How many benefits are “cute baby cow” milk?

Cute Baby Cow Milk Consumption Has Many Benefits

Important sources of protein for families who don’t eat meat or are unable to afford it, cute baby cow milk and dairy products could be an option.

• The intake of cute baby cow milk can increase calcium and vitamin D levels, which are crucial for both development and prevention of diseases.
• Milk stimulates growth
• The cognitive performance of milk may be boosted by its general nutrition and/or because it promotes brain growth.

However Cute Baby Cow Milk Is Not Perfect

You should avoid unfermented or uncooked cow’s milk products if you are lactose-intolerant like the majority of the world’s population.

Regardless of how well they can digest milk sugar, everyone should limit their intake of milk and other milk products.

• Babies under 12 months old should not drink cow’s milk (Cribb and al 2011,).
• Some milk products contain high levels of saturated fat. Children over 24 months should limit their intake of saturated fats.
• Some children might be affected by cow’s milk protein intolerance. This can cause gastric distress, and other issues.
• Milk and milk products can cause diarrhea
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• Iron absorption
• Some researchers believe that children who are exposed to cow’s milk early in their lives could be at greater risk of developing certain diseases later in life, such as diabetes.

Are these possible costs worth the potential benefits?

I doubt it. It’s not if you are talking about 1 to 2 daily meals of low-fat yogurt, or milk for a child at low risk of developing diabetes.

But don’t believe me. Here’s a summary of the scientific evidence supporting and against cow’s milk consumption.

An anthropological perspective on Dairy

Since thousands of years, milk is an important source for protein, fat and calcium. This goes for everyone, not just those in Europe, India and the Middle East.

From the steppes in Mongolia to the highlands East Africa and Peru-wherever humans have raised cattle, goats or horses-humans have included milk products into their diets.

Some populations may have had an evolutionary advantage due to the milk and dairy farming benefits. Recent genetic analyses have shown that Neolithic European hunter-gatherers were replaced around 8,000 years ago by dairy farming newcomers (Malmstrom and Bramanti 2009; Bramanti 2009).

Cute Baby Cow Milk consumption has many benefits

Fortified milk and milk products can be a good source of calcium, vitamin D and vitamin A. Studies show that milk can play an important role in maintaining calcium levels, vitamin D, and other micronutrients (e.g. Maguire et. al 2012; Vissers 2011). These nutritional benefits could have significant health implications.

Recent research has shown that vitamin D deficiency may increase the risk of developing a number of diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and cancer (Holick et. al, 2005). Vitamin D-fortified milk could help children prevent these diseases.

Similar to the above, increasing milk intake may protect against hypertension, kidney stones and insulin resistance syndrome. It can also help prevent people from getting cancer (Nicklas 2003).

The protein and calcium found in cow’s milk can contribute to bone health and overall nutrition. Janet Rich-Edwards (2007) summarizes that studies have shown that children who eat cow’s milk products are healthier.

More than just good bones and teeth

It may not be surprising that milk consumption has many benefits for your bones and teeth. However, there are other benefits that may not be as well-known. There is evidence that milk consumption, by increasing calcium intake, protects people against a number of serious medical conditions including hypertension, colon, breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

Growth: One of the many benefits of milk consumption

In the Chinese study, for example, milk-supplemented girls were larger than the controls. Many other studies also show a correlation between milk intake and height in children (Hoppe, et al 2006).

This is especially true in developing countries, where milk can be added to the diet to correct nutritional deficiencies. It’s also true for places with good basic nutrition.

A U.S. study showed that children in the top 25 percent of milk drinkers were approximately one centimeter taller then their peers (Wiley, 2009). Another U.S. study showed that taller teens were associated with milk consumption, regardless of age, sex and household income (Wiley 2005).

What does cow’s milk do to promote growth?

It is possible that cute baby cow milk drinkers gain more protein. There may be more. Cow’s milk can be a natural source for growth hormone (GH), and insulin-like growth factors. Some researchers believe that milk consumption may promote growth by increasing the circulating levels IGF-I and GH.

Some studies support this notion by demonstrating a correlation between higher milk intake and higher levels IGF-I and GH.

There is also experimental evidence. Researchers gave whole milk supplements to urban Mongolian schoolchildren and monitored their serum levels of GH, IGF-I and other nutrients. The children saw marked improvements in their GH and IGFI levels after consuming milk for a month (Rich-Edwards 2007, Rich-Edwards 2007). Similar results were reported in China (Zhu and colleagues 2005) as well as Britain (Cadogan and colleagues 1997).

What is the relationship between milk and intelligence?

Milk may be associated with smarter children, in addition to having taller bones and better teeth.

In one example, 7- and 8-year-old children from rural Vietnam received milk supplements. They scored higher on short-term memory tests than those in the control group (Lien Do et al 2009).

This could be a sign of an improvement in nutrition. There is also the possibility of milk enhancing intelligence through growth factors. This theory states that growth factors found in milk can boost brain development and linear body growth.

Intriguing? Yes. However, the evidence isn’t there yet. One study showed a correlation between IQ scores, circulating IGF-1I levels in 8-year-olds and 9-year-olds. The study did not measure milk intake and the IQ effect on milk consumption was not statistically significant when other variables, such as maternal education, were taken into consideration (Gunnell et. al 2005).