What is the Best Time to Drink Milk? Find Out Here.

Milk has always been a crucial dietary item for every culture and community in the world. From infant to elderly, it can provide most of the necessary components the body needs in its metabolism. However, there are a lot of things about milk that not all people know about. One of them is the best time to drink milk. Many people drink milk daily but still they do not get as much benefits of it as they expected. Reason? Drinking milk at the wrong time of the day.

So, find out in this article, when should you drink milk to get most of its benefits and when should you avoid it completely, is it ok to drink milk just before going to bed and what is the right way of drinking milk.

Nutritional Values of Milk

Milk is multi-beneficial to humans as it offers valuable nutrients like calcium, proteins, vitamins (A, K, and B12) amino acids, sodium, antioxidants, fibers, and fats.

Despite all the nutritional properties it has, what needs to be more concerning is to know the best time to drink milk as a part of your daily routine. Generally, people drink milk in two phases of a day viz.,

• At night before sleep
• In the morning

Right Time to Drink Milk

There has been a lot of controversies and debate on which of these two shifts can acquire the nutrients better. Here is a piece of brief information below on the advantages of each of the types of daily intakes.

Benefits of Drinking Milk at Night

• The tryptophan amino acids present in milk can help to regulate sound sleep. So, its consumption before going to bed would be a considered routine.
• The melatonin hormone found in milk is also useful in maintaining the cycle of sleep and waking up.
• According to Ayurveda, the night-time consumption of milk can stimulate the reproductive tissues.
• The absorption of calcium in your body is at peak during night hours. Therefore, drinking milk before bed can provide enough calcium in your body from the milk.
• For a pregnant woman, having a glass of milk before bedtime can be highly effective in providing enough nutrients her body requires.
• It can also de-stress the muscles and heal the tensions occurring in the brain.

Benefits of Drinking Milk in the Morning

• Gaining healthy nutrients like protein, vitamin D, and calcium, etc., from milk in the morning would be a wise choice to start the day.
• For infants and pregnant women, a cup of milk in the morning is essential to supply the necessary nutrients in their body for the day.

The Best Ways to Drink Milk

• In the morning, drinking a glass of milk with cereals is one of the best nutritious option.
• Adding milk to fiber-rich foods like oatmeal and fruit salads can be a healthy breakfast item.
• If you are facing cold and cough, add a tsp of turmeric powder or ground fresh turmeric to a cup of hot milk and have it before bed.
• To gain another level of health benefit and synthetic flavor, you can add almond and pistachio powder to your milk.
• For young children, adding dates in the milk can increase the sweetness as well as give high nutritional values.

Apart from these options, you can also go for a lot more varieties by making shakes with valuable fruits to gain extra health benefits.

Milk for People with Health or Medical Issues

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• Stomach Pain or ache: If you are suffering from stomach pain or burns, having a glass of milk can heal it. Milk can offer a thick base layer that would coat the stomach’s lining, which will make you feel relieved from the burn and pain.
• High level of Uric Acid and Gout: The proteins present in milk can help your body digest the uric acids in the body by excreting it in the form of urine. Regular intake of milk can both prevent and cure pre-existing cases like gout, which results from uric acids and its crystallization.
  “Uric acids are also found to have links with cardiovascular diseases and so, regular intake of milk can also be beneficial for such cases.”
• High level of glucose in the blood: For people in conditions like pre-diabetic or in the risk of having type-2 diabetes, daily consumption of milk can be a rewarding routine. It can effectively reduce the glucose level in blood and help in the body’s capability to regulate sugar in it.
  “Yogurt can also be a good alternative if you could not find milk”

Milk for Kids

In kids, growth and development occurs at a very high pace. It is at this stage of life when nutrients like Vitamin D, protein, and calcium are highly required in the body. Therefore, include milk in your kids’ diet to prevent malnutrition and to ensure proper growth and development of their body.

“Vitamin D is found in its natural state only in a few foods, including milk. Deficiency of this component can cause rickets, a disease that can weaken the muscles, make the body bend, and nerve ailments.”

When Not to Drink Milk

If you have the following health conditions, it is advisable to avoid drinking milk:

• Diarrhea
• Asthma
• Cold and cough
• Colitis
• Abnormal immunologic reaction
• Lactose intolerance
• Casein sensitivity

The Gist of It

One may conclude that drinking milk at both the times i.e. in the morning and before going to bed, has its own benefits. You may go for drinking a cup of milk at both these times. However, drinking milk at any other time than these may not be that beneficial as no specific benefits have been found yet.

So, the best time to drink milk is both in the morning and at the bedtime. Avoid drinking milk as an evening beverage or with lunch. Though it is not harmful, it is not much beneficial as well. Also, in case you do not like milk, you may go for other dairy products such as yogurt, buttermilk, paneer, cheese etc. Lactose intolerant people may drink almond milk in place of cow’s milk.