Hi everyone this is Monica Reinagle and you're listening to the

nutrition divas quick and dirty tips for eating well and feeling fabulous

today's episode is on homogenization and how that might affect the nutritional qualities

or the health benefits of milk.

Most commercially sold cow's milk, including most organic milk,

goes through a few stages of processing before it reaches the store shelf.

It's usually pasteurized in order to kill any pathogenic bacteria it may contain.

And you can hear more about the pros and cons of unpasteurized or raw milk in my special two-part

podcast on that subject.

Most commercially sold milk is also fortified

with vitamins A and D in an effort to ensure adequate intake of these nutrients in

the general population. Commercial milk is also usually homogenized, a mechanical process that breaks the

fat globules into smaller droplets so that they stay suspended in the milk rather than

separating out and floating to the top of the jug.

Before the milk is homogenized, some of that fat may be skimmed off to reduce the amount of fat in the end product.

Homogenization was invented around the turn of the 20th century,

and it quickly became the industry standard

because people preferred the convenience of milk

that didn't have to be vigorously shaken to distribute the fat every time you wanted to use it.

These days, however, we tend to see food processing as something that reduces the nutritive value of foods.

And some have even suggested that homogenization

might have a negative impact on how the milk affects your body.

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