Is whole milk healthier for you and your family? Find out the facts about how milk is made and which kind you should be buying.
So much of our food talk has become black and white. Good foods. Bad food. Clean foods. Processed foods.
Milk is no exception.
In the last several years, research has shown that saturated fat (the kind found in animal products like meat and dairy) may not be the heart disease risk it was thought to be. Studies have also shown that there may be some advantages to drinking whole milk over fat-free.
Yet this has somehow been turned into exaggerated, inaccurate messages–and black and white thinking has taken over. Lately, I’ve seen articles claiming that not only is whole milk healthier, but also that fat-free milk is dangerous and has no nutritional value. Say what?
Here’s what you should know:
Drinking whole milk may have some benefits.
Research has found that among adult women, higher intake of high-fat dairy was actually linked to less weight gain than intake of low-fat dairy. And a recent study of children ages 1-6 years old found that those who drank whole milk had higher vitamin D levels and lower BMI (body mass index) than those who drank low-fat fat. What’s at work? Since it’s a fat-soluble vitamin, Vitamin D may be better absorbed when it’s paired with the fat in whole milk. Weight and BMI differences may be because whole milk is more filling and satisfying, which could lower overall calorie intake.
Most milk is processed.
Unless you’re getting milk straight from the cow, your milk has gone through processing: Pasteurization (when milk is briefly heated at a high temperature) kills potentially harmful bacteria. Homogenization (when milk is pushed through a strainer) keeps it from separating. When raw milk enters the processing facility, the fat is removed by centrifugation (spinning at high speed), not with a chemical process as you may have read. Then fat is added back in depending on the kind of milk being made: more fat added to make whole milk, less to make low-fat, and none to make fat-free.
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Whole milk is not more nutritious than fat-free and low-fat.
All varieties of milk, from whole to fat-free, have the same amounts of nine essential nutrients including protein, calcium, potassium and B vitamins. And most fluid milk is fortified with vitamin D. Lower-fat varieties also have vitamin A added (milk fat is naturally rich in vitamin A so whole milk may not need additional A). Sometimes this is spun in a scary-sounding way (“synthetic chemical vitamins are added!”) but this is simply fortification designed to combat rickets (similarly, folic acid is added to enriched grain products to reduce neural tube defects in babies).
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Fat-free milk does not contain added sugar.
You will see sugar listed on the Nutrition Facts Panel of ALL milk because it contains natural milk sugar (called lactose). There is no additional sugar in fat-free milk.
Recommendations may change.
For now, the advice from the Dietary Guidelines (and the American Academy of Pediatrics) remains that everyone over the age of two should choose low-fat or fat-free milk instead of whole to limit calories from saturated fat. As more research emerges about saturated fat, my guess is that we’ll see less focus on the saturated fat in milk and other foods and a shift in those recommendations.
But in the meantime, here’s my two cents: If your kids prefer whole or two-percent milk, buy that kind. If your kids like fat-free or low-fat, they’re still getting the important nutrients. Buy the kind you and your kids like and will drink.
Just don’t buy into the hype.
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Kay says
Hi! It seems logical that food that is closest to the way nature gives it to us, is the way we and our bodies were meant to eat it. That means, ideally, nothing added and nothing taken out. When it comes to milk, I would go with whole or none at all, seeing milk is actually nourishment created for infants. Except for ice cream, which is essential to adult well-being!
Sally says
Hi Kay–I will agree that ice cream is essential to well-being. 🙂
Justin says
I have read many reports saying that Ice Cream is the most unhealthy food you can buy. With all those added chemicals & sugar
Sally says
Hi Justin–Well, I’m sure there are articles saying that but I don’t agree. 🙂
Ani says
Ice cream is available in my supermarket that contains, cream, sugar, milk, eggs and natural vanilla bean. No gums, stabilizers, artifical colors or flavors, etc. Both Breyers and Dean offer these as do many other manufacturers.
KEVIN says
Who cares it’s ice cream
Unless you shovel it down buy the tons
Danit says
Thanks for this very clearly written blog post- a great way to make some sense of all the information/misinformation out there!
Sally says
Thanks Danit!
Ani says
Indeed. The BEST milk is not homogenized, a process that modifies the fat and the way our bodies process it. But where can one access unhomogenized milk ~ at a reasonable price?
Elwanda Iskenderian says
I love raw milk, on my grandfather ‘s farm that’s what we drank and it’s delicious.
Amy says
I have only found non-homogenized milk at higher end grocery stores such as Whole Foods, Sprouts, etc and it tends to be only available if it’s Grass-Fed whole milk. It is still pasteurized (depending on your state).
Kristen says
This is so great! As a (soon-to-be) RD I so appreciate you spelling out the truth behind all this hype and helping everyone understand! 🙂
Sally says
Thanks Kristen!
Sam says
After stating that vitamin D may be better absorbed in whole milk, (which IS true – no ‘may be’ about it), how can it be concluded that the nutritional value of whole, low-fat and non-fat milk is equal?
Sally says
Hi Sam–the nutritional profile of whole milk and fat-free in terms of protein, vitamin D, calcium, and other essential nutrients is the same. Fat-free and whole milk contain the same amount of vitamin D (and both are fortified). Yes, fat-soluble vitamins (A,D,E,and K) are obviously better absorbed when fat is present–but keep in mind that milk is often consumed as part of a larger meal where fat is present, like serving a glass of milk with dinner or blending it into a smoothie with nut butter or having it with oatmeal topped with nuts. So I don’t think it’s fair to conclude that the body is not going to absorb the vitamin D from the fat-free milk as it would with whole milk.
Joel says
What information do you have to prove that milk is drank with other foods? Most people use it in cereal, no fat in there. Are we just guessing what we think, bc I think most people just drink a glass of milk when they are thirsty, someone else may think something else completely different. Whole milk on its own is healthier than fat free/low fat. That was what we were oringally talking about. In fact you have proven in your last statement that unless you eat fat while drinking milk they are not equal.
Also you have not mentioned the effect of milk proteins on a human body. There are numerous studies about the ill-effects of milk protein on the body, it’s just cannot digest it effectively. The higher the fat content in milk the lower the protein and vise-versa. This also shows how whole milk is healthier than fat free and even shows how butter and cream are actually better than whole milk. Take that one in. Our bodies do not recognize cows milk very effectively and while this is a person to person thing, it is still a fact of the human digestion system. In fact goat’s milk most closely resembles human breast milk in its chemical structure and is the most easily digested form of animal milk we can consume. If your body cannot effectively digest what you are putting into it then it must figure out what to do with it. This adds stress to our digestive system which, is a sleep-time system, meaning that is is more active when we sleep than when we are awake. Think about that mid-day groggyness, that is in part from an over worked over stressed digestive system. Our bodies are always striving for homeostatis and whenever you stress out a system in your body, the body will use its resources to fix it. Therefore as you drink your fat free milk with all that protein that we cannot digest effectively you are stressing your body and using resources that could be use for muscle function and brain function as we try to get through our busy daily lives. You have effectively left out an important part of what makes something healthy. It isn’t just about the nutrients in it but also about how our bodies react to it. If you put something in the body that the doesn’t does not understand it reacts as if there are foreign objects and works to remove them. During the day we need all of our resources in our bodies to help us with the task of the day, not to be wasted on “junk” removal, which is what milk proteins are to humans. High fat cow dairy is the only type worth consuming.
Sally says
Joel–My blog readers are parents of children, and children frequently drink milk with meals, not just with cereal.
Jasen says
grass-fed, whole unpasteurized, non-homogenized from A2 genetic cows
Jay says
Man your long winded!
Jennifer says
I agree with you Joel on all points. My family always buys and drinks whole milk and we usually drink it when we want a glass of milk and not as part of a meal. My children are healthier and have lower BMIs than most other kids their age.
Sandra Lee says
It’s called experience Joel = people like you are so irritating!
Yuri says
Thanks for the article, been concerned about this with my grandson in sports, I will try it scince is is trying to gain weight! Have a great summer, bin appetite!
Sandi Workman says
I was raised with whole milk, beef, pork, and lots of good fresh vegetables when available (or home canned in the winter). We never worried about diets or too much fat. Taking vitamins was unheard of. I remember my mother making baby formula for my younger siblings. Until I got pregnant the first time I had an 18″ waistline. I’m 74 now and still in pretty good health. Hooray for living a good natural life.
David says
I’ve been drinking two gallons of milk every week when I was in my twenties and thirties. When I reached my fourties, I had to switch to 2â„… and 1â„… milk to control weight eventhough I exercise/run regularly. In the past few years,even low fat milk was causing weight gain. So cut down milk usage to half gallon per week.
All these years I’ve been having allergies to just about every food item. Some people told me it is probably because I drink too much milk. So I read about what is in the milk and what processes it undergoes before reaching the consumer, because I grew up in a small town in southern India drinking whole milk from our own cows, and I had only minor allergies.
So I went searching for unpasteurized, nonhomogenized whole milk in Dallas. Now I use two gallons of unpasteurized, nonhomogenized whole milk every week. Weight gained as a result of switching to this milk: zero pounds.
Not only there were no weight gain, most of allergies have gone away as well. For example: I will have severe itching all over the body if I eat raisin bran with store bought milk; no itching if I eat it with farm milk. I’m still very allergic to mayonnaise!
So, it might be worth noting that homogenized milk looks good but it creates allergy problems. It is true at least in my case.
Linnie says
Ever notice that “they, whoever they are”, keep changing their minds on what’s good and bad for us? First coffee and tea are bad… then there’re good for us. They have antioxidants! I say eat what you want in moderation. When you’re lying on your death bed the very last thing you’re going to say is ” oh crap, if I just hadn’t eaten that porkchop! My grandma ate all the “bad” stuff and still lived to 96! It’s all genetic with some help from your diet.
KEVIN says
After reading hundreds of studies that go back 15 years they disagree with the current guidelines that were based on assumptions not facts it’s believed cut the fat the better your health well that’s proven wrong, all milk is treated the same centrifuge at high speeds to separate the fat then added back at 0% , 1%, 2 % and full fat 3.5 %
Not all fats are the same some are actually good for you in this case milk, full fat milk has amino acids that the body needs all other milks amino acids have been removed
Full fat milk has been shown to reduce Diabetes by 8 % it also lowers the chance of Obesity the amino acids help the body to burn calories along with other benefits now I know a lot of you are saying WHAT full fat milk has 5 grams of fat and 35 more calories but remember not all fats are bad in milk they good they make you feel fuller so you eat less the amino acids help to in this area, when you don’t feel full you eat more and a lot of time it comes in the form of Carbs and sugars that get converted to calories that get converted to FAT bad fat and that promote Diabetes and Obesity
So look at you whole diet and do a little research don’t take anyone’s option. That’s what got us into this to begin with.
Just like EGGS in the 70s they were very bad for you this also like milk was just based on idealism not fact and we buy into these because our doctors are telling us this they are getting there information for the same people that set the guidelines back in the 70s based on anything that has fat is bad not facts
Brenda Barr-Gilbert says
I had a young lady four years ago ask me why her 1Year old daughter wasn’t gaining any weight. I asked her what type of milk was she buying. She said fat free.I told her that it was great for her because she was done growing. But her daughter needs the fats of whole milk to grow and gain weight. Two months later, I bumped into her. She told me that her daughter had gained about 5pounds and grew an inch and a half. Thanked me for telling her that her daughter needed the whole milk for growth and weight gaining.
Cassandra says
I will say that while reduced fat milks do not have *added* sugar the same level of lactose is in all milk. Lactose isn’t bad … it is just dairy sugar. However, when you remove fat from milk the lactose has a larger impact on your blood sugar and thus the production of insulin. This can be a problem for diabetic and per-diabetic individuals and regularly spiking blood sugar is likely what creates diabetes in the first place.
So no … not extra lactose (sugar), but the sugar that IS there is going to impact you more when you remove fat or protein from a food item.
Sally says
Okay, but are most people drinking milk alone, in absence of other foods–or as part of a larger meal that would include protein and fat?
Manny says
I only drink milk with cereal or cookies. I never really have it with food. Should I ? 😮
Sally says
Cereal and cookies are food. 🙂
Samantha P. says
Good advice. One week I see data that supports whole milk and the next that supports fat free milk. It’s kind of like eggs – one week they are bad, the next they are good. Regarding milk, I just stick with the 1%. Thanks.
Vince says
I love your point about black and white thinking. I’ve seen this so often when it comes to nutrition and I find it exceptionally tiring. Life tends to be much more nuanced and complex than saying one food should be avoided at all costs, while another is amazingly beneficial.
Amanda P. says
Great points in the article. It’s much healthier to drink a glass of milk than to load up on simple carbs.
Vince says
For many foods, the simple answer is the healthiest option is what works best for you and your situation. Some people find that skim works better so that they can use their calories elsewhere, others like the fat content and satisfaction that comes with whole milk.
Emily Dunn, MS, RDN, LD says
Hi Sally,
Thanks for such a well-written and balanced article! As a fellow dietitian, I agree with you 100%. My husband and I actually switched to 2% milk recently (I was a skim-drinker for most of my life) due to the research that keeps popping up and also due to the fact that it tastes better! We don’t drink a lot of milk in general, though, and prefer to consume more fermented dairy products, like kefir, cheese, and yogurt. In my experience, these seem to be a lot easier to digest, but with similar nutrients – plus natural probiotics.
Sue Wilaon says
I have had cancer and have been in recovery since March 1918. My doctors kept fussing that I needed to gain weight so I started to drink whole milk ( fortified with vitamin D) instead of skim or low fat.. And added more butter to my diet.. When I gained the weight I wanted to, I noticed that when I started drinking whole milk(from lack of vitamin D) that the age spots on my forearms disappeared. When I started to drink a low fat milk (also vitamin D fortified) the age spots came back. Now that I am drinking whole milk again, the age spots have gone away in just a few days. Is there any correlation between whole milk and age spots?
Sally says
Hi Sue–I’ve never heard of that connection, but I’m so glad you are in recovery!
Bob says
Whole milk provides nearly 18 times as much Omega 3 fatty acids as does nonfat or lowfat. Drink
what you want, but don’t mistreat your children.