Milk is a source of good quality protein, calcium & riboflavin

Milk has always been considered an ideal food for infants and children and good supplementary food for adults. Milk is not only a source of good quality protein but also of calcium and riboflavin besides some other nutrients.

Milk should find a place in any balanced diet, particularly in a vegetarian diet, to provide some good quality protein, sufficient calcium, and riboflavin, which are difficult to obtain in adequate quantities solely from plant foods. An adult diet should have at least 150 ml of milk a day while children, pregnant and lactating women, should receive at least 250 ml milk a day.

How nutritious is milk ?

Milk is a well accepted and wholesome food and beverage for all age groups. It contains most of the nutrients necessary for growth and development. It is, therefore, specially useful for feeding infants, toddlers, growing children and expectant women and nursing mothers. All the macro- and micro-nutrients are present in an easily digestible and assimilable form in milk. Milk proteins possess high biological value which is almost equal to that of meat, eggs and other high-quality animal proteins. Milk proteins are valuable supplements to most vegetarian diets.

Milk is a rich source of bioavailable calcium which helps in the building up of strong bones. Milk fat serves as a vehicle for important fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E. Since milk fat is of the saturated type, those who have to be on a low fat diet can consume skimmed/ toned milk. For strict vegetarians, milk is the only source of vitamin B12. Milk is also rich in riboflavin, but is a poor source of vitamins C, D and iron. However, only pasteurized or boiled milk should be consumed to ensure protection from disease-causing agents.

Reference: Nutritive value of Indian foods : NIN, ICMR