Drink More Milk Every Day

Milk is very important for a healthy lifestyle. Drinking 2-3 cups of milk every day can help you give your body enough calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, protein, vitamin A, B12, C, and D, and may help lower blood pressure, and reduce the risks of cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes.[1] If you're concerned that you're not drinking enough milk, a few simple changes to your daily diet can make it easy to get the nutrients you need.

Steps

Drinking More Milk

  1. Drink milk everyday. The USDA recommends that both children and adults should drink 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk (or equivalent dairy products) everyday in order to get the calcium and vitamins your body needs.[2]
    • Children are encouraged to drink whole milk until age 2 and then switch to 2% milk.
    • If you don't like the taste of milk, try adding flavors like vanilla extract, banana extract, or strawberry juice.
  2. Add milk to hot beverages. Try adding milk to your coffee, tea, or hot chocolate. Milk will make your beverages creamy and smooth while reducing acidity and bitterness.[3]
    • Be aware, though, that adding milk to tea may reduce the benefits of drinking tea. Milk proteins interfere with your body's ability to absorb the beneficial flavonoid antioxidants found in tea.[4]
  3. Use non-fat powdered milk. Powdered milk can be added to any recipe that calls for milk, and can be used in coffee as a nutritious, fat-free substitute for non-dairy creamer. You can even add non-fat powdered milk to a glass of milk to double your vitamin intake.[5]
  4. Make chocolate milk. For a sweet treat that will satisfy adults and children alike, try making your own chocolate milk at home.
    • Mix cocoa powder, vanilla, milk, and sugar to taste. It's a simple, delicious recipe that will satisfy your craving for sweets without all the additives of store-bought chocolate milk.[6]
  5. Get creative. You can add milk to various recipes to make the food taste richer and creamier, while giving you an extra boost of vitamins and calcium.
  6. Try using milk to make smoothies. Adding milk will thicken your smoothie and help you bulk up on vitamins and nutrients.[7]
    • Use a blender to mix ice, fruit, and non-fat or low-fat milk. If low-fat milk isn't thick enough for your smoothie, scoop in some creamy peanut butter for a richer, fuller flavor.

Changing Your Diet

  1. Change your milk. If you're used to drinking whole milk, gradually lower yourself down to skim milk. This will reduce your intake of calories and saturated fat. Step down slowly from whole milk to two percent milk, then down to one percent milk, and finally, skim milk.[8]
    • You may want to consider organic milk without added hormones.
  2. Count calories. While most varieties of milk do come with calories, you can make smart choices or substitutions to accommodate for those calories in your daily diet. Cut out "empty" calories from your diet and drink more milk instead.
    • If you're unsure about whether you are getting enough dairy, or worry that you're consuming too much, talk to your doctor or a licensed nutritionist about dietary changes you can make for a better-balanced meal plan.
  3. Choose milk over soda. One twelve-ounce cup of skim milk has fewer calories than most twelve-ounce cans of soda, and delivers vitamins and nutrients that soda lacks.[9]
  4. Make milk a priority. Milk and dairy products are essential for delivering the vitamins and nutrients your body needs to stay healthy and strong. You may need to cut out other parts of your diet if you're worried about fat and caloric intake, but milk should be a priority because of its many health benefits.
    • Calcium keeps bones and teeth healthy.[10]
    • Protein is a good source of energy and builds and repairs your muscle tissue.[11]
    • Potassium helps regulate blood pressure and is important for bone and muscle strength.[12]
    • Phosphorus helps strengthen your bones and teeth. It also helps your body filter waste in the kidneys.[13]
    • Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium and phosphorous.[14]
    • Vitamin B12 helps maintain healthy red blood cells and helps maintain nerve tissue.[15]
    • Vitamin A helps maintain normal vision and healthy skin, teeth, and tissue.[16]
    • Niacin, a B vitamin, can help regulate your cholesterol.[17]
  5. Get your dairy from other sources. If you're worried about adding calories by drinking milk with a meal, try fat-free yogurt as a healthy snack. You can even make a breakfast out of yogurt by adding dry cereal, nuts, and fruit.[18]

Drinking Milk When You're Lactose Intolerant

  1. Drink a glass of milk with food. Some people who have a hard time digesting lactose (found in dairy products) find that combining milk with food makes it easier to digest.[19]
  2. Take lactase enzyme tablets. These over-the-counter pills can be taken right before meals to help your body digest milk and dairy products.[20]
  3. Buy lactose-free milk. Some dairies and milk producers add lactase directly to milk, so you can get the taste and nutritional value of milk without the risk of digestive problems.[21]
    • Unsweetened almond milk, coconut milk and rice milk are all great alternatives.
  4. Try other dairy products. If drinking milk is not an option, opt for other milk products, like yogurt or cheese. Even though these foods are still made with milk, they may be easier to digest.[22]

Tips

  • If for any reason you can't drink milk or eat dairy products, try eating many calcium-rich foods such as: broccoli, beans, okra, spinach, cabbage, rice, brussel sprouts, and cauliflower. Also try eating many vitamin-D foods such as": beef liver, salmon, egg (vitamin D is found in yolk), sardines, tuna fish, and cod liver oil.
  • You can drink soy milk, almond milk, or rice milk if you are lactose intolerant. Ensure that you are buying unsweetened varieties of these milks. When ordering these out, make sure you're getting unsweetened.
  • Eating healthy by drinking more milk will give you many health benefits, but you won't achieve the full benefits possible unless you exercise. Exercising doesn't have to be hard or overly time-consuming. Just going for a short 30 minute walk four times a week will greatly improve your health.
    • After a workout, try drinking a glass of milk. It usually has approximately 8 grams of protein; enough to help your muscles repair themselves.
  • Milk is not intended to replace food in your diet, as you need the nutrients from solid foods to survive. Instead, milk should be part of a balanced diet that includes protein-rich foods like meat or lentils, starch and grains like bread or rice, and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.[23]
  • If you are planning on purchasing organic milk, be aware that organic milk is more expensive than regular milk.
  • Some consumers may want to avoid buying or drinking milk that has come from cows that were given growth hormones.
  • Some consumers may prefer purchasing organic milk to support sustainable farming practices.[24]
    • Organic milk comes from cows that were not given antibiotics, so it doesn't contribute to the growing problem of bacterial resistance.[25]
    • Organic milk is very high in conjugated linoleic acids (CLA), an important healthy fat that has been shown to have links to reduced risk of heart disease and diabetes.[26]
  • Pregnant women should drink milk, because the baby needs the calcium that is found inside the milk. But make sure that if you are pregnant you are only drinking pasteurized milk.[27]
  • If you have a serious craving for creamy foods, then buy some nonfat or low-fat ice cream. This will allow you to satisfy your craving while still getting some calcium with little to no fat.

Warnings

  • Do not substitute ice cream for milk, because of fat and sugar content.
  • Do not drink milk if you are lactose intolerant.
  • Never drink unpasteurized milk, especially if you are pregnant. Drinking unpasteurized milk may expose you to listeria, a type of bacteria that can be fatal. You should also avoid cheeses that are made out of unpasteurized milk.[28]
  • Be aware that if you start drinking more milk, it will add to the amount of fluid you currently drink. If you already drink 10 cups of water and juice, generally you should not add 4 cups of milk on top of that. Try to cut a bit of the regular water out of your diet to make some space for the milk that you are adding to your diet.
    • Do not replace healthy foods that are mandatory in your diet with milk. Milk is only healthy to a certain extent; doing that would be unhealthy and not recommended. Remember that while milk has protein, 8g is not enough to replace a protein source in a meal. View the protein in milk as bonus protein or protein that you consume in addition to the protein in your meal.
    • Talk to your doctor before attempting any dietary changes.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.healthyeating.org/Healthy-Eating/All-Star-Foods/Milk-Dairy.aspx
  2. ↑ http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/recommendations.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/25/coffee-milk-right-wrong_n_5525743.html
  4. ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/science/2007/jan/09/medicalresearch.medicineandhealth
  5. ↑ http://agr.wa.gov/FoodProg/docs/NonfatPowderMilk.pdf
  6. ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/26/chocolate-milk-recipe-homemade_n_2760250.html
  7. ↑ http://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/healthy_ways_to_increase_calories_and_protein/
  8. ↑ http://www.choosemyplate.gov/dairy-tips
  9. ↑ http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/drinks.html
  10. ↑ http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/calcium-supplements/art-20047097
  11. ↑ http://www.choosemyplate.gov/protein-foods-nutrients-health
  12. ↑ http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/287212.php
  13. ↑ http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/supplement/phosphorus
  14. ↑ http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/161618.php
  15. ↑ http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/benefits-taking-vitamin-b12-7266.html
  16. ↑ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002400.htm
  17. ↑ http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/niacin/art-20046208
  18. ↑ http://www.healthyeating.org/Milk-Dairy/Nutrients-in-Milk-Cheese-Yogurt/Yogurt-Nutrition.aspx
  19. ↑ http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_Am_I_Pregnant/hic_Good_Nutrition_During_Pregnancy_for_You_and_Your_Baby/hic_Increasing_Calcium_in_Your_Diet_During_Pregnancy
  20. ↑ http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lactose-intolerance/basics/lifestyle-home-remedies/con-20027906
  21. ↑ http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/differences-between-regular-lactosefree-milk-3178.html
  22. ↑ http://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-topics/digestive-diseases/lactose-intolerance/Pages/facts.aspx
  23. ↑ http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pages/Healthyeating.aspx
  24. ↑ http://www.nbcnews.com/id/14458802/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/t/organic-milk-are-benefits-worth-cost/#.VXieblxViko
  25. ↑ http://www.milkproduction.com/Library/Editorial-articles/Antibiotic-resistance--a-complex-issue-and-serious-threat/
  26. ↑ http://www.dairynutrition.ca/nutrients-in-milk-products/fat/what-is-cla
  27. ↑ http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/milk-and-dairy-products-advice-for-children-and-pregnant-women
  28. ↑ http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/consumers/ucm079516.htm
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