If you grew up in the United States, you probably saw commercial after commercial advertising the many ways in which milk is good for your body. I certainly did and it was usually linked to calcium and vitamin D. I was not a big milk fan, except for milk in my cereal, so I made sure to purchase orange juice fortified with vitamin D and calcium to promote strong bone growth. But how true is this? What does the science say? Here's a great article from Harvard discussing this issue.
Calcium: What’s Best for Your Bones and Health?
The part about your body needing calcium is true, but it's questionable as to how much calcium is needed to promote strong bone growth. In addition, it's far more complicated than drinking milk. There are many sources of calcium and there are many questions as to which sources are best. What we do know is that the 'need' to drink milk is very misleading. Yes, milk has calcium, but many other food sources do too. Also consider that 75% of the world's population is lactose intolerant and can't digest dairy products! Clearly they get their calcium intake from other sources.
Don't get me wrong, milk is not bad for you, but it's not the miracle drink it's made out to be in commercials and advertisements.
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