31 Everyday Foods That Are Terrible for Your Health (Avoid Them at All Costs)

Are all milks created equal?

7. Skim milk

Whole milk has fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and K that are great for your body. However, when the fat content is removed to make skim milk, manufacturers have to add these vitamins back into the milk.

Fortifying skim milk makes it nutritionally similar to whole milk, but studies claim that these vitamins are not easily absorbed by our bodies without the milk fat.

We always hear that milk is a great way to get more calcium and vitamin D. Vitamin D comes in two forms, vitamin D3 and the synthesized version vitamin D2. Since most cows are kept from actual sunlight, they lack vitamin D3. Companies then fortify the milk with vitamin D2, but research from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that our bodies regard D2 as basically useless when compared to true forms of vitamin D.

8. Rice milk

To make rice milk, companies take milled white rice and mix it with water to form a milky consistency. Courtney Subramanian at Time.com says that: “During the process, carbohydrates become sugar, giving it a natural sweetened taste. The sugary alternative is very low in nutrient value unless vitamins and calcium are added to it”.