Is milk needed by the body or is it harmful?

 Is milk needed by the body or is it harmful?

We encourage milk from childhood, it is said to be a source of calcium. Without dairy products, we can’t imagine our breakfast, lunch or dinner. However, there are more and more opinions that milk is not only unnecessary for our body, but also harmful. What do my experts do?

 Is milk needed by the body or is it harmful?

Those who say that dairy products are healthy and recommended in a healthy diet are also right, but those who say that they are not good for human health are also right. Why? Because the diet is individualized and what works for one will not necessarily work for another. The World Health Organization and health professionals classify dairy products as healthy food choices, but you should know what are the signs that you should consume less dairy products or give up.

Some benefit, others harm

The key is to realize that one food may be beneficial to one person and harmful to another.

 Some have indigestion, others have headaches, others have rashes or white acne after a day. What can be done to prevent this? The answer is simple, do not consume foods that cause any adverse reactions in the body, even if that food is recognized as beneficial to overall health. It is harmful to you, ”says Raminta Bogušienė, a health-friendly food technologist, an expert in the certification of organic food products, a nutritionist and the director of the Health-Friendly Public Institution.

So it is with dairy products. Milk and its products are suitable for some people and not for others. It should also be understood that milk contains calcium, but is it absorbed by the body? This can often not happen if you lack vitamin D, for example, so you should not think that all dairy products are a source of calcium. Here's an example, even when parents give a child chocolate curd cheese, think that they are given a source of calcium, but understand - it's sugar, it's just dessert and really the most unfavorable for health, when the sugar content is 30 g / 100 g.

"We are unique - we have our genetic supply, our measure of compounds, our propensities"- we should consider this most importantly. You drink milk, you eat your favorite dairy products and you feel great - eat on and on - it's healthy for you. Milk and its products contain useful nutrients - vitamins B12, riboflavin, biotin, D, calcium and others. However, if you feel unwell after eating milk or its products - bloating, creaking, gurgling, diarrhea, first choose dairy products with lower lactose content (kefir, cottage cheese, cheese). However, if you feel bad after eating and the latter - consult a doctor - lactose intolerance is possible, ”- warns dietitian Kristina Kurganovienė about possible health problems.

Lactose lactose intolerance

Lactose, which is not absorbed in the small intestine, travels rapidly to the large intestine, where it is broken down by intestinal bacteria into short fatty acids (acetate, butyrate and propionate) and hydrogen gas.

“If high levels of lactose are not absorbed in the small intestine, these fermentation products and undigested lactose cause symptoms of lactose intolerance. People with lower levels of the enzyme lactase and regular consumption of lactose can adapt over time - the signs of lactose intolerance decrease, ”says nutritionist Kristina Kurganovienė.

Lactose lactose intolerance occurs when the body does not synthesize the enzyme lactase to digest lactose in sugar. Unpleasant symptoms such as bloating, flatulence, diarrhea may then occur.

“Allergy, vol. y. immune response is caused by proteins in the milk. Therefore, if you are allergic, even after consuming dairy products without lactose, you will not avoid negative reactions of the body - rash, dry skin, mucus. If you or your child has a cold or runny nose, then dairy products should be avoided during that period so as not to further stimulate the release of mucus, ”says nutritionist Raminta Bogušienė.

If you have a rash, dermatitis spots, dehydration, pay attention to whether it will not be a consequence of dairy products, in this case - an allergy to milk protein. If you suffer from frequent colds, it is also a sign that it is possibly . 

These are already more processed dairy products and they can only be consumed by those who do not tolerate milk sugar, and it is better for a healthy person to choose a pure product with an unaltered structure. Of course, an important condition is not to choose heavily sweetened or salted dairy products, because it is not good for health. If you are not allergic to milk protein casein and tolerate lactose, for example yoghurt, choose unsweetened Greek yogurt in your daily diet, and if you want a dessert, also estimate your sugar content to be no more.