I. The thicker the milk, the better
Some people believe that the thicker the milk, the more nutrition the body gets, which is unscientific.
So-called "overly concentrated milk" refers to adding more milk powder and less water to milk, making its concentration exceed the normal standard. Some people also add milk powder to fresh milk for fear that it is too thin. However, if infants and young children often consume overly concentrated milk, it can cause diarrhea, constipation, loss of appetite, or even refusal to eat, and may also lead to acute hemorrhagic enteritis. This is because the organs of infants and young children are delicate and cannot withstand the excessive burden and pressure.
II. The more sugar added, the better
It is a common misconception that unsweetened milk is hard to digest.
Sugar is added to increase the calories supplied by carbohydrates, but it must be done in moderation. Generally, 5 to 8 grams of sugar are added per 100 milliliters of milk. What kind of sugar is best to add to milk? Sucrose is the best choice. When sucrose enters the digestive tract, it is broken down by digestive fluids into glucose, which is absorbed by the body. Glucose has a low sweetness, and using too much of it can easily exceed the recommended amount.
There is also the question of when to add the sugar. If sugar and milk are heated together, lysine in the milk will react with the sugar at high temperatures (80°C to 100°C) to form a harmful substance, glycosylated lysine. This substance is not absorbed by the body and can also be harmful to health. Therefore, the boiled milk should first be cooled to lukewarm (40°C to 50°C) before adding the sugar to dissolve it.
III. Milk with chocolate
Some people think that since milk is a high-protein food and chocolate is an energy food, eating them together must be very beneficial. This is not the case. Liquid milk combined with chocolate causes a chemical reaction between the calcium in the milk and the oxalic acid in the chocolate, forming "calcium oxalate." As a result, the originally nutritious calcium becomes a harmful substance to the body, leading to calcium deficiency, diarrhea, delayed development in children and adolescents, dry hair, increased risk of fractures, and a higher incidence of urinary tract stones.
IV. Taking medicine with milk for a two-for-one benefit
Some people believe that taking medicine with a nutritious substance like milk must be beneficial, but this is extremely wrong. Milk can significantly affect the speed at which the human body absorbs drugs, causing the concentration of the drug in the blood to be significantly lower than in those who take the same drug without milk, over the same period. Taking medicine with milk can also easily form a film on the surface of the drug, causing the calcium and magnesium minerals in the milk to react chemically with the drug to form insoluble substances. This not only reduces the drug's efficacy but may also be harmful to the body. Therefore, it is best not to drink milk one to two hours before or after taking medication.
V. Milk must be boiled
Generally, the temperature required to pasteurize milk is not high; 3 minutes at 70°C or 6 minutes at 60°C is sufficient.
If boiled, the temperature reaches 100°C, and the lactose in the milk will caramelize, and caramel can induce cancer. Secondly, after boiling, the calcium in the milk will precipitate as calcium phosphate, thereby reducing the nutritional value of the milk.
VI. Adding orange or lemon juice to milk for flavor
Adding orange or lemon juice to milk might seem like a good idea, but in reality, both oranges and lemons are high in fruit acid. When fruit acid encounters the protein in milk, it causes the protein to denature, thereby reducing its nutritional value.
VII. Adding rice soup or congee to milk
Some people think that this can complement the nutrients. In fact, this practice is very unscientific. Milk contains vitamin A, while rice soup and congee are mainly starch-based and contain lipoxidase, which destroys vitamin A. Children, especially infants, who have an insufficient intake of vitamin A may experience delayed development, weakness, and frequent illnesses. Therefore, even for the purpose of supplementing nutrition, the two should be consumed separately.
VIII. Feeding infants with yogurt
Yogurt is a healthy drink that aids digestion, and some parents often feed it to infants. However, the antibiotics produced by lactic acid bacteria in yogurt, while inhibiting the growth of many pathogens, also destroy the growth conditions for beneficial normal flora in the human body and can affect normal digestive function. Infants with gastroenteritis and premature infants, in particular, may experience vomiting and necrotizing enteritis if they are fed yogurt.
IX. Exposing bottled milk to sunlight to increase vitamin D
Some people learned from advertisements that supplementing calcium also requires vitamin D, and that sun exposure is a good way to get it. Consequently, they place bottled milk in the sun.
In fact, this approach is not worth the loss. The milk may gain some vitamin D, but it loses vitamin B1, vitamin B2, and vitamin C. These three nutrients decompose in sunlight, leading to partial or complete loss. Moreover, the lactose in the milk will ferment in the sun, causing it to spoil.
X. Using condensed milk instead of milk
Condensed milk is a dairy product made by evaporating fresh milk to two-fifths of its original volume and then adding 40% sucrose before canning. Influenced by the idea that "all concentrated things are the best," some people use condensed milk as a substitute for milk. This is clearly wrong. Condensed milk is too sweet and must be diluted with 5 to 8 times its volume of water. However, when the sweetness is acceptable, the concentration of protein and fat is also half that of fresh milk. If water is added to the condensed milk to bring the protein and fat concentrations close to that of fresh milk, the sugar content will then be too high.