This question seems obvious but currently in Canada, there are people trying to make drinking milk seem like an outdated bad idea for health or just a bad financial choice. Both are factually incorrect. Drinking milk is both good for us and also a good idea economically.

Let’s strip away the biases prevalent in those always commenting on Canadian food and look at the facts:

  • Independent scientific research confirms that milk proteins rank as some of the highest quality proteins available.  The evidence continues to support that consuming milk products plays a critical role when it comes to reducing chronic diseases, and promoting bone health in growing children, and aging adults.
  • Scientific evidence supporting the nutritional benefits of dairy, and its role in reducing the same chronic diseases prioritized by Health Canada (heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, colorectal cancer, hypertension, and musculoskeletal disease), is stronger than ever, and new evidence continues to accumulate.
  • Milk products are a key source of 15 nutrients, 6 of which are those that most Canadians already fall short of (calcium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin A, vitamin D, potassium).  They play a key role in addressing Vitamin D and calcium deficiencies in the Canadian population.
  • Milk products are a leading source of calcium. Although other foods may contain calcium, milk products generally contain a higher amount – in a form that is more easily absorbed by the body
  • Research continues to confirm that milk products are particularly important for the optimal growth and development of children and preserving healthy bones and muscles in aging adults.
  • To be clear, we are not nutritionists. But we’ve done our research to find the most credible facts available. And the data show there is more sugar in milk substitutes, fewer nutrients and far less protein.

Canada has just posted some record inflation numbers. Food prices have jumped big time in the last year. Milk and milk products are costing more but they’re worth every penny for the reasons above – and more.

If you want to consume liquid and feel full, cow milk is the choice to make. You will reach satiety more rapidly by drinking milk than with any of the alternatives; and that is an economic argument because you won’t have to buy something else to eat.

We’ll be unpacking prices in a subsequent series but remember one thing: in these hard times, buying food that is full of macro- and micronutrients and makes you feel full is better bang for your buck than buying artificially made products that leave you wanting more.

At the end of the day, most people agree that whole, natural foods are the best for us versus those heavily processed, made-in-a-lab substitutes that are all the rage. When it comes to milk, cow’s milk is the only real milk and is the real deal. The facts make this clear.

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