Nutrition facts
The nutritional composition of milk is highly complex. It contains almost every single nutrient that your body needs.
One cup (249 grams) of whole cow’s milk with 3.25% fat provides (1Trusted Source):
Calories: 152
Water: 88%
Protein: 8.14 grams
Carbs: 12 grams
Sugar: 12 grams
Fiber: 0 grams
Fat: 8 grams
Milk proteins
Milk is a rich source of protein — providing approximately 1 gram of this nutrient in each fluid ounce (30 mL), or 8.14 grams in each cup (249 grams) (1Trusted Source).
Proteins in milk can be divided into two groups based on their solubility in water:
Insoluble milk proteins are called casein.
Soluble milk proteins are known as whey proteins.
Both groups of milk proteins are considered to be of excellent quality, with a high proportion of essential amino acids and good digestibility.
Casein
Casein forms the majority — or 80% — of proteins in milk.
It’s really a family of different proteins, with alpha-casein being the most abundant.
One important property of casein is its ability to increase the absorption of minerals, such as calcium and phosphorus (2Trusted Source).
It may also promote lower blood pressure (3Trusted Source, 4Trusted Source).
Whey protein
Whey is another family of proteins, accounting for 20% of the protein content in milk.
It’s particularly rich in branched-chain amino acids — such as leucine, isoleucine, and valine.
Whey proteins have been associated with many beneficial health effects, such as decreased blood pressure and improved mood during periods of stress (5Trusted Source).
Whey protein is excellent for growing and maintaining muscles. As a result, it’s a popular supplement among athletes and bodybuilders (6Trusted Source).
Milk fat
Whole milk straight from the cow is around 4% fat.
In many countries, marketing of milk is mainly based on fat content. In the United States, whole milk is 3.25% fat, reduced fat milk 2%, and low fat milk 1%.
Milk fat is one of the most complex of all natural fats, containing about 400 different types of fatty acids (7Trusted Source).
Whole milk is very high in saturated fats, which make up about 70% of its fatty acid content.
Polyunsaturated fats are present in minimal amounts, making up around 2.3% of the total fat content.
Monounsaturated fats make up the rest — about 28% of the total fat content.
In addition, trans fats are naturally found in dairy products.
In contrast to trans fats in processed foods, dairy trans fats — also called ruminant trans fats — are considered beneficial for health.
Milk contains small amounts of trans fats, such as vaccine acid and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) (7Trusted Source).
CLA has attracted considerable attention due to its various possible health benefits — though evidence is still limited (8, 9Trusted Source, 10Trusted Source).
Some research suggests that CLA supplements may harm metabolism (11, 12Trusted Source).
Carbs
Carbs in milk are mainly in the form of the simple sugar lactose, which makes up around 5% of milk (13Trusted Source).
In your digestive system, lactose breaks down into glucose and galactose. These are absorbed into your bloodstream, at which point your liver converts galactose into glucose.
Some people lack the enzyme required to break down lactose. This condition is called lactose intolerance — which is discussed later on.
SUMMARY
Milk is an excellent source of high-quality protein and different fats. Carbs make up around 5% of milk — mainly in the form of lactose, which some people cannot digest.
Vitamins and minerals
Milk contains all the vitamins and minerals necessary to sustain growth and development in a young calf during its first months of life.
It also provides almost every single nutrient needed by humans — making it one of the most nutritious foods available.
The following vitamins and minerals are found in particularly large amounts in milk:
Vitamin B12. Foods of animal origin are the only rich sources of this essential vitamin. Milk is very high in B12 (1Trusted Source, 14Trusted Source).
Calcium. Milk is not only one of the best dietary sources of calcium, but the calcium found in milk is also easily absorbed (15Trusted Source).
Riboflavin. Dairy products are the biggest source of riboflavin — also known as vitamin B2 — in the Western diet (16Trusted Source).
Phosphorus. Dairy products are a good source of phosphorus, a mineral that plays an essential role in many biological processes.
Sometimes fortified with vitamin D
Fortification is the process of adding minerals or vitamins to food products.
As a public health strategy, fortifying milk products with vitamin D is common and even mandatory in some countries (17Trusted Source).
In the United States, 1 cup (240 mL) of vitamin-D-fortified milk may contain 12% of the daily value for this nutrient (18Trusted Source, 19Trusted Source).
You must be logged in to post a comment.