There’s more to milk than just basic whole milk. There’s also low-fat milk, which has a lower fat content, and skim milk, which has an even lower fat content than low-fat milk. Of these three types of milk, is whole milk truly healthier?

Differences between whole, low-fat, and skim milk

The biggest difference is fat content:

Whole milk has a fat content of approximately 3-3.8%; low-fat milk has a fat content of approximately 0.5-1.5%; and skim milk has a fat content of less than 0.5%.

Calories

Because whole milk contains the most fat, it also has more calories than the other two types of milk. As for vitamin D, since it’s a fat-soluble vitamin, whole milk, with its higher fat content, is also considered to contain more vitamin D and other fat-soluble vitamins, such as A, E, and K, unless the milk manufacturer has added vitamins to the milk.

Protein

There aren’t many significant differences between the three types of milk, but whole milk contains more omega-3 fatty acids than the other two. Furthermore, studies have shown that organic whole milk contains even more omega-3s than non-organic whole milk.

Combining the above, we can see that whole milk actually contains more nutrients than low-fat and skim milk. So why do some people believe that whole milk is less healthy?

Common Reasons Why Whole Milk is Considered Unhealthy

In recent years, many people have advocated avoiding whole milk, largely due to concerns that the saturated fat it contains increases the risk of high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. However, there is no evidence that drinking whole milk causes such consequences.

Adequate milk consumption, especially whole milk, can help reduce cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, studies have shown that drinking whole milk can help prevent metabolic syndrome symptoms such as insulin resistance, abdominal obesity, low levels of good cholesterol, and elevated triglycerides.

Children who drink whole milk are more likely to stay full, thus reducing their intake of other unnecessary snacks. Some experts also believe that the conjugated linoleic acid in whole milk can help promote fat metabolism.

Key Benefits of Low-Fat and Skim Milk

Low-fat or skim milk may be more suitable, for example, for those on a strict low-calorie diet.

Low-fat milk has approximately 44 fewer calories than whole milk, while skim milk has approximately 63 fewer calories than whole milk.

Also, for those seeking a higher calcium intake, skim milk has slightly more calcium: 1 cup (237 ml) of skim milk contains approximately 300 mg of calcium, while 1 cup of whole milk contains approximately 276 mg.

There’s no right or wrong choice between whole, low-fat, and skim milk; it all depends on your needs. For example, some people know that whole milk contains more nutrients but find the taste unacceptable. Instead of avoiding milk altogether, they should consider low-fat or skim milk.

If you can tolerate the taste of low-fat or skim milk, you can still get the nutrients it provides. Unless you have a medical condition or health condition for which your doctor recommends low-fat or skim milk, whole milk is not an option.