Switching to a lower fat milk on cereal
Fat - The Basics
“The fat content of milk varies from one type to another. Whole milk contains 4% fat, semi-skimmed 1.7% and skimmed 0.1% fat”, explains Julia Wolman, registered public health nutritionist.
“One pint of milk a day provides the adult daily requirement of calcium”.
“Calcium, particularly from dairy products, is thought to help weight loss and reduce body weight by binding fat from the meal in the intestine and increasing its excretion from the body”.
“Skimmed milk is virtually fat-free and therefore contains only trivial or zero amounts of the fat-soluble vitamins (A, D and E). However, this should not stop you from thinking about switching to lower fat milk”.
“If switching straight to a lower fat milk sounds too hard – try mixing the higher and lower milk together for a few weeks and gradually use more of the lower fat milk. It will take only a few weeks for your taste buds to become accustomed to the lower fat content”.
“Many people, after a few weeks of using low fat milk, find whole milk too creamy!”
Common Fat Myths and Misconceptions
- “Skimmed milk contains less calcium than whole milk” – Skimmed and semi-skimmed milk contain slightly more calcium than whole milk.
- “Diluting full fat milk with water is the same as using a lower fat milk” – Diluting any milk with water not only reduces the fat content, it also reduces the amount of other nutrients such as calcium.
Fat - Tips and Tricks
- Keep a carton of long life (UHT) skimmed or semi skimmed milk in your cupboard for the day you run out of fresh milk.
- If others in the family do not like lower fat milk, buy a smaller container of ‘your’ milk, and continue to buy the type your family prefer for their use.
- When using a high fibre cereal, remember to drink a cup of water, juice, tea or coffee with it to ensure the fibre has adequate fluid to do its job.
- If you like oats, you may find that skimmed milk is more enjoyable with this rather than other cereals (e.g. Branflakes, Cornflakes) that do not form a ‘porridge’ consistency.
- It is safe for infants of 2½-years-old and over to use semi-skimmed milk so long as their growth and weight is satisfactory (children above 5-years-old can safely use skimmed milk if growth and weight are satisfactory).
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