Milk is good

File: article-1296085-0A703F9A000005DC-975_468x465.jpg (57KB, 468x465px) Image search: [Google]

57KB, 468x465px

Milk contains a big package of nutrients that are especially important to bone health,” says Connie M. Weaver, PhD, who directs the nutrition department at Purdue University. “People who don’t drink milk tend to be deficient in them. So it makes good sense to encourage people to consume dairy products.”

Milk is also a good source of potassium -- another compelling reason the USDA committee increased the recommended servings from two to three in 2005, according to Penny Kris-Etherton, PhD, RD, professor of nutrition at Pennsylvania State University, who served on the committee.

Too much sodium and too little potassium together are risk factors for high blood pressure. Unfortunately, most Americans get too much salt and don’t get enough potassium. Milk isn’t the only source, to be sure. Many vegetables and fruits are also rich in potassium. But according to Kris-Etherton, experts hesitated to increase the recommended servings of vegetables, which were already more than most Americans were eating.

“Short of encouraging people to eat more vegetables, we thought the best way to ensure adequate potassium was to recommend low-fat milk,” she tells WebMD.