Is Skimmed Milk Really Healthy? We Asked The Experts And Here’s What They Said

Captioning any food “healthy” or “unhealthy” requires a detailed discussion on each aspect. We will be discussing the following points before reaching to any conclusion.

• What is skimmed milk?
• How it is produced?
• Nutritional facts of skimmed milk
• In which health condition skimmed milk is advisable?
• Skimmed Milk is advisable to which age group?

What is Skimmed Milk?

Skimmed Milk is produced from whole milk wherein the fats are removed. As per the FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India), milk which has less than 0.5 % of fat and 8.7% of milk solids not fat can be termed as “Skimmed Milk”

In the United Kingdom, Ireland and Canada it is pronounced as “Skimmed Milk” whereas in United States of America, Australia it is pronounced as “Skim Milk.”

It is also marketed as fat-free milk as it provides less than 0.5 % of fat which is a negligible amount of fat.

In the Indian market, skimmed milk is available in tetra packs. Many renowned companies produce skimmed milk.

How it is produced?

1. Creaming

In this process, milk is kept in a container which facilitates the accumulation of fat on milk surface by the action of gravity. Some manufacturers use heat treatment for creaming process. Heat causes easy accumulation of fats at the surface.

2. Centrifugal

The creamed milk undergoes centrifugal treatment by which fat is separated from milk. Fat and milk undergo different processing. The Centrifugal treatment also removes bacteria and harmful compounds from milk.

During this treatment, milk is forced to pass through tiny holes at very high pressure which leads to oxidation of cholesterol present in milk. Cholesterol has double bonds in its structure making it susceptible to oxidation.  Cholesterol oxidation produces a compound called as “oxysterol”.

3. Fortification

Skimmed milk is fortified with Vitamin A and D lost during the manufacturing process.

4. Homogenization

This process withholds the further splitting of milk solids and milk imparting a homogenised structure to milk.

5. Packaging

The skimmed milk is packed in tetra paks which assure protection of vitamins and also increases shelf life by avoiding contamination and spoilage.

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