Does all organic skim milk contain powdered milk?

[sahmmie]

I was just reading in Michael Pollan's book, In Defense of Food, that skim and low fat milks contain powdered milk which contains oxidized cholesterol which he says is quite unhealthy and in fact worse than natural cholesterol. Why is powdered milk not listed on the ingredients? I'm so sick of finding out that the foods we trust are probably killing us all!

Does anyone know if organic skim or low-fat milk contains powdered milk and oxidized cholesterol?

[Magelet]

Most does. It should say on the ingrediants. A local brand of non homogenized milk doesn't, but whole milk really is super healthy (all the fat soluble vitamins!)

[sahmmie]

Thanks. The one I buy (walmart's organic brand) doesn't list powdered milk on the ingredients. I'm thinking of switching to organic whole milk anyway. I know it's healthy from what I've been reading, but for so many years we've been indoctrinated with the "skim is better" philosophy. It's hard to think of my kids slugging down all that fat!

[witchygrrl]

See, I thought it was the skim milk that is done up so that it tastes more like whole. Yeesh.

That's okay. We use almond and coconut milk most of the time here anyway.

[Mama~Love]

Originally Posted by Magelet

Most does. It should say on the ingrediants. A local brand of non homogenized milk doesn't, but whole milk really is super healthy (all the fat soluble vitamins!)

I've NEVER seen it listed on any milk carton or jug. That doesn't mean it's not on there. I'm sure the milk co.'s have influence on what they do & do not have to put on the label.

[laohaire]

Originally Posted by sahmmie

It's hard to think of my kids slugging down all that fat!

Why? This is what will help them grow, develop their brains, etc.

To put a different way, wouldn't you feel sorry and heartbroken for the calves that are fed only skim milk? They don't thrive on that (though I guess it still happens in some places).

Skim milk is just sugar, basically - you're taking out the part that will really feed your kids.

[FernG]

There is no way to know for sure what skim milk does and doesn't have powdered milk added. There is a loophole in the labeling laws allowing companies to omit ingredients that are "industry standard." Juices don't have to list added perfumes because the are industry standard. Other ingredients, like gluten, have explicit exemptions from being required to be listed.

The vitamins in milk aren't absorbable without the fat anyway. If you can't absorb the vitamins, you can't use the minerals in the milk. The fat and lower sugar content of whole milk helps regulate blood sugar anyway.

[CookiePie]

Is whole milk exempt from the added powdered milk?

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by laohaire

Why? This is what will help them grow, develop their brains, etc.

To put a different way, wouldn't you feel sorry and heartbroken for the calves that are fed only skim milk? They don't thrive on that (though I guess it still happens in some places).

Skim milk is just sugar, basically - you're taking out the part that will really feed your kids.

Yeah, I know what you mean. I guess I just bought the "skim is better" for over 2-year-olds mantra for so long. You know, animal fats of any kind are supposed to be BAD.

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by FernG

There is no way to know for sure what skim milk does and doesn't have powdered milk added. There is a loophole in the labeling laws allowing companies to omit ingredients that are "industry standard." Juices don't have to list added perfumes because the are industry standard. Other ingredients, like gluten, have explicit exemptions from being required to be listed.

The vitamins in milk aren't absorbable without the fat anyway. If you can't absorb the vitamins, you can't use the minerals in the milk. The fat and lower sugar content of whole milk helps regulate blood sugar anyway.

I figured there was some kind of loophole. I hate that the food industries are allowed to deceive us so completely and so regularly.

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by CookiePie

Is whole milk exempt from the added powdered milk?

Michael Pollan says that they add the powdered milk to low fat and skim to maintain the creaminess that is lost when the fat is removed, so I think whole milk is probably fine as there's no need to add powder. Pollan recommends drinking whole milk.

[Mama~Love]

Whole, raw milk from grass-fed cows is the best way to go. It's the most nutritious, as pasteurising and homogenization destroys the good parts of the milk.

[laohaire]

Originally Posted by sahmmie

Yeah, I know what you mean. I guess I just bought the "skim is better" for over 2-year-olds mantra for so long. You know, animal fats of any kind are supposed to be BAD.

Yeah, tell me about it... my mom fed me skim milk too when I was a kid, that's what people do/did.

[neptunemama]

As long as you're getting fat elsewhere in your diet, the fat soluble vitamins in skim milk will be absorbed just fine. And I don't agree that skim milk is just sugar. It has calcium, protein (no fat needed to absorb that folks) and Vit. A and D. And I compared the sugar content of the skim and 2% milk currently in my house, and they were identical.

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by Mama~Love

Whole, raw milk from grass-fed cows is the best way to go. It's the most nutritious, as pasteurising and homogenization destroys the good parts of the milk.

I wish I could get this here, but there's no way. Maybe some time in the future.In the meantime I'll keep buying Organic but probably switch to whole or 2%.

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by neptunemama

As long as you're getting fat elsewhere in your diet, the fat soluble vitamins in skim milk will be absorbed just fine. And I don't agree that skim milk is just sugar. It has calcium, protein (no fat needed to absorb that folks) and Vit. A and D. And I compared the sugar content of the skim and 2% milk currently in my house, and they were identical.

That's probably true. But still, the added powdered milk with oxidized cholesterol really bugs me.

[Magelet]

I checked the organic milk I grew up on a while back and both the skim and the 2% listed on the ingrediants "dry milk". (and the vitamins a and d in skim milk are synthetic vitamins added, not naturally occuring in the milk.)

[BedHead]

Originally Posted by FernG

There is no way to know for sure what skim milk does and doesn't have powdered milk added. There is a loophole in the labeling laws allowing companies to omit ingredients that are "industry standard." .

Does anyone know if this is also the case in Canada??

[BedHead]

Oh, and one other question. What can one say to someone who claims that skim milk can't have oxidized cholesterol in it because cholesterol is a type of fat and the fat has all been removed?

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by neptunemama

As long as you're getting fat elsewhere in your diet, the fat soluble vitamins in skim milk will be absorbed just fine. And I don't agree that skim milk is just sugar. It has calcium, protein (no fat needed to absorb that folks) and Vit. A and D. And I compared the sugar content of the skim and 2% milk currently in my house, and they were identical.

The real bummer is that K2 is another fat soluble vitamin, it seems pretty important to me, and while A & D are added back in, K2 is not, so it's gone out with the fat.