Cow’s Milk and Some Alternatives

Abstract

As compared to human milk, cow’s milk has a disproportionately high content of protein and other solutes, an unbalanced pattern of amino acids and, as far as the human baby is concerned, inadequate levels of essential fatty acids and nutrients, such as iron and zinc. However, even beyond infancy, milk remains a very important food. It not only provides protein, fat and water, but also contributes important nutrients to the diet. A two-year-old child can obtain all the calcium and riboflavin, half of the protein and a quarter of the recommended energy intake from 500 ml of cow’s milk daily.