Milk as a Functional Food

Milk is an important constituent of human nutrition, rich in essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals. From early times milk and milk products have been considered to have a range of health-promoting functional ingredients. This chapter provides the reader with a brief overview of biochemical composition of different milk sources, its health benefits and functional value. In addition antimicrobial properties and immunity booster potential of milk are also discussed. The current chapter also covers heat treatments for milk preservation and effects of different processing techniques used to preserve quality and functional ingredients of milk. Furthermore, a brief discussion about human milk composition, infant formulas and fortification of milk and milk products with essential micronutrients has been reviewed.