Add Real Milk To Your New Years Resolution
Avoid Elimination Diets and Add Real Milk To Your New’s Resolution Diet Plan
The start of a new year often brings a renewed desire to switch up your diet, but if you’re considering an elimination diet or one that cuts out entire foods groups – like the ketogenic diet, paleo diet, or a vegan diet – you may want to rethink your plans, especially if that diet eliminates dairy. Real milk plays an important role in a well-balanced eating plan, and it’s hard to get nutrients you need without it.[i],[ii]
That’s why cutting entire food groups, as many of these trendy diets do, (you can’t have dairy on paleo and the carbs in milk make it difficult to include milk on keto) could leave you missing out on nutrients you need. And, these diets may not be as good for you as your social media or news feeds make them appear. Research suggests low-carb diets, for example, may not have meaningful long-term benefits for weight or heart health compared to other types of diets, and may actually restrict foods that are good for your heart.[iii]
So instead of buying into the latest, potentially unhealthy trends and ditching entire food groups this year, renew your focus on what really matters – nourishing your body with more real, wholesome foods that also make you happy, like real milk.
Why Real Milk?
Real milk has kept it real from the beginning as one of the original farm-to-table foods. It’s also a wholesome, simple, nutrient-rich beverage, which makes it a valuable component of any diet. It provides real benefits, backed by decades of research, for bone health, heart health, muscle growth, diabetes prevention, help maintain a healthy weight and more.[iv],[v],[vi],[vii],[viii],[ix],[x],[xi],[xii],[xiii],[xiv],[xv],[xvi],[xvii],[xviii],[xix],[xx],[xxi]
An 8-ounce glass of real milk is also an easy way to get nine essential nutrients you and your family need, including protein, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin A, phosphorus and B vitamins.[xxii] In fact, it’s the top food source of three of the four nutrients we’re most likely to be missing — calcium, vitamin D and potassium.[xxiii],[xxiv] You may be surprised to learn a whopping nine out of 10 adults fall short on vitamin D and potassium, and four out of 10 don’t get enough calcium.[xxv] And when it comes to kids, one out of two ages nine and up fall short on all three of these nutrients critical for growth.[xxvi]
But Can’t I Get These Nutrients From Other Foods?
Real milk offers a unique natural nutrient package that’s difficult to match in any other single food or beverage. It’s also important to realize that non-dairy milk alternatives, like almond milk, oat milk and coconut milk, are not nutritionally equal to real milk.
Take protein, for instance. Real milk provides as much as eight times more protein than many non-dairy milk alternatives and is also considered a complete protein source. That’s compared to most plant-based proteins, which are incomplete and missing some of the essential amino acids, or building blocks, our bodies need.[xxvii]
Calcium is another great example. While it’s true many plant-based foods contain calcium, you would need to eat more than 7 cups of raw broccoli to equal the calcium in one 8-ounce glass of lowfat milk.[xxviii] And, especially important if you’re considering a vegetarian or vegan diet, substituting milk with non-dairy calcium sources like fortified soy milk and leafy greens can lead to gaps in key nutrients like protein, vitamin D, phosphorus, riboflavin, potassium, magnesium, vitamin A and vitamin B12.[xxix]
Choose Real Milk for Fats that May Benefit Your Heart
Fat is another essential nutrient you can get from real milk, and something you might want to think about as you head into the new year. Our bodies need fat to give us energy, help us absorb certain nutrients (like vitamin D) and produce important hormones. Fat also provides flavor and can help add a sense of satisfaction to your meal.
But not all fats are created equal. A growing body of evidence suggests not all saturated fats are the same, and a flexible eating approach that includes fuller fat dairy foods, like whole milk, can fit within a healthy diet that helps satisfy nutritional needs as well as individual tastes and preferences.[xxx],[xxxi],[xxxii],[xxxiii],[xxxiv],[xxxv],[xxxvi],[xxxvii],[xxxviii],[xxxix],[xl],[xli],[xlii],[xliii],[xliv],[xlv],[xlvi],[xlvii],[xlviii] In fact, the fat found in dairy milk may be good for your heart. One study found saturated fat from dairy foods was associated with a lower risk of heart disease(while saturated fat from meat was associated with a higher risk), and another found whole milk helped raise “good” cholesterol.[xlix],[l]
Make Plant-Packed Plates Better
Thinking about a vegetarian diet in the new year? Whether you’ve decided to go full-on vegetarian or you’re just looking to eat more plant-based foods, it’s important to pack the right nutrients into your meatless meals, particularly protein, calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12 – and that’s where real milk comes in. Real milk is a good source of high-quality protein, an excellent source of vitamin B12 and the top source of calcium and vitamin D in our diets. Plants and dairy are a superfood power couple and real milk makes plant-packed plates even better by adding nutrients, flavor, texture and satisfaction.
Real Milk for The Calorie Conscious
If your new year diet plans include watching calories, you can easily swap real skim or lowfat milk for full fat options — in your coffee, for example. They offer the same nutrient package in each 8-ounce glass, including eight grams of high-quality protein, with less fat and calories.
Protein is especially important to consider when you’re watching calories. Not only does it help build lean muscle, getting enough at each meal can help you feel full and satisfied. Getting more milk protein is also linked to a healthy weight, and studies show milk drinkers (and breakfast eaters) have more nutritious diets and tend to be leaner than non-milk drinkers (and breakfast skippers).[li],[lii],[liii] So, if maintaining a healthy weight is something you’re aiming for, don’t forget to include a glass of real milk alongside your meal (especially breakfast) and incorporate it into nutritious recipes.
Real Milk to Help with Your Fitness Goals
Fitness goals remain popular resolutions in the new year. Did you know that milk and milk’s high-quality protein have been shown to help athletes gain more lean muscle and lose more fat when compared to drinking a carb-only beverage, as part of a regular workout and recovery routine?
Chocolate milk specifically has science-backed benefits for exercise recovery. [liv],[lv],[lvi] In fact, 30-plus studies support the benefits of recovering with the high-quality protein and nutrients in lowfat chocolate milk after a tough workout. It has natural, high-quality protein to build lean muscle, the carb-to-protein ratio scientifically proven to refuel exhausted muscles, and fluids and electrolytes to help rehydrate and replenish what’s lost in sweat. Many people are surprised to learn real milk — white or chocolate — can help you hydrate after exercise, potentially even better than typical sports drinks.
A Real Milk for You
Despite the benefits of real milk, most of us (96% of women and 88% of men) already fall short of the three recommended servings each day. Cutting back even more with a keto diet, or eliminating milk completely with a paleo diet, vegan diet or any other no dairy diet, can leave you missing out on nutrients you need.[lvii], [lviii]
With so many varieties of real milk in the dairy aisle, from whole milk to skim, high protein to lactose free, single-serve to gallon size and chocolate to organic, there’s a real milk to complement every resolution. It’s easy to find the real milk that’s right for you.
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