Benefits to whole milk versus low-fat milk?

[daisymommy]

Beyond the issue of homogenization, or the possibility of powdered milk being added to low fat milk--if it weren't for those two issues, lets say, what are the benefits to drinking whole milk?

Are there nutrients concentrated just in the fat that you lose out on?

We're not doing raw milk right now (that's a story for another day). I can get grass-fed, organically raised milk, that is low-temp pasteurized, and non-homogenized, and they sell it in the different fat % (by removal of the fat) or I can get the cream line whole milk.
I personally do not like whole milk. It's just too rich for my taste (I know that sounds silly to most people ). I've always drank 1% or 2%. But, if I now learn that there really is a big benefit to whole milk, then maybe I can learn to like it.

I know I can always pour off the cream and use it for cooking or whatever, But I just wonder if I need to leave it in the milk for health reasons?

[NoTiGG]

Just off the top of my head... a study was done a while back that said women who consumed whole milk dairy rather than low fat were more fertile. And seeing as how the ancient cultures according to weston price chose the high fat foods for pregnancy and prenatal nutrition... like eggs and butter... that makes sense. I think fertility is a sign of health.

[witchygrrl]

Vitamins A, D are fat soluble, and so need the fat in order for them to be absorbed. If you don't like whole milk, you can always add water to thin it out.

[daisymommy]

I wanted to add a few things I came across that I found interesting, and may be helpful to others:

Vitamins A & D are in the milk fat. When the fat is removed, the FDA requires that synthetic vitamins be added back in. I think we all know that real-food vitamins are more readily absorbed and used by the body than synthetic (fake) ones. But Vitamins A and D are fat-soluble; that means they cannot be absorbed into the body unless they're taken in with fat.

Our bodies cannot digest the protein or absorb the calcium from milk without the fat.

a Swedish study has found that women who regularly consume at least one serving of full-fat dairy every day gained about 30 percent less weight than women who didn’t. The researchers report that a regular and constant intake of whole milk, sour milk and cheese was significantly and inversely associated with weight gain (that is, those consuming whole-milk products did not gain weight), while the other intake groups were not. A constant intake of at least one daily serving of whole and sour milk was associated with 15 percent less weight gain, while cheese was associated with 30 percent less weight gain (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2007;84(6):1481-1488).

The researchers found that women who ate two or more servings of lowfat dairy foods per day, particularly skim milk and yogurt, increased their risk of ovulation-related infertility by more than 85 percent compared with women who ate less than one serving of lowfat dairy food per week (Human Reproduction, online February 28, 2007).

Milk fat also contains glycosphingolipids, which are fats that encourage cell metabolism and growth and fight gastrointestinal infections.

[BeagleMommy]

Great info, daisymommy!
I was just going to add the anecdotal evidence that farmers fatten up pigs with skim milk.
Makes one think, doesn't it?

[CookAMH]

I think it's perfectly fine to scoop out some of the fat and use elsewhere in your diet (ie coffee or cooking). You are, in the end, still consuming the whole milk, just in parts. If that makes the lesser fat milk more drinkable, it works.

The butter fat in whole milk has fatty acids and nutrients that are not as concentrated in low fat milk. Your body can utilize nutrients more fully when butter fat is also consumed (like Vit A in sweet potatoes for example...your body absorbs less of the nutrient if it's eaten without fat). Then there is the homogonization like you said.