Last Updated on January 2, 2021 by The Health Master
CHANDIGARH: Does drinking cow milk increases the cognitive ability and intelligence quotient in children or is there a difference in the IQ of those, who drink cow milk and those who drink packet milk?
Scientific evidence is being collected in the form of a study at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, Chandigarh, to understand the difference. The project has been sanctioned by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for three years.
The clinicians shall enroll children up to 18 years of age. There will be three groups of subjects – one will include those children, who have been exclusively fed cow’s milk for last 15 to 20 years, the other will include children, who are fed milk from hybrid cows and the third group will include those, who are fed buffalo milk and packet milk.
“We have been hearing about the value of cow milk in traditional science. But there is no such scientific evidence. So, we took this project and got approval from the ICMR,” said Dr Ravi Gupta, principal investigator of the study.
The researchers plan to get children enrolled by contacting gaushalas, which have been supplying cow milk to families for over 15 years.
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“As the brain development is until 18 years of age, we will enroll children up to that age. In case we find cognitive development faster in those who have been fed cow milk only, we will then test biochemically and nutrients which cause the same,” said Dr Gupta.
He said, “We will have a psychiatrist to assess the IQ levels in these children, who have been fed milk prospectively.”
However, there have been previous studies which found that there are some nutritional deficiencies in cow milk. Studies revealed that infants, who were fed cow milk during their second year, are at a disadvantage compared to those who were breastfed.
Thus, such studies have endorsed that infants should receive formula instead of cow milk when breast milk is unavailable as a dairy source until two years of age.
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