Milk

I was born and grew up in India. The country, India is known for farming and an animal husbandry. In India, even today 70% of the people lives in the villages. Most of them have the milch animals and farms. Their lives depend on them. So, milk is very important in their lives. India has the world’s largest Cattle population. Most of animals are used for milk because cattle are sacred to Hindus, but they are used for meat by Muslims and Christians. This is the one reason that milk is important in India . Because more than half of the population depends on farming and an animal husbandry, dairy industry is developed fast. In our life, we start using milk from our birth through breast feeding. Breast feeding can reduce the risk of many diseases in babies. Milk is also important in the economic development in the developing country like India , where most of the people depend on animal husbandry. There is development of dairy industry which supports the economy.

Milk is a nutritive beverage obtained from various animals and consumed by humans. Milk is central to the logic Indian diet.

Milk helps the entire digestive process and if digestion is working properly, the circulatory system works well. If the circulatory system is functioning properly, then the nervous system will stay healthy. These three systems regulate human body and milk helps to regulate them.

Milk is very rich sours of calcium and amino acids which are the main components of protein. Calcium is responsible for our bones and teeth. It protects against osteoporosis. Milk contains casein that contains all amino acids. Protein is needed to repair and build body tissues and form antibodies which circulate in the blood and help fight infection. Moreover, Milk contains Phosphorus, Magnesium, Potassium and Riboflavin and those are responsible for healthy skin and eyes.

Use of Milk in the Body

Nutrient Density - Milk of cow is a nutrient dense food, which provides a high concentration of nutrients in relation to energy. Milk provides fewer than 10% of Phosphorus, Calcium, Vitamin D, Riboflavin and Vitamin B12 intakes. Compare to the other food in diet, milk provide more energy.

Protein - The principal proteins of milk are casein whey proteins. There are high quality proteins, together containing varying amounts, all of the essential amino acids required for human growth and tissue maintains.

  • Carbohydrate - The main carbohydrate in cow’s milk is lactose; a disaccharide. In nature, lactose found only in milk and small number of plants. It gives sweet test to the milk and it contributes 40% of whole cow milk’s calorie. But some people have lactose intolerance. So, they are allergic to milk.
  • Fat - Fat gives the milk to its appearance, texture and flavors. Milk fat carries fat soluble Vitamins (Vitamins – A, D, E and K). The fatty acids in milk, fat is approximately 62% saturated, 30% mono saturated and 4% polyunsaturated, with the remaining 4% comprising other minor type of fatty acids.
  • Vitamins - Cow’s milk is an important source of numerous and minerals. Vitamin A in whole milk and added to low-fat and fat free milk in the U.S. and Canada , plays a key role in vision, cellular differentiation and immunity.
  • Calcium - As far as animals are concerned, cow’s milk and other dairy foods are major sources of calcium and phosphorus. Without including milk in the diet, it is difficult to meet calcium needs. In fact, milk and other dairy foods are preferred source of calcium. More than calcium, milk contributes other essentials minerals to the diet such as potassium and trace elements, such as Zink, which supports skeletal and total body health. Potassium and Magnesium is good in regulation of blood pressure.

Milk as a medicine

  • Hypertension - The landmark DASH (Dietary Approaches to stop Hypertension) study demonstrated that law fat diet containing three or more serving of dairy foods, predominantly low fat milk, in combination with fruits and vegetables, significantly and quickly reduced blood pressure in person with high normal blood pressure and in the patients with isolated systolic hypertension. Nutrients such as calcium, potassium and magnesium are believed to contribute to milk’s blood pressure covering effect.
  • Osteoporosis - A disease is due to lack of vitamin D and calcium. Adequate intake of milk and other calcium rich foods through life helps to reduce for osteoporosis, a bone thinning disease.
  • Cancer - Despite some reports to the country, intake of cow’s milk may reduce to risk for certain cancers, such as colon and breast. In a one case study, it is proved that law gat milk intake was associated with a lower risk for colorectal cancer. In another study, it is proved that the women who drinks milk has law chance of breast cancer.
  • Kidney stones - Consuming milk may help to reduce to risks of kidney stones, especially calcium oxalate stones. High calcium in milk intake is believed to reduce kidney stone risk by forming an insoluble calcium oxalate complex in the intestinal lumen, there by decreasing the intestinal absorption and renal excretion of the oxalate found in foods or produced by bacterial fermentation of fatty acids.
  • Weight control - Emerging research supports a potentially beneficial role for cow’s milk in weight control.
  • Others - Because cow’s milk is a major source of calcium in the diet, its intake may confer beneficial roles in other disorder like premenstrual syndrome, polycystic ovary syndrome, lead intoxication, periodontal disease etc.

Economical importance of milk

In India, milk has a very high economical value. It is recognized as a social economic development. Because of enough production of milk, the dairying industries are developing fast. Milk can be processed into dairy product such as cream, butter, yogurt, ice cream, and cheese, casein, why protein, condensed milk, powdered milk and much other food – additive and industrial produced. Those products are really useful for the people who are vegetarian. So, Milk has a great economical value in a developing country like India . So, we can say that dairy industries are very important in economical development.

Thus, Milk is very good source of nutrient in our body. Milk is called complete food for our body because it provides all adequate nutrients for our body and it has also great economical value.

Bibliography

“milk 2”. The Columbia Encyclopedia (2004). Retrieved 10 November 2006 , from xreferplus.

Patton, Stuart. Milk: Its Remarkable Contribution to Human Health and Well-Being.New Brunswick : Transaction publishers, 2004.

Wilson, Ted. Beverages In Nutrition And Health. Totowa: Humana Press, 2004