their hunger ends. So those people do not take other nutritious food. Due to which the risk of getting more heart diseases increases.

She says, supporting only milk is not good for health. If taken in a balanced amount, it is not bad either. Even those who do not digest the sweetness of milk, they can sometimes take the appropriate amount of milk. This thing has also been proved in research.

Yet there is such a large population that does not like to drink cow’s milk and other options are increasing. Soy milk is the best alternative to cow’s milk.

This is one such option, which contains protein equivalent to cow’s milk. Other types of alternative milk may have many drawbacks, which are good for adults but not suitable for children.

US nutritionist Sina Gallo believes that alternative milk may provide all the nutrients that cow’s milk provides, but not necessarily in the same amount. For example, the nutrients of almonds that we will get by eating almond chewings cannot be obtained from almond milk.

Extra nutrients are added to alternative milk. While all those elements are found naturally in cow’s milk. In the US, cow’s milk is limited to vitamin-D. Its other nutrients like smoothness etc. have been completely destroyed.

In such a situation, there is no use to drink cow’s milk. Because vitamin D is available only after taking incense. Experts say that alternative milk is not a good option for children. Cow’s milk is better for them.

British nutrition scientist Charlotte Sterling-Reid says that government guidelines should be issued to the public that cow milk is better than alternative milk for children. If children are fed something else instead of cow’s milk, then their health may be affected.

Natural sweetness is found in cow’s milk, while sweet is added to alternative milk, which is not good for health. So this is also a matter of concern.

There are many alternative milk options in the market. In such a situation, it is difficult to decide which milk is right to take. Sometimes a wrong election proves to be a mess for the people.

If you are taking a balanced diet, then it does not matter much about which milk you are consuming. It is not necessary to drink milk or not. It is important to have a balanced diet.

Originally published at https://www.mubahisa.in.