This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American
The USDA, the American Academy of Academy of Pediatrics and other august institutions recommend that all calorie-containing beverages, except low-fat milk, should be limited in people's diets. The dairy industry made the "Got Milk" slogan one of the most famous of all time—and guidelines for healthy eat/drink incorporate that entreaty: three cuppa a day, less the saturated fat, does well by both child and adult.
A not-so-fast commentary published online on Monday in JAMA Pediatrics by two noted nutrition scientists, suggests that, without additional evidence, these guidelines should be softened to emphasize that less may be more: "a broader acceptable range of intake, such as zero, two or three cups per day, instead of a universal minimum requirement." Added to that, David Ludwig and Walter Willett, both of whom have affiliations with Harvard Medical School, think that the low-fat requirement should be nixed.
So what's s going on here? Is this a broadside against the most wholesome of wholesomes? Here's the rationale to trash skim milk moustaches: Foods with less fat may make you feel less full. The child who grabs that extra cookie because of lingering hunger pangs increases the intake of refined carbohydrates and thereby risks extra pounds. Few gold-standard clinical studies have looked at the effects of low-fat milk on weight loss. One analysis, though, showed that refined carbs like Twinkies and Coke can pack on the pounds, but whole milk doesn't.
On supporting science journalism
If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.
And what about the saturated fat in whole milk? The researchers knock that one down by pointing out that while saturated lipids up the "bad" cholesterol, known as low-density lipoproteins, they also increase the good kind, high-density lipoproteins, making the whole thing somewhat of a wash.
Humans have no need to "get" milk in their diets, a relatively recent addition to our culinary mix in the grand sweep of human history. And that raises the question of the white beverage as a source of dietary calcium. Here, too, it may not live up to its billing. Ludwig and Willett point out that bone fracture rates are higher in countries where milk is a mainstay. Other foods—leafy greens, nuts, seeds—can also fulfill needed calcium requirements.
The authors' get-away from milk manifesto doesn't stop there. There is also an evolutionary argument. Grazing animals evolved to supply milk to their young, keeping them close to protect against predation. But this all stops when calves and kids turn into cows and goats. Human adults who chug the preferred drink of suckling grazers thrice daily for decades may not fare so well. The hormone called insulin-like growth factor 1 found in milk products has been tied to prostate and other cancers.
The dairy industry is not going to be happy with Drs. Ludwig and Willett. The site Gotmilk.com has a submenu that lists the benefits of dairy for muscles, PMS, bones, sleep, hair, skin, nails and teeth. The ultimate health drink, it would seem. But until further studies sort all this out, Ludwig and Willett say that milk consumption should be on the list of menu optionals, and no need to look for the skim carton on the supermarket shelf.
Source: Wikimedia Commons