What does milk mean for a person? - Much. After all, from the moment we were born, the first thing we feel in our mouth is the taste of mother’s milk, and with age, we are always surrounded by tasty and healthy dairy products. Therefore, we can safely say that this is the number one product in the world. But then we suggest that you look at milk from a different angle and discover, perhaps, its unexpected sides.
1
Cow Cannibalism
Imagine this picture - one cow is eating another cow. Presented? Well, would they drink cow's milk after that? The next time you buy milk in the store, you can think about its origin.
Do you think that the process of getting milk goes like in an advertisement, where a herd of well-groomed cows chews clean grass on a green meadow and then eats nutritious feeds? Ideally, it is, but for farmers it is too expensive. They need to get more milk at minimal cost. This is where waste-free production is manifested. Processing plants accept dead animals and make bone meal and proteins from them. All this is then added to the diet of animals.
But this has its own negative side. Protein from dead animals can cause mad cow disease. It's all about prions. This is an almost indestructible protein that literally eats up the brain from the inside, leaving viscous voids. People can become infected with mad cow disease.
Sadly, the cause of this disease is people themselves. After all, cows are herbivores. Well, they do not eat meat, so Mother Nature conceived. And we are giving them, in fact, their brothers, which is why such terrible diseases occur. This suggests that a person should not interfere with the laws of nature.
2
Cows love to listen to slow music
When we buy milk, to some extent we can thank Lou Reed, the author of the song “Perfect Day”. The fact is that scientists from the University of Leicester conducted a study that showed that this slow composition lifts the cows' mood, thereby increasing milk yield.
Believe it or not, this is a proven fact. Songs with a slow tempo of less than 100 beats per minute can increase milk productivity in cows by 3 percent. They have a relaxing effect on animals. After such "sound therapy", the cows only have to do how to focus on milk production.
Other effective tunes include Bridge over Troubled Water (Simon and Garfunkel), What a Difference a Day Makes (Aretha Franklin) and Everybody Hurts (R.E.M.).
But not everyone shares this opinion. Canadians, or rather, the Department of Agriculture of Canada, are skeptical of this study. According to them, this experiment was carried out only once, no one has repeated it and has not tested it since 2001. They believe that there is no connection with a particular song and an increase in milk production for cows. Most likely, the music simply drowns out other unpleasant sounds, for example, from the milking machine or the tractor, and the cows feel more comfortable. But if you keep the cows, why don't you try to turn on some slow composition and test the theory yourself?
3
Skim milk and creamy cloth
No one drank skim milk before. Residues from milk processing along with whey and buttermilk were discharged into rivers as waste. The Wisconsin dairy in the United States dumped 18,000 liters of dairy waste into the state’s waterways annually in the 1920s. All this accumulated, and a terrible smell appeared. To stop pollution, and at the same time such a thoughtless approach to production, dairy companies decided to find another application for skim milk.
Since 1940, US companies began supplying dried skim milk to the Union countries. An even greater interest in skim milk appeared after it was announced its effectiveness in losing weight. But the most important and beneficial use of skim milk was the production of casein.
From casein began to produce garments and other textile products. Inspired by the new material, it was believed that casein clothing would become a new trend. But after a few years, interest in new material died away. It's all about the complexity of production and the quality of casein products.
That was until 2011, when a German Frau named Anke Domaske invented her already famous QMilch. Anke's innovation is the use of not fresh, but sour milk for the production of casein. Such spoiled milk in Germany is poured in huge volumes. The material is odorless, hypoallergenic to humans and mixes easily with other tissues. Anke Domaske now has her own Mademoiselle Chi Chi clothing line.
4
Boys and girls get different milk
In men and women, biologically everything is completely different. This is understandable, because we are of different sexes. In men, pronounced musculature, skeleton. Women are smoother and more fragile. It is also known that women live longer than men. But also men and women receive different milk.
A study on macaques showed that the composition of mother's milk in females changed from whether she gave birth to a boy or girl. If there was a boy, then the fat content of milk increased to 35%, and if there was a girl, then there was more protein and calcium in milk. It is assumed that boys need increased fat content due to their violent activity. And in general, girls received milk of a better quality than boys.
And in other animals, a change in the composition of milk is observed depending on gender. For example, among cows, deer, gray seals, and also among us people. University of Michigan scientists observed 72 Kenyan women. They found that moms nursing boys had more fat milk. All the same differences in composition as observed macaques. But other somewhat strange differences were noticed. It was observed that women from poor families produced better milk for girls, with a higher content of protein and fat. But for successful women from developed countries, on the contrary, boys received more high-calorie milk. This suggests that the differences are not only by gender, but also by social status.
But scientists still can not find the reason for the difference in the composition of milk. But it comes down to the fact that this discovery should be taken into account by baby food companies and adapt the mixes for both sexes.
5
Most people cannot digest cow's milk.
Pour a glass of milk and drink. Well, how are you feeling? Are there any signs of diarrhea or flatulence? If not, then you can safely consider yourself a mutant.
It is estimated that about 65% of people on Earth cannot digest milk. It's all about lactase, an enzyme that is needed to digest lactose. Lactose, in turn, is the sugar found in milk. Every young child produces lactase to digest breast milk. When a child passes on solid food, lactase production gradually decreases, and with age it may even stop. In such people, lactose does not digest, but accumulates in the intestines, causing diarrhea and nausea.
But here some people were able to adapt to drink milk throughout their lives. This applies to most people from Europe, Africa, Asia and India.
About 12 thousand years ago, some people had a gene that allows them to digest lactose. There are different opinions on the origin of such an anomaly in humans. Some believe that people have adapted against the background of a crop loss and lack of food. Others think that Europeans lacked sunlight, and milk became a source of valuable vitamin D. People in Africa were afraid to drink water from rivers and lakes, fearing infections. Milk has become a safe alternative for them to drinking water.
6
The wonders of bird milk
Not only mammals can produce milk for their offspring. This may be some birds. Take, for example, pigeons. By the way, we wrote about the most beautiful types of pigeons in one of our articles on most-beauty.ru. These ubiquitous "city dwellers" produce a dense substance like milk and feed their chicks with it. Moreover, this is an important part of their diet, without which they can not survive. Pigeon milk is formed in the goiter and stored in the esophagus. A few days before the appearance of the chicks, the female and male begin to develop this substance. If the chicks are hungry, then one of the parents opens the beak, and the chicks get their dose of milk. Not only doves make milk. Emperor penguins and flamingos also feed the chicks with a nutrient mixture from their goiter. Now we can safely say that bird milk does exist.
7
Why are dairy products at the back of the stores?
Woke up in the morning, and you have nothing to fill your favorite cereal? You need to go to the supermarket for a bag of fresh milk. In many countries, milk and dairy products are an integral part of the diet of residents. But why is dairy always at the end of the store? There are two reasons for this.
Firstly, this is a marketing ploy. Most buyers will definitely look into the dairy department, but you still have to get to it. On the way there are counters with a variety of goods. By the time we get to the milk, we are already throwing half the basket with unplanned purchases.
Secondly, this arrangement is rational in terms of convenience. To keep the milk fresh, it must be kept chilled. From the producer, milk is delivered to stores by special vehicles, and loaded into the store in freezers. These cameras are in close proximity to the dairy department at the end of the store. So the product is in the cold environment for as long as possible.
8
The secret of witch's milk
Most of us are sure that only women are able to breastfeed, but it turns out that men can also produce milk. To do this, they only need more prolactin hormone in the body. It is he who is responsible for the production of milk.
It sounds strange, but almost every man is able to raise prolactin levels, but these methods will not be very pleasant. For example, a pituitary tumor will cause an increase in the amount of prolactin. You can also spoil your liver with systematic malnutrition or take antibiotics that affect the chemical processes in the body. Or you can start massaging your nipples. Yes, such a massage will cause the alveoli in the chest to produce milk.
Not only people have this phenomenon. Scientists have identified the possibility of lactation in male goats, bats and guinea pigs.
Even more interesting is that newborn babies can also sometimes produce milk three days after birth. Such milk is called "witch's milk." The baby's breast swells, giving off milk. This can occur from an overabundance of estrogens that the mother secrets to the baby in the womb. There is no need to fear for the baby’s health, everything comes back to normal in a couple of weeks.
But we know this now, and before it was associated with perfume. It was believed that witches and witches used the milk of infants to feed them their spirits and demons. In the Middle Ages, parents put rag dolls in the child’s crib in order to deceive the spirits and ward off the baby.
By the way, on most-beauty.ru there is an interesting article about the most beautiful witches from the movies.
9
Pork milk
For most of us, the most mundane milk is cow's milk. There are many lovers of goat milk or cheese. Of all the milk diversity on the planet, we can also name camel milk, from which shubat is made. By the way, a very valuable drink in the east. Mare’s milk is also consumed. From it they get the famous koumiss, which the nomads used to use as an alcoholic drink. All these dairy products are extremely useful and more or less have taken root in our society.
But there is a mammal that would never occur to anyone to associate with getting milk. These are ordinary pigs. It’s not that difficult to accustom her to milking, nobody succeeded at all.
Pigs have 14 small nipples, which are very difficult to squeeze. Also, pork milk does not fold well, and it is difficult to get cheese out of it. But that does not stop chef Edward Lee. He's just obsessed with pigs. He has repeatedly tried to get cheese from pork milk. He manages to milk them only in a dream. I must say that such milk is already clotting better.
In 2014, Lee came up with a new strategy for obtaining pork milk. He stated that he was going to infiltrate a pig family and live with them in a cage until they took him for their own. Such a trick was already successful for enthusiasts with lions and other predators. He hopes that the pigs will allow him to milk and then his restaurant will begin to serve fresh cheese from pork milk. Would you like to try such a product?
10
Breast milk sale online
In the US, the government strictly monitors the circulation of blood or seminal fluid, but breast milk is considered normal food. This means that any mother, having an excess of her milk, can sell it.
Indeed, many mothers donate their milk to special banks, where it is pasteurized and sent to maternity hospitals or direct customers. Such milk costs about $ 130 per liter.
But not everyone wants such milk, yet it is processed. Then only the Breast website, created by a couple from California, Glenn and Helly Snag, comes to the rescue. There you can sell or buy real breast milk without any processing. To attract buyers, mothers even use bright names like "The freshest and fattest!". There are also special sections where you can find milk by month of life. On average, selling 1 liter per day, a woman can earn up to $ 20,000 per year. But not all women want profit, many are ready to give the surplus completely free. The Eats on Feets website helps.
The government is not against such a movement, but warns that buying someone else’s milk can be dangerous. The study showed that almost 4% of potential milk donors suffer from hepatitis, syphilis and HIV.
In Russia, we found large sites for the sale of breast milk, but there are several groups in social networks where women offer their milk for sale. Price for 100g. starts from 50 rubles, which is an order of magnitude less than in the United States.