Milk is full of preservatives, toxic and carcinogenic? What you really want to drink less are these two kinds of 'fake milk'

"Why is the shelf life of milk in the freezer only a few days, but it is as long as several months at room temperature? Is there preservatives added in it?"

"No way, adding preservatives to milk is too scary."

"The current unscrupulous merchants can't do anything for money. I don't dare to drink milk now. I used to have a bottle of milk every day."

"I still hoped to drink milk to grow taller, but now you tell me that I dare not drink it anymore"

“……”

Milk, also known as "white blood", is rich in various nutrients and has good benefits for the human body. But in recent years, there have been more and more claims about the badness of milk, such as "milk causes cancer", "milk contains preservatives", etc. What is the truth?

1. Milk actually contains a lot of preservatives, which are toxic and carcinogenic?

Some people pointed out that the shelf life of milk is different, and those with a long shelf life must have preservatives, but careful people will also check the outer packaging of milk, and there is no preservatives at all in the ingredient list .

The reason why the shelf life of milk is different, in fact, has nothing to do with the presence or absence of preservatives in the milk, but is determined by the sterilization and packaging methods.

There are two main ways to sterilize milk:

Pasteurization : that is to use the temperature of 60 ℃ ~ 85 ℃ to kill the pathogenic bacteria in the milk, so as to retain the flavor substances in the milk to the greatest extent. But the shelf life is short, usually 2-7 days, and it needs to be refrigerated .

Ultra-high temperature sterilization method : Instantly heat milk to 135°C~150°C for 2 to 6 seconds. This sterilization method can kill almost all bacteria in milk. Therefore, the shelf life is longer, up to 6 months or more, no refrigeration is required, and it can be stored at room temperature .

In recent years, there have been discussions about "milk causing cancer". Does milk really cause cancer?

Two professors Chen Zhengming and Du Huaidong from the University of Oxford, together with the School of Public Health of Peking University and the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, conducted a long-term follow-up survey of 510,146 adults aged 30 to 79 in CKB for an average of 10.8 years.

It was found that compared with people who never consumed dairy products, the risk of breast cancer and liver cancer was much higher after regular intake of dairy products .

This study was finally published in BMC Medicine. In this way, isn't milk carcinogenic a " stone hammer "?

In fact, eating too much dairy products can lead to more cancers, which is the final correlation conclusion of this study. However, correlation conclusions should not be confused with causation conclusions, such as people who consume too much dairy products, and there may be other factors, such as meat, sugar intake or exercise, which may affect the results .

In fact, earlier related studies have pointed out that excessive intake of dairy products can lead to an increased risk of breast cancer, but there are also literatures that indicate that dairy products are associated with a decrease in the risk of breast cancer or have no significant relationship.

Therefore, we cannot be sure that there is a significant and reliable relationship between dairy products and the occurrence of breast cancer, and dairy products such as milk are rich in proteins, minerals and vitamins that are beneficial to the human body. It is inevitable to give up milk just because of the research results. Stop eating because of choking.

The 2022 edition of the "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents" also combined the actual situation of the current Chinese people and redefined the recommended drinking amount of milk. From 300g/d in 2016 to the current 300-500g/d, this change has been verified. The importance of milk, and the benefits we get from drinking milk are obviously greater than the "risk".

2. What is the difference between people who drink milk and those who do not drink milk every day?

Milk is a kind of food that is easy to digest and absorb. The content of vitamin B2 and calcium is very high. The proportion of essential amino acids in the rich protein also meets the needs of the human body. The lactose in it can also promote the absorption of various minerals by the human body. And many studies have also found that drinking milk often is also beneficial.

1. Reduce the risk of death

A study in The Lancet, which mainly included a prospective study of 130,000 people in 21 countries including China, found that people who consumed two servings of dairy products a day compared with those who did not consume dairy products All-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality decreased by 17% and 23% respectively.

Some people may question that it is impossible to drink two servings of dairy products a day, but the study also pointed out that even one serving of milk or yogurt will reduce the final risk of death by 10% and 14%.

2. Helps to supplement calcium

Milk is a food with very high calcium content, especially teenagers can drink more milk to promote bone growth and development, while the elderly can prevent osteoporosis by drinking more milk.

3. Help control sugar

Relevant studies have pointed out that the blood sugar index of people who eat 100 grams of rice is 100, then after drinking 200ml of milk before meals, the blood sugar index will drop to 67, and the blood sugar index will also drop to 69 and 68 during and after meals.

4. Improve immunity

Protein is an indispensable part of the immune system, and there are 3g of high-quality protein in every 100g of milk, so drinking milk in moderation can help improve immunity.

3. Drink less of the two kinds of "fake milk", which is not good for your health

At present, there are many kinds of milk sold on the market, so many people may make some small mistakes in the purchase of milk. For example, there are two kinds of "fake milk" that are not milk.

• milk drink

Milk-containing beverages are actually beverages rather than milk. The first ingredient list is not milk but water, followed by white sugar and a lot of flavors. The protein content is not high, and the nutrition cannot be compared with pure milk.

Drinking this kind of milk drink for a long time cannot provide nutrition for the body, and even because of too much sugar, it will increase health problems such as obesity and dental caries , especially affecting the growth of children.

• flavored milk

Breakfast milk, jujube milk, chocolate milk, etc. all belong to flavored milk. The protein content in pure milk must be greater than 2.9%, while flavored milk generally has more than 2.3% . Healthy, but the content is very small, and the health benefits are not great .

To put it simply, if you want to supplement high-quality protein and calcium, you must drink real milk. Generally, the following three aspects must meet the standards:

One is protein . It is wise to choose milk according to the protein content. Of course, the protein content is also proportional to the price, but if the protein content in milk is high, the calcium content is not low .

The second is the fat content . Milk is divided into three types: full fat, skim, and low fat. Generally, whole milk retains all the fat in milk (content greater than 3%), while low fat milk removes part of the fat in milk (content 1%). % to 2%), while skim milk removes all the fat in milk (less than 0.5%).

Whole milk tastes more mellow and has better nutrition , while low-fat and skimmed milk have reduced fat, and the content of various vitamins is also reduced, and the nutrition is not as good as whole milk.

The third is lactose . People who are lactose intolerant may experience abdominal distension and diarrhea after drinking milk. It is generally recommended to drink low-lactose or lactose-free milk , or yogurt and cheese are good choices.

The latest dietary guidelines for residents suggest that Chinese people should increase their intake of milk. This is a suggestion based on the actual situation of Chinese people. You may as well drink more milk in your life.

References:

[1] "Over 500,000 Chinese study real hammer milk causes breast cancer? ! Is the latest dietary guidelines wrong...》. Biology Online. 2022-05-29

[2] "Stunned! 90% of Chinese people don’t know the truth about drinking milk. Health World.2018-09-14

[3] "How to choose milk? Say it all at once! ". Fan Zhihong_Original Nutritional Information. 2021-03-25

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