If it weren’t bad enough to have to choose from non-fat milk, 1% milk, 2% milk and full fat milk, now there are plant based and lactose free options, too. Which option is healthier? Let’s just look at comparing fat free and full fat milk and clear up that discussion first. It’s all about the fat in whole milk that has people concerned, but what caused that concern? It all started with Ancel Keys, who created K-rations, the Mediterranean diet and was opposed to saturated fat in the diet. It then was followed by a mega study, a compilation of studies, completed by Harvard scientists in the 1960s. They found that fat in the diet was linked to heart disease. The problem with that study is that the sugar industry paid for them to find that, to combat the charge that sugar was causing heart disease and make the culprit fat. The plan worked and the world began to focus on eliminating fat.
Fat in your diet is necessary.
If you don’t have adequate fat, your body won’t be able to function as well as it should. Not all fat is bad. Trans fats, for instance, are bad fats that can cause a number of health problems. However, other types of fats, such as monounsaturated fat or omega 3 fatty acids, are important to good health. Healthy fats occur in nature. Trans fats also do, but in very minor amounts. The biggest amount of trans fats is manmade and occurs when you hydrogenate oil to make it solid and more stable.
Dairy does contain saturated fat.
One problem with old science is that methods have improved. When saturated fats were declared an enemy, nobody differentiated them from trans fats. Saturated fats are necessary for a healthy body. They’re important for brain health, since a large part of the brain is cholesterol and fat, with the fat being saturated fat. It needs it to grow, regenerate and be at its best. Your heart also needs it. Cholesterol levels are regulated by lauric and stearic acids that are in saturated fat. It’s also important for bone health, the nervous system and the immune system.
You can make the fat in whole milk even healthier by using milk from pastured cows.
Cows that graze and eat like they were intended to eat, not locked up and fed a diet of grain and processed food (yes even cows have problems with a processed food diet.), produce milk that’s healthier for you. It contains a better balance of omega3 to Omega6 fatty acids. It contains five times the amount of CLA—conjugated linoleic acid, an unsaturated fatty acid that’s heart healthy.
- The saturated fat in whole milk is important for white blood cells. It gives them the ability to both identify and destroy viruses, fungi and bacteria that invade the body.
- As you age, especially women, saturated fat is even more necessary. It’s important for the infusion of calcium into the bone to prevent bone thinning that leads to injury.
- The saturated fat in milk is also important to insulate your nerves, preventing susceptibility to internal and external stress. Fats also act as signaling messengers to keep messaging between cells functioning.
- Studies show a link between drinking whole milk actually helps you lose weight. The saturated fat helps fill you up so you don’t eat as much. Some fat free milk products also have added sugar, a very unhealthy option, to make them more palatable.
For more information, contact us today at Rising Fitness Gym