In daily life, milk, as a nutritious food, has become a frequent guest on the table of almost every family. Not only is it rich in high-quality protein, calcium, and vitamins, but it can also help strengthen the body and promote bone health. However, in front of the dazzling milk shelves in supermarkets, in the face of many brands and types, how to choose safe and healthy milk has become a concern for many consumers. Here, we would like to emphasize that when buying milk, regardless of the size of the brand and the price, we should be wary of those milk products that lack the three keywords of "raw milk", because they are discounted in quality!
One: What is "raw milk".
"Raw milk" is fresh milk that has just been milked from a cow and has not been processed in any way and has not been added with any additional ingredients. It retains the natural nutrients of milk and is rich in high-quality protein, a variety of amino acids, minerals and some vitamins. Among them, protein is an essential nutrient for human growth and development and life maintenance activities; Amino acids are the basic units of proteins; Minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, etc., are essential for the health of bones and teeth; Vitamins help maintain the body's normal metabolism.
Unlike raw milk, other ingredients such as "recombined milk" or "reduced milk" are often not processed directly from raw milk, but are liquid milk that is remade by adding water to the milk powder. Although recombined milk can meet certain nutritional needs, its nutrients will be lost after many times of processing. Prepared milk is made by adding other ingredients (such as sugar, flavors, food additives, etc.) on the basis of raw milk or reconstituted milk. Although the taste of prepared milk is better, too many additives and sugar intake are not good for health, especially for people with special dietary needs (such as diabetics, infants and young children, etc.). Therefore, when buying milk, if you want to get a higher nutritional content, then you should look for pure milk with only raw milk in the milk ingredient list.
Two: Other tips for choosing milk.
1. Different sterilization methods
There are two common ways to sterilize the milk we buy, one is pasteurized milk, and the other is UHT milk. Pasteurized milk is a relatively gentle way of pasteurization and has significant advantages in terms of retaining more nutrients and active substances. Pasteurized milk has less loss of protein, calcium and other nutrients, while retaining some enzymes and vitamins that are beneficial to the human body. UHT milk, on the other hand, is more complete in sterilization and can extend shelf life, but due to the high temperature treatment used, it will lead to more nutrient loss.
Milk in the freezer is usually pasteurized, which retains more nutrients but lasts for a shorter period of time; The room temperature milk placed on the shelves is usually sterilized by ultra-high temperature, although the nutrients are relatively less, but it can be stored for a longer time, usually for half a year, or even longer. Therefore, when buying milk, if conditions allow, you can choose pasteurized milk, which will be more nutritious. Of course, if you want to store it for a longer time or it is not convenient to buy it frequently, room temperature plain milk is a good choice.
2. Pay attention to the fat content
Milk with different fat content has different characteristics and suitable populations. The fat content of whole milk is generally about 3%, and some can reach more than 4%. Whole milk has a rich taste and is rich in fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, etc. Whole milk is sufficient for the general population, especially for children and adolescents who are growing and developing, as well as those who need supplemental nutrition.
The fat content of skim milk is generally less than 0.5%. Skim milk is suitable for the elderly, people with high blood pressure, and people who need to control their fat intake. Skim milk is made by filtering out most of the fat, so it has a relatively light taste, but still retains nutrients such as protein and calcium.
Low-fat milk is relatively low in fat, generally between 1.0% and 1.5%. Low-fat milk is somewhere between whole milk and skim milk in terms of taste and nutritional content, making it suitable for those who want to control their fat intake without giving up taste altogether.
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