Editing Milk (section)

==Nutrition and health==
The composition of milk differs widely among species. Factors such as the type of protein; the proportion of protein, fat, and sugar; the levels of various vitamins and minerals; and the size of the butterfat globules, and the strength of the curd are among those that may vary.<ref name="intro"/> For example:
* [[breast milk|Human milk]] contains, on average, 1.1% protein, 4.2% fat, 7.0% lactose (a sugar), and supplies 72 kcal of energy per 100 grams.
* Cow's milk contains, on average, 3.4% protein, 3.6% fat, and 4.6% lactose, 0.7% [[Dietary mineral|minerals]]<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.hindu.com/seta/2008/07/10/stories/2008071050201800.htm |title=Milk contains traces of ash |date=July 10, 2008 |access-date=August 28, 2010 |location=Chennai, India |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118000721/http://www.hindu.com/seta/2008/07/10/stories/2008071050201800.htm |archive-date=January 18, 2012 |work=[[The Hindu]] |url-status=dead}}</ref> and supplies 66&nbsp;kcal of energy per 100&nbsp;grams. See also [[#Nutritional value|Nutritional value]] further on in this article and more complete lists at online sources that list values and differences in categories.<ref>''[https://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/dairy-and-egg-products/69/2 Milk, Whole, 3.25% milkfat] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240129200356/https://www.self.com/ |date=January 29, 2024 }}'', Self Nutrition Data, accessed April 30, 2022</ref>

Donkey and horse milk have the lowest fat content, while the milk of [[pinniped|seals]] and whales may contain more than 50% fat.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Whale |url=http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761565254_3/Whale.html |encyclopedia=Encarta |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028232724/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761565254_3/Whale.html |archive-date=October 28, 2009}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Milk composition analysis, per 100&nbsp;grams
! Constituents
! Unit
! Cow
! Goat
! Sheep
! [[Water buffalo|Water<br />buffalo]]
|-
| Water
| g
| 87.8
| 88.9
| 83.0
| 81.1
|-
| Protein
| g
| 3.2
| 3.1
| 5.4
| 4.5
|-
| Fat
| g
| 3.9
| 3.5
| 6.0
| 8.0
|-
| ----Saturated fatty acids
| g
| 2.4
| 2.3
| 3.8
| 4.2
|-
| ----Monounsaturated fatty acids
| g
| 1.1
| 0.8
| 1.5
| 1.7
|-
| ----Polyunsaturated fatty acids
| g
| 0.1
| 0.1
| 0.3
| 0.2

|-
| Carbohydrate (i.e. the sugar form of [[lactose]])
| g
| 4.8
| 4.4
| 5.1
| 4.9
|-
| Cholesterol
| mg
| 14
| 10
| 11
| 8
|-
| Calcium
| mg
| 120
| 100
| 170
| 195
|-
|rowspan="2"| Energy
| kcal
| 66
| 60
| 95
| 110
|-
| kJ
| 275
| 253
| 396
| 463
|}

===Cow's milk: variation by breed===
These compositions vary by breed, animal, and point in the lactation period.

{| class="wikitable"
|+Milk fat percentages
!Cow breed
!Approximate percentage
|-
|[[Jersey cattle|Jersey]]
|5.2
|-
|[[Zebu]]
|4.7
|-
|[[Brown Swiss]]
|4.0
|-
|[[Holstein cattle|Holstein-Friesian]]
|3.6
|}

The protein range for these four breeds is 3.3% to 3.9%, while the lactose range is 4.7% to 4.9%.<ref name="On Food and Cooking"/>

Milk fat percentages may be manipulated by dairy farmers' stock diet formulation strategies. The infection known as [[mastitis]], [[Mastitis in dairy cattle|especially in dairy cattle]], can cause fat levels to decline.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/designingfoodsan00nati |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/designingfoodsan00nati/page/226 226] |title=Designing Foods: Animal Product Options in the Marketplace |publisher=National Academies Press |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-309-03795-2}}</ref>

===Nutritional value===
Processed cow's milk was formulated to contain differing amounts of fat during the 1950s. One cup (250&nbsp;mL) of 2%-fat cow's milk contains 285&nbsp;mg of [[calcium]], which represents 22% to 29% of the [[daily recommended intake]] (DRI) of calcium for an adult. Depending on its age, milk contains 8&nbsp;grams of [[protein]], and a number of other nutrients{{Which|date=July 2022}} (either naturally or through [[food fortification|fortification]]).

Whole milk has a [[glycemic index]] of 39±3.<ref name=International-Tables-2008>{{cite journal |last1=Atkinson |first1=Fiona S. |date=1 December 2008 |url=https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/31/12/2281/24911/International-Tables-of-Glycemic-Index-and |title=International Tables of Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load Values: 2008 |journal=Diabetes Care |volume=31 |issue=12 |pages=2281–2283 |doi=10.2337/dc08-1239 |pmc=2584181 |pmid=18835944 |access-date=September 28, 2023 |archive-date=January 29, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240129200317/https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/31/12/2281/24911/International-Tables-of-Glycemic-Index-and |url-status=live }}</ref> A food is considered to have a low GI if it is 55 or less.

For [[protein quality]], whole milk has a [[Digestible Indispensable Amino Acid Score]] (DIAAS) of 1.43, with the [[limiting amino acid]] for those groups being [[methionine]] and [[cysteine]].<ref>{{cite Q |1=Q33645656 |doi-access=free}}</ref> A DIAAS of 1 or more is considered to be an excellent/high [[protein quality]] source.<ref>{{citation|title=Report of an FAO Expert Consultation, 31 March - 2 April 2011, Auckland, New Zealand|year=2013|publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization]]|isbn=978-92-5-107417-6|page=43}}</ref>

===Disease===
There is mixed evidence that drinking milk increases the risk of cancer in general, and good evidence that milk drinking may have a protective effect specifically against [[bowel cancer]].<ref name="k808">{{cite web | title=Can milk and dairy products cause cancer? | website=Cancer Research UK | date=1 November 2021 | url=https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/cancer-myths/can-milk-and-dairy-products-cause-cancer | access-date=3 August 2024}}</ref>

===Allergy===
{{Main|Milk allergy}}
One of the most common [[food allergy|food allergies]] in infants is to cow's milk. This is an immunologically mediated [[adverse reaction]], rarely fatal, to one or more cow's milk proteins.<ref>{{Cite journal |author=Høst A |title=Cow's milk protein allergy and intolerance in infancy. Some clinical, epidemiological and immunological aspects |journal=Pediatric Allergy and Immunology |volume=5 |issue=5 Suppl |pages=1–36 |year=1994 |pmid=7704117 |doi=10.1111/j.1399-3038.1994.tb00352.x |s2cid=26155994}}</ref> Milk allergy affects between 2% and 3% of babies and young children.<ref name="Savage2015">{{cite journal | vauthors = Savage J, Johns CB | title = Food allergy: epidemiology and natural history | journal = Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America | volume = 35 | issue = 1 | pages = 45–59 | date = February 2015 | pmid = 25459576 | pmc = 4254585 | doi = 10.1016/j.iac.2014.09.004 }}</ref> To reduce risk, recommendations are that babies should be exclusively [[breastfed]] for at least four months, preferably six months, before introducing cow's milk.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Vandenplas Y | title = Prevention and Management of Cow's Milk Allergy in Non-Exclusively Breastfed Infants | journal = Nutrients | volume = 9 | issue = 7 | pages = 731 | date = July 2017 | pmid = 28698533 | pmc = 5537845 | doi = 10.3390/nu9070731 | doi-access = free }}</ref> The majority of children outgrow milk allergy, but for about 0.4% the condition persists into adulthood.<ref name="Liu2010">{{cite journal | vauthors = Liu AH, Jaramillo R, Sicherer SH, Wood RA, Bock SA, Burks AW, Massing M, Cohn RD, Zeldin DC | title = National prevalence and risk factors for food allergy and relationship to asthma: results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005–2006 | journal = The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology | volume = 126 | issue = 4 | pages = 798–806.e13 | date = October 2010 | pmid = 20920770 | pmc = 2990684 | doi = 10.1016/j.jaci.2010.07.026 }}</ref>

===Lactose intolerance===
{{Main|Lactose intolerance}}
Lactose intolerance is a condition in which people have symptoms due to deficiency or absence of the enzyme [[lactase]] in the [[small intestine]], causing poor absorption of milk lactose.<ref name=NIH2014Dig/><ref name=Deng2015>{{cite journal |vauthors=Deng Y, Misselwitz B, Dai N, Fox M |title=Lactose intolerance in adults: Biological mechanism and dietary management |journal=Nutrients |year=2015 |volume=7 |issue=9 |pages=8020–35 |pmid=26393648 |doi=10.3390/nu7095380 |pmc=4586575 |type=Review|doi-access=free}}</ref> People affected vary in the amount of lactose they can tolerate before symptoms develop,<ref name=NIH2014Dig/> which may include abdominal pain, [[bloating]], [[diarrhea]], gas, and [[nausea]].<ref name=NIH2014Dig/> Severity depends on the amount of milk consumed.<ref name=NIH2014Dig>{{cite web |title=Lactose intolerance |url=https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/lactose-intolerance/definition-facts |publisher=National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, US National Institutes of Health |access-date=January 28, 2021 |date=February 2018 |archive-date=February 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208150848/https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/lactose-intolerance/definition-facts |url-status=live }}</ref> Those affected are usually able to drink at least one cup of milk without developing significant symptoms, with greater amounts tolerated if drunk with a meal or throughout the day.<ref name=NIH2014Dig/><ref name=SuchyBrannon2010>{{cite journal |vauthors=Suchy FJ, Brannon PM, Carpenter TO, Fernandez JR, Gilsanz V, Gould JB, etal |title=NIH consensus development conference statement: Lactose intolerance and health. |journal=NIH Consens State Sci Statements |year=2010 |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=1–27 |pmid=20186234 |url=https://consensus.nih.gov/2010/lactosestatement.htm |type=Consensus Development Conference, NIH. Review |access-date=December 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161218125118/https://consensus.nih.gov/2010/lactosestatement.htm |archive-date=December 18, 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>