The good and bad of milk

Anyone living in India over a period of time gets accustomed to the fact that milk is a part of the people’s daily diet in some form or another. It’s an age-old belief that consuming fresh milk every day is excellent for the bones and teeth.

This is a fact that it has not been proved wrong but has been highly argued over. The Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine has time and again researched and documented that if milk is not a part of the diet; several diseases can be easily reversed or at least contained to a certain extent by cessation of milk and its products.

Definitely, arthritis, asthma, heart and thyroid patients have benefited on a vegan diet. However, over a period of time being without dairy was causing low immunity and weakness in many so I decided to research it further.

It led me to read Gandhiji’s experimentation with food. He cut out milk and dairy products completely to be a pure vegetarian for 6 years. In 1917, as a result of his own ignorance, he was reduced to a mere skeleton. He then added goat’s milk to his diet and began feeling much better.

Further research led me to learn that if you deprive yourself of milk, you need to supplement your diet with vitamin B12 and D3. Simply put, milk is rich in protein not really calcium, certain vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, and essential fats. The milk protein also accelerates calcium excretion from the blood through the kidneys.

Milk and milk’s by-products like ghee butter, yoghurt, paneer, buttermilk, cream, and cheese, when mixed with grains, vegetables, forms the basis for many hundreds of wonderful nutritious preparations, that both delight the palate and provide the mainstay for an all round healthy diet.

It is always best not to have it plain. Ghee today is considered a super food recommended by even certain vegans groups and I'm a strong believer of including ghee made from cow’s milk in your daily meal plan will make you healthy.

The ill effects of milk can be negated when had with turmeric, saffron, honey, in the form of a ‘kada’ with herbs and spices or the good old Indian chai—all of the above without sugar. Curd with rock salt and cumin sprinkled on it makes it a tasty and healthy treat.

Cow’s milk is healthier than buffalo’s milk and if milk is organic, it is even superior, when purchasing tetra packed milk, make sure to check the "sell-by" date to ensure your milk is fresh. If you cannot finish the milk by the "sell-by" date, either look for a different carton or buy a smaller container.

Keeping track of your typical milk consumption can decrease waste and spoilage by helping you plan how much and how often to purchase milk and other dairy products. The trick to keeping your milk fresh is to quickly transfer it to the refrigerator as soon as you get home from the supermarket.

By: Naini Setalvad