Milk and dairy foods provide many essential nutrients and health-beneficial components that are crucial to a healthy diet. According to the Deputy Chair of the British Food Standards Agency, Suzi Leather, "Milk is the most nutritionally complete food containing nearly all the constituents of nutritional importance to humans". [4] Despite their long history of being highly nutritious foods that contribute to good health, myths or misperceptions surrounding dairy foods have periodically arisen. The information below is backed by scientific evidence from established health councils, which aims to dispel myths that are often based on non-scientific opinions, anecdotal information or misinterpreted scientific/nutritional information.

Myth: Calcium supplements are better than or as good as the calcium in milk.
Fact: Calcium supplements should not be taken as substitutes for foods naturally containing calcium. Food is considered the best source of nutrients for a healthy well-balanced diet. For example, dairy foods help meet the recommended daily intakes of nutrients like calcium and Vitamin D. Calcium and other nutrients found in foods are better than those available in supplements as these do not share the same nutritional profile as foods. Calcium supplements may aid a calcium deficiency but they cannot correct the multiple nutrient inadequacies as a result of poor dietary choices. To meet the daily recommended intake of calcium, one should consume calcium-rich foods such as milk rather than depend on calcium supplements. For more information on calcium, please go to What is a Good Source of Calcium?.

Myth: Milk causes calcium to be leached from bones.
Fact: An excessive high protein diet may cause leaching of the bones. This occurs when the sulphur-containing amino acids found in protein foods are metabolized, thereby causing the blood in the body to become acidic. In order to neutralise the acidity of the blood, calcium is then leached from the skeleton and used by the body when its calcium reserve levels are low.

To prevent calcium from being leached, one should not only be consuming the recommended daily intake of calcium-rich foods but should also ensure that the body has the necessary amounts of nutrients like Vitamin D and Magnesium required for calcium absorption. Milk has always been considered the ideal nutrient package as it is not only a natural source of calcium but also offers other important minerals such as Vitamin D and Magnesium. While milk is considered high in protein, these proteins are high quality proteins that contain all the good amino acids the body needs to function, but is unable to produce on its own. The nutrients in milk will help raise the body's calcium reserve level, which would be first utilized if the blood becomes too acidic. While every body needs a complete nutrient package, taking excessive amounts of any one thing is never good. Your body needs protein and calcium as well as many other necessary nutrients to function properly, but you should only be taking the required and recommended amounts.

Myth: Milk is fattening.
Fact: On average, whole milk contains only 4 per cent fat, semi-skimmed 1.7 per cent and skimmed only 0.1 per cent. The recommended daily guideline of fat intake for women is 70g per day and 95g for men. [5] Milk only supplies around eight percent of the fat in a normal healthy diet. It therefore can not be a major contributor to fat intake. Increasing your dairy intake does not necessarily mean that you are increasing your total calorie or fat intake, body weight or percentage body fat. On the contrary, many recent scientific studies have proven that it is the calcium in milk which in fact promotes weight loss rather than weight gain.

Myth: Milk causes mucus production.
Fact: It has been suggested that milk and dairy products increase mucus production, and that avoiding milk will therefore alleviate the respiratory symptoms associated with colds. However, there is no scientific evidence to support this. Milk does tend to leave a slightly filmy coating in the mouth or throat, but this is the result of milk's texture and perhaps a little saliva production but not mucus.

Myth: Milk contains bad bacteria.
Fact: Some have suggested that milk may contain bad bacteria which can spread diseases. This can only be true of raw milk. All processed milk and milk products that are available in supermarkets and groceries have been pasteurized, which is the process of heating up the raw milk in extreme high temperatures to eliminate bacteria. Pasteurized milk and milk products are extremely safe to consume.

Myth: The protein in milk (animal protein) is bad for you.
Fact: The protein in milk provides a very good natural source for the body, as it is a high quality animal protein. The protein from animal sources such as milk, eggs and meat, provides all the indispensable amino acids that our body cannot make on its own. Furthermore, some studies have also shown that it may help protect against cancer.

Myth: Milk causes kidney stones in individuals at risk of this condition.
Fact: Milk actually can help to reduce the risk of developing kidney stones rather than cause the condition. In fact, it is the calcium naturally contained in foods and not supplements that provide the protective function. Several clinical studies in the U.S. have proven that those who consume the recommended daily intake of calcium-rich foods are less likely to develop kidney stones than those who consumed less calcium.

Myth: Drinking milk causes Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus.
Fact: It is sometimes suggested that there is a link between the development of Type 1 (or juvenile onset) Diabetes and the consumption of cows' milk. It is important to recognise that this is just one of several theories about the cause of diabetes. At present there is no conclusive proof one way or the other. Milk is not the only food that has been linked to diabetes - trials in animals suggest that wheat and soya protein have a greater potential at inducing Type 1 Diabetes.

Myth: Milk is directly linked to cardiovascular disease.
Fact: Foods such as milk, which provide some fat and for which lower fat alternatives exist, such as skimmed low fat milk, are often singled out when dietary advice is given. This may have led to the assumption that a direct link can be drawn between milk intake and heart disease, but this is certainly not the case. In fact, milk contains several nutrients such as potassium, zinc etc that can help protect the body against heart disease.