NEAT

February- Got Milk?

Fact Sheet

For the purposes of this NEAT fact sheet the term “milk” refers to cow’s milk.

Why Milk?

Milk contains essential vitamins that are crucial for everyone, especially growing children. On average children are not consuming enough calcium, so they should be strongly encouraged to select milk at lunch.

While milk is filled with wonderful nutrients it also can have a significant amount of unhealthy saturated fat, which is why schools only provide low-fat or fat-free milk options. All flavored milks must be fat-free (this includes the chocolate milk). At home children should still be encouraged to drink low-fat or fat-free milk. Only young children aged 1-2 years old should drink whole milk. Aside from extra calories and fat whole milk and 2% have the same nutritional content as 1% and skim milk. Low-fat dairy products like 1% and skim milk may even help with weight loss.

Important Components in Milk:

  • Calcium- Is a mineral in your body that makes bones and teeth strong. Around 99% of calcium in the body is stored in the bones and teeth, while the other 1% is your blood and muscles. Without an adequate amount of calcium in the body your bones would be prone to breaks, muscles would be impaired and your blood wouldn’t clot properly. Osteoporosis can develop later in life because of poor calcium storage.
  • Milk is one the leading sources of calcium
  • 8 oz glass of milk contains ~300 mg of calcium, or about 30% of Daily Value
  • Vitamin D- Milk is fortified with vitamin D because it helps the absorption of calcium. Without vitamin D the bones are unable to take up calcium, which causes them to become brittle and frail.
  • 8 oz glass milk contains 100 IU or 25% of Daily Value
  • Vitamin A- Is also a fat-soluble vitamin that is important for vision, bone growth, reproduction, lungs, immune system and the digestive track.
  • 8 oz glass of milk contains 10% of Daily Value
  • Protein- Milk is a great source of protein, with around 8 g in every 8 oz glass. Our bodies need protein for energy, to maintain and build our muscles, skin, hair and internal organs.
  • 8 oz glass of milk generally has 8 g protein or 16% of Daily Value

There are milk-alternatives on the market for those that can’t drink regular milk. Soymilk, rice milk and almond milk are some examples of milk-alternatives. These milk-alternatives have slightly different nutrition compositions compared to milk. Soymilk has the most comparable values to milk. However many milk-alternatives are being fortified to increase vitamins and calcium content. Also the plant-based milk-alternatives contain healthy unsaturated fats, unlike regular milk which has saturated. When selecting a milk-alternative look for products that have been fortified, contain at least 30% calcium and has a reasonable amount of sugar. Cow’s milk contains 12 grams of sugar from lactose but flavored milk-alternatives can have values as high as 20 grams. “Original” or “unsweetened” versions have lower amounts and can sometimes even have less sugar than regular milk.

The goal is to get more children to drink milk at lunch every day to improve their calcium intake!