NUTRITION AUTHOR
Rachel Cook
GOT MILK OPTIONS? n Regular, organic, A2, alternative — which milk is right for you?
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t wasn’t until the ‘90s that milk became something capable of being trendy. San Francisco advertising firm, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, managed to turn one of the most common items at the grocery store into an elixir of life, necessary for healthy teeth and forming strong bones. “Got milk?” wasn’t just a slogan but also a reminder to check the refrigerator because, despite how bland and boring milk is, there was nothing else quite like it. Now, with so many alternative milk options saturating the refrigerated section, it’s easy to feel lost as a consumer. “Got milk?” has gotten a whole lot more complicated. While traditional cow’s milk remains an affordable, familiar option, it’s true that health benefits have recently been called into question. For a long time, experts were concerned that the saturated fat in dairy milk could increase the risk of heart disease
JANUARY 2021
and stroke in patients. Now, recent studies show that low-fat milk may still not be much healthier than its full-fat sibling. One study found that long-term consumption of the fats found in dairy milk “was not significantly associated with total mortality or incident [cardiovascular disease] among older adults.” In fact, high amounts of the fat heptadecanoic acid were “inversely associated” with cardiovascular disease and stroke. So, it’s hard to say whether or not full-fat milk is detrimental to one’s health.
Organic Milk
Then there’s the case for organic. Organic cow’s milk tastes nearly identical to regular cow’s milk, and the organic option offers significant benefits with the only prohibiting factor being cost. For instance, organic, grass-fed cows produce milk with a better balance of fatty acids than their counterparts. This balance of
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