Milk In Human Life

MILK IN HUMAN LIFE: Food is most basic need of any living organism. It is required for the natural functioning of the body parts and for a healthy growth. Food is any substance, composed of carbohydrates, water, fats and/or proteins, that is either eaten or drunk by any animal, including humans, for nutrition or pleasure. Items considered food may be sourced from plants, animals or another kingdom such as fungus. Almost all the polyunsaturated fats in the human diet are EFAs. Essential fatty acids play an important role in the life and death of cardiac cells. Consuming milk and milk products has been in practice since ages. The milk - as it is meant to be the first and exclusive food for progeny of mammals - is an almost complete food.

Milk also contains lots of important vitamins and minerals. In many countries ,dairy products provide 5 – 10 % of the total calories of the daily human diet. It represents one of the best natural sources of essential amino acids for human nourishment. Moreover, milk is an excellent source of calcium and a good source of phosphorus. As these 2 elements play an essential role in building the bones and teeth in the body, it is clear that milk should be included in the diet of humans in all their stages of life. In fact milk is the most important source of calcium in the diet of almost all people. These nutritional attributes have made milk a mainstay in the diet, particularly of growing children. It is recommended to drink 3 – 4 glasses of milk per person per day. It is estimated that worldwide some 8,000 to 10,000 different milk products are available. This makes milk an exceptionally versatile raw product. SNF milk is known to most people as “skim milk”. SNF stands for solids-not-fat milk (SNF), which describes the total solids content minus fat. The nutritional as well as the economic value of milk is directly associated with its solids content. The higher the solids content the better its nutritional value and the more of a milk product can be made out of it. For example, cheese yields are directly related to the protein and in particular to the

However, milk is a perishable product. It is an ideal medium for micro-organisms and as it is a liquid, it is very easily contaminated and invaded by bacteria. Almost all bacteria in milk originate from the air, dirt, dung, hairs and other extraneous substances. In other words, milk is mainly contaminated with bacteria during milking. It is possible to milk animals in such a clean way that the raw milk contains only 500 to 1,000 bacteria per ml. Usually the total bacteria count after milking is up to 50,000 per ml. However, counts may reach several millions bacteria per ml. That indicates a very poor hygienic standard during milking and the handling of the milk or milk of a diseased animal with i.e, Mastitis. Raw milk is one of the most suitable media for the growth of a wide variety of microbes, especially immediately after milking when it is almost at body temperature. However, milk contains a natural inhibitory system which prevents a significant rise in the bacteria count during the first 2 - 3 hours. If milk is cooled within this period to 4 ˚C, it maintains nearly its original quality. Timely cooling ensures that the quality of the milk remains good for processing and consumption. The bacterial load in fresh raw milk should be less than 50,000 per ml when it reaches the collection point or processing plant. To prevent a too high multiplication of bacteria, the milk