Why Is Milk White?

What Is Milk?

No doubt, milk has become an important component of our diet. There are many benefits of milk. We can use milk to glow our skin, strengthen our bones and teeth, rebuild our muscles, lose weight, and lower our blood pressure. As we know that milk is a white liquid and it is produced by the mammary glands of the mammals. Milk is the primary source of nutrition for newly born mammals because they can’t digest other kinds of foods.

Why Is the Colour Of Milk White?

When we see the color of milk, then it seems to us white. Now, a question comes to mind why is milk white rather than red, yellow, green, or blue? As we know that the color of a material depends on the properties of the material. Therefore, before going to know about the white color of the milk, we should try to know the composition of the milk.

The Composition Of The Milk

Generally, milk is composed of carbohydrates, fat, protein, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. When we talk about the gross composition of the milk, then we come to know that there is 87.7% water in the milk. Moreover, there is also 4.9% lactose and 3.4% fat in the milk. There are also minerals and proteins in the milk. The composition of minerals in the milk is 0.7% and the composition of proteins is 3.3% in the milk. As we know that we can get milk from different species like cows, goats, sheep, and buffaloes. The composition of the milk doesn’t remain constant for all the species. This composition of milk varies to some extent from one species to the other species. It is also interesting to know that this composition of the milk also depends upon the feed of the animals.

Summary

• Water = 87.7%
• Lactose = 4.9%
• Fat = 3.4%
• Minerals = 0.7%
• Proteins = 3.3%

What Is the Phenomenon behind The White Colour Of The Milk?

As we know that the color of a material depends on the properties of the material. This particular composition of the milk allows the milk to reflect all the visible wavelengths of light and it doesn’t observe any wavelength of light. When all the wavelengths of the light combine, it forms white color. That’s why the color of the milk is white. Physics lovers should also learn about the blue color of the sky.

Why Is Cow’s Milk Yellow?

As we have discussed earlier that the color of a material depends upon the properties of the material. The composition of cow’s milk is such that the fat particles of the cow’s milk contain a coloring pigment that is called Beta-Carotene. On the other hand, buffalo’s milk doesn’t contain this coloring pigment. Due to the presence of this coloring pigment, the composition of the cow’s milk is different from the composition of the buffalo’s milk. That’s why the buffalo’s milk is white and the cow’s milk is yellowish.

Why Skim Milk is Blue?

If we remove fat from the milk, this milk is known as skim milk. If we are removing fat from the milk, it means that we are changing the composition of the milk. The remaining composition of the milk is such that it scatters blue light slightly more than other wavelengths of light. That’s why skim milk has a blueish look.

If Milk is White, Why Cheese is Yellow?

From milk, we are preparing lots of products. When we prepare cheese from the milk, we see that it has a yellow color. Now, a question comes to the minds of the people if we are preparing cheese from milk, why it has a yellow color? As we have discussed earlier that cow’s milk is yellowish due to the presence of the coloring pigment Beta-Carotene. This coloring pigment comes into the cow’s milk from the grass.

As milk is present in the form of liquid, we can’t observe it because milk binds itself to the fat component of the milk. When we prepare cheese from the milk, we remove the liquid components from the milk. As a result, the concentration of the Beta-Carotene increases in the remaining product and it reflects yellow color slightly more than other colors. That’s why even after preparing the milk, the color of the cheese is yellow.

Interesting Information

We are fulfilling 90% of human needs for milk by drinking cow’s milk. Moreover, we have been drinking cow’s milk for over 10,000 years ago. First of all, cow’s milk was drunk in Afghanistan over 10,000 years ago.