Milk Facts

One of the most nutritious foods on earth, milk is a white colored liquid produced by mammals. The nutrition obtained by young ones of mammals through milk holds great importance. The early lactation milk (known as colostrum) contains antibodies and protects babies from infections. Milk is termed as a complete food, owing to the plenty of nutrients it offers. Calcium, proteins, saturated fats and vitamin C are the important components of milk. Pasteurized milk prevents any kind of bacterial infection; it is therefore, important to pasteurize the milk.

Facts about Raw Milk

Milk is basically a fluid with water as its base. More precise definition of milk would be "a colloid containing globules of butterfat". The proteins and phospholipids which surround fat globules of milk, help in protecting them against the process of fat-digestion by enzymes. Vitamins viz., A, D, E, and K are present in these fat globules. The casein protein micelles present in milk are its largest components.

Milk Facts and Myths
Intake of milk on a regular basis leads to the development of a healthy body. However, there are few misconceptions about milk which refrains us from using milk in our regular diet. Myths and facts about milk presented below should help in understanding more about this drink.

Milk Fats: Those who are working on losing excess body fats tend to avoid milk intake. The argument for restricting milk intake by these people is that it contains fats. However, even if milk contains fats, moderate consumption shouldn't be a cause a worry. It should in fact, provide the body with a balanced diet.

Mucous Production: One of the myths related to milk is that nasal mucous production is in direct proportion to milk intake. However, contrary to this belief, evidence to support the role of milk in mucous production has not been found yet. One should therefore, understand the nutritional facts on milk properly before drawing any conclusions.

Fun Facts about Milk for Kids
It is believed that use of milk as a beverage started 10,000 years ago. The places on earth where domestication of animals to obtain milk first began were Afghanistan and Iran. Cattle was introduced to America in the 1600s by Plymouth Rock colonists. Let us find few more fun facts about milk through information presented below.

• Out of the total milk supplied to markets worldwide, cow milk holds 90% share.
• In the United States, few areas have milk priced higher than gasoline.
• Water content in milk accounts for 85-95% of the total volume. Proteins, vitamins, fats and carbohydrates form the remaining 10-15% volume.

Chocolate Milk Facts
The chocolate milk is not only a delicious food, but also nutritious and used in a variety of recipes. Chocolate milk is no less in terms of nutrients than the regular, white milk. It contains all the 16 nutrients including that of vitamin D and calcium. The sugar content in chocolate milk too is less and it is at the same level to that present in unsweetened apple juice. Chocolate milk drink can be used as an alternative to less nutritious soft drinks and other such beverages. Milk consumption in children goes on decreasing as they grow up. It has been observed that amongst children aged 10 years, 61% boys and 83% girls do not get proper nutrition which, otherwise can easily be obtained through milk. Role of chocolate milk should thus, prove to be crucial in drawing the kids towards this nutritious food.

The facts presented in this article take into account nutritional benefits and some of the fun facts related to this drink. The nutritional importance of chocolate milk too is presented through information presented above.