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Which type of milk protects kids from obesity
Despite much vocal opposition, you’ve managed to convert the family to low fat milk. But the thin kids aren’t doing low fat, they’re drinking full fat milk.
You’re desperately trying to follow the health “rules” to preserve and promote health, for yourself your family.
The majority of guidelines, issued by health authorities, in the Western world, advocate ………….
From 2 years of age, kids (an adults) should be switched from whole fat milk (which has 3.25 % fat), to reduced fat milk. How much fat, this ends up being, depends on what you opt for, can have as little as 0.1 % fat, to 2 % fat, or something in between.
Following the guidelines
Despite much vocal opposition, you’ve managed to convert the family to low fat milk.
CONGRATULATIONS !
Unfortunately, it may end up being a hollow victory……
Over the years, numerous studies, from around the globe, have suggested…….. the thin kids aren’t drinking low fat milk, they’re slurping down full fat milk, every single day.
But, EVERYONE KNOWS, fat is FATTENING !
So, what gives ?
Digging for the answer
A team of Canadian researchers, decided to crunch the numbers and settle the issue, once and for all.
They trolled through the science databases, looking for all the relevant journal articles. They found quite a few studies. Some better than others.
After reading and reading and reading…………. they selected 28 studies, that addressed the issue, from their point of interest i.e.
- The study looked at kids
- Drinking different kinds of milk
- And measured how fat/thin they were.
Milking the data
Then they crunched the numbers, to look for patterns. As part of their analysis, they generated this fancy looking graph, which records what happened in 14 582 kids, from 7 different countries.
Dose–response relation between cow-milk fat and odds of overweight or obesity. Copyright 2019 Vanderhout et al.
Each circle represents a group of kids, consuming a particular milk type. The size of the circle, is in proportion to the number of kids. Big circles are the data from lots of kids, pin pricks are the data from a small number of kids.
NOTE : Bit circle are better, because the more data points you have, the more sure you can be, that what you are seeing, is “real” and has not just happened, by chance.
The guidelines are wrong
What is glaringly obvious is
The kids drinking full cream milk, were not on the tubby side AT ALL.
In fact, they tended to be, thinner.
Full fat kids are not the fat kids
The fattest kids, were those NOT drinking ANY MILK or going with an extremely low fat milk version. Those consuming the reduced fat milk, were somewhere in between.
Overall, our team concluded…….
Whole milk did NOT adversely effect body weight and was actually associated with lower odds of being overweight and obese.
Really ! So why are parents being told to switch to reduced fat milk, to AVOID childhood obesity ?
Lower fat means fewer calories
Low fat milk definitely has fewer calories, so on paper at least, consuming low fat milk in place of full fat milk should translate to fewer calories being consumed.
Logic says…
Weight is all about balancing the calories in with the calories out.
So fewer in should be tipping the scales against weight gain.
NOTE : Unfortunately the human body, does not act that same was a “bomb” calorimeter, thanks to hormones.
More to milk than calories
Clearly it is not just about calories, but what “it is” is still a bit of a mystery. Various ideas have been mooted :
- Maybe kids who drink full cream milk, don’t drink as many sugar laden beverages i.e. more milk, means less fruit juice and/or cola
- Maybe consuming more fat in their diet, leads them to feel fuller so they eat less other stuff
- Maybe there are nutrients in full cream milk that boost metabolism
Maybe it’s a little of everything…. whatever it is,
Full cream milk is not the cause of childhood obesity
In the last 40 years, the consumption of full fat milk has decreased substantially, while the levels of childhood obesity, have rocketed.
Whole milk IS NOT the PROBLEM
So loading the refrigerator with low fat milk is probably, not the solution.
So what is ?
Obesity is a sign of BAD BODY CHEMISTRY……. a host of different factors, contribute to this BAD BODY CHEMISTRY, fortunately, many of these, can be mitigated by diet and lifestyle. Click here, to download the Willpower Report, it’s free, to learn more about some of the strategies, you can use, to protect, yourself and your little one, from the scourge of obesity.
Further reading
Using a milk substitute ? Odds are you’re missing more than calcium
Among the nutrients in milk is iodine. If you are using a milk substitute, you’re getting pretty close to no iodine. Iodine shortages cause health issues….
Boxed milk is more convenient but it is not so beneficial
Human babies consuming raw cow’s milk, suffer from a lot less runny noses, fevers, ear aches, coughs and up set tummies than babies drinking boxed milk.
Home made fats, not dietary fats are to blame for health troubles
The chemistry of fats is complicated. High fat levels are not because you stacked your plate with butter, meat, cream and eggs – your body made those fats.