Everything You Thought You Knew About Milk

Tito Ipinmoye

If you grew up in Nigeria in the 90s or early 2000s, chances are you didn’t learn about milk from a science class. You learnt about it from television. Back then, adverts were part of our childhood. We didn’t reach for a remote every time the commercials came on. We sang the jingles, quoted the catchphrases and years later, many of us can still remember them word for word.

For me, one advert stands above the rest. It followed a young Kanu Nwankwo as he dribbled a football through the dusty streets of Owerri on an errand for his mother. He left home with nothing but a football at his feet, dribbling all the way to the market. Just as a tin of milk slipped from the market woman’s hands, he flicked it back into the air with effortless skill. She smiled and said: “Papilo, I know say one day you go make us proud.”

As children, we believed her. Not because we understood marketing, but because those adverts made us believe that greatness could begin anywhere. They told us that a boy from Owerri, Nigeria could become one of Africa’s greatest footballers. They told us that ordinary children with big dreams could grow into extraordinary adults.

And somewhere between that advert and my mum pouring milk into my breakfast cereal every morning before school, I came to believe two things. The first was that milk helped build strong bones and teeth. The second was that maybe, just maybe, I could become whoever I dreamed of becoming.

Years later, after becoming a dietitian, I realised that my childhood understanding wasn’t wrong, it was simply incomplete. Today, conversations about milk have become surprisingly complicated. Social media is filled with conflicting opinions. Some people insist milk is only for children. Others believe it causes weight gain. Some assume all milk is the same, while others believe dairy milk and non-dairy offer identical nutrition.

As nutrition professionals, we know that the truth is rarely found in headlines or viral videos. It is found in evidence. So, let’s separate what we know about milk from what we only think we know.

What Exactly Is Milk?

From a scientific perspective, milk is the natural nutrient-rich fluid produced by mammals to nourish their young during the earliest stages of life. For humans, cow’s milk is the most widely consumed form of dairy milk and has been part of diets around the world for generations. But from a nutrition perspective, milk is much more than its definition. It is a naturally nutrient-dense food that provides a unique combination of high-quality protein, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin B12, riboflavin and other essential nutrients that work together to support growth, bone health, muscle function, energy production and overall wellbeing throughout life.

Unlike many foods that contribute just one or two key nutrients, milk delivers several essential nutrients in one convenient food. This is one of the reasons it has remained a staple in many cultures and continues to play an important role in healthy eating patterns across different stages of life. Yet despite these nutritional benefits, milk remains one of the most misunderstood foods on our tables.

Over the years, I’ve heard people say that milk is only for children, that it causes weight gain or that all milk products are the same. Social media has only amplified these conversations, making it increasingly difficult to separate evidence from opinion. So, let’s look at some of the most common myths about milk and what science tells us.

Why Milk Matters

One of the things I have learned after years of working as a dietitian is that conversations about milk often focus on just one nutrient: calcium. Yes, milk is well known for supporting strong bones and healthy teeth, but that’s only one part of the story. Milk provides a unique combination of nutrients that work together to support the body in different ways. Rather than contributing just one benefit, it supplies several essential nutrients in a single food, each playing its own role in maintaining good health.

High-quality protein helps build and repair muscles, organs and other body tissues. It’s essential for growth in children and helps adults maintain muscle mass throughout life.

Calcium and phosphorus work together to support strong bones and healthy teeth. These nutrients are especially important during childhood and adolescence, when bones are developing rapidly, but they also remain important throughout adulthood to help maintain bone health.

Vitamin B12 plays an essential role in the production of healthy red blood cells and supports the normal functioning of the nervous system. Riboflavin (vitamin B2) helps the body convert the food we eat into the energy we need for everyday activities. Many milk products are also fortified with vitamins A and D. Vitamin A supports healthy vision and the normal functioning of the immune system, while vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium effectively, making it an important partner in maintaining strong bones.

What makes milk unique isn’t that it contains one remarkable nutrient. It’s that it brings many important nutrients together in one food. That combination is one of the reasons milk has remained part of healthy dietary patterns across different cultures and generations. A glass of milk doesn’t provide just one nutrient. It provides a package of nutrients working together to support growth, development and overall wellbeing.

Myth 1: ‘Milk Is Only for Children’

One of the most common misconceptions I hear is that milk is something we eventually outgrow, that once we become adults, it no longer has a place in our diet. I understand where that idea comes from. Many of us first encountered milk as children. It was stirred into our morning pap, added to cereal before school or mixed into a warm cup of tea on rainy days. Over time, it’s easy to begin thinking of milk as a “children’s food”. But our bodies tell a different story.

While our nutritional needs change throughout life, they never stop. In fact, the nutrients milk provides continue to support us in different ways as we grow older. For children, milk contributes high-quality protein, calcium and other essential nutrients that support healthy growth and the development of strong bones and teeth. During the teenage years, when growth accelerates and nutritional demands increase, these nutrients remain just as important.

As adults, the focus shifts. Growth may slow, but maintaining muscle mass, preserving bone health and meeting our daily nutrient needs become priorities. The high-quality protein, calcium and other vitamins and minerals found in milk continue to contribute to those goals as part of a balanced diet.

For older adults, maintaining muscle strength and bone health becomes increasingly important. Adequate protein helps preserve muscle as we age, while calcium and vitamin D, where milk is fortified with vitamin D, continue to support healthy bones. In other words, milk doesn’t stop being relevant because we grow older, its role simply changes. The nutrients remain valuable. What changes is how our bodies use them at different stages of life. Perhaps that’s a better way to think about it.

Milk grows with us, not because every person must drink milk every day, but because the nutrients it provides continue to support health from childhood through older adulthood as part of a healthy, balanced diet.

Myth 2: ‘Milk Causes Weight Gain’

If you’ve spent any time on social media, you’ve probably come across someone confidently declaring that milk is “too fattening” or should be avoided if you’re trying to manage your weight. It’s a message that’s repeated so often that many people now accept it as fact. The reality, however, is much less dramatic. No single food causes weight gain on its own. Weight gain occurs when, over time, we consistently consume more energy than our bodies use. Overall dietary patterns, portion sizes, physical activity, sleep and other lifestyle factors all play a role. This is why it’s important to understand the different dairy milk options available rather than assuming they all have the same nutritional profile.

Full Cream Milk naturally contains milk fat and provides high-quality protein, calcium and a range of essential vitamins and minerals. It can be enjoyed as part of a healthy, balanced diet by individuals and families whose nutritional needs and preferences align with this type of dairy milk.

Filled Milk, on the other hand, is a dairy milk product in which part or all of the natural milk fat has been replaced with vegetable oils. While its fat composition differs from that of Full Cream Milk, it continues to provide important nutrients such as protein and calcium, giving consumers another dairy milk option to suit different nutritional needs and preferences. The important question, therefore, isn’t whether milk is “good” or “bad.” It’s whether the product you choose fits your overall dietary pattern, lifestyle and nutritional needs. Nutrition is rarely about eliminating one food, it is about building balanced eating habits over time.

Myth 3: ‘All Milk Is the Same’

At first glance, it’s easy to see why many people believe all milk is the same. Walk into any supermarket and you’ll find shelves lined with products that look similar, often displayed side by side. But while they may all be found in the same aisle, they are not all the same. One of the biggest misconceptions I encounter is the belief that every white powder added to tea, coffee or cereal is simply “milk.” These products are designed for different purposes, and understanding those differences is an important part of making informed nutrition decisions.

Broadly speaking, consumers will come across three main categories: Dairy milk, such as Full Cream Milk and Filled Milk, which provide high-quality protein, calcium and other essential nutrients. Creamers, which are designed primarily to add creaminess, texture and flavour to beverages such as tea and coffee. They serve a different purpose from dairy milk and do not provide the same nutritional profile. Ultimately, the best choice begins with understanding what each product is intended to do. When we know the difference between dairy milk, and creamers, we can choose the product that best fits our nutritional needs instead of assuming they are all nutritionally equivalent.

Final Thoughts

Whenever I think about milk, I don’t think first about football. I think about the words of a mother to a young boy: “Papilo, I know say one day you go make us proud.” As children, we saw a story about dreams. Looking back, I realize that the advert gave us more than nostalgia. It sparked a conversation about nutrition that many of us are still having today.

The difference is that, as adults and for me, as a dietitian we now have the opportunity to replace assumptions with evidence. We can look beyond the stories we grew up with and make informed choices based on nutrition science. The stories that shaped our childhood sparked our curiosity. Science helps us make informed choices. And that’s something worth passing on to the next generation.

* Ipinmoye is the author of ‘A Dietitian’s Perspective on Why Milk Still Deserves a Place at the Table.’