A1 Vs A2 Milk – Does it Matter?
Yes it is matter due to the quality difference in among them. Quality difference occurs due to the difference in breeds and amino acids in milk. The A1 milk contains histidine amino acid and A2 milk contains proline amino acid. Mutation occurs at 67 amino acid in a chain.
The protein content of milk contains of up to 80% casein. There are many types of casein & Beta-casein is the 2nd most common type of casein in milk. Beta casein exists in 2 common forms but it has 13 different forms. The 2 common forms are:
A1 beta-casein:
This type of casein is highly found in the breeds of cow including Holstein, Friesian, Ayrshire, & British Shorthorn. These breeds are found in Northern Europe.
A2 beta-casein:
This type of casein is highly found in the breeds(1) of cow including Guernsey, Jersey, Charolais & Limousin. These breeds are found in Channel Islands & Southern France.
The difference in the quality is A1 milk contains both A1 Beta-casein & A2 Beta-casein while A2 milk contains only A2 Beta-casein. It is to be known that A1 Beta-casein has some harmful effects on health. But A2 Beta casein is a safer one choice. Thus, A2 milk is more preferable than A1 milk.
Why A1 Beta-Casein is harmful?
There are many reasons(2) that milk containing A1 Beta-Casein is harmful over health such as;-
- Lactose intolerant patients can’t digest it.
- An opioid peptide released due the breakdown off histine amino acid during the digestion of A1 Beta-Casein known as Beta-casomorphin-7(BCM-7).
Many research studies (3) reveal that both BCM-7 & A1 beta-casein is linked with many diseases including
- Type 1 Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Sudden Infant death(SID’s)
- Autism
- Digestive problems
Type 1 Diabetes:
Many observational studies (4) indicate that drinking A1 milk in childhood increase the risk of Type 1 Diabetes than drinking A2 milk. But it is not still experimented.
Heart disease:
According to Newzealand researcher (5) “CNS Mclachlan, the regular intake of A1 milk promotes the risk of coronary heart diseases(CHD).”
Two observational studies (6) reveal that A1 milk consumption linked with higher risk of heart diseases.
They did 2 trials on rabbits. There was a difference seen in A1 consumed milk rabbit and in A2 consumed milk rabbit. The difference was that there was the fat buildup in injured blood vessels promoted by A1 Beta-Casein. But this fat buildup was much slower than A2 consumed milk. But there is no effect has been shown on blood cholesterol by either consuming A1 or A2 milk.
Sudden Infant death syndrome(SID’s):
This syndrome mostly occurs in children which are under 12 months old. In this syndrome, infant died without any special cause. Some researches reveal that sleep apnea (Breathing temporarily stopped during sleep) occurs in infants due to the high levels of BCM-7 found in their blood. The sleep apnea shown to be linked (7) with a higher risk of SID’s.
Autism:
This is a neurological disorder in which there is a problem with social interaction & repetitive behavior. A Russian researcher studies reveals that infants with high levels of BCM-7 in blood & urine, may results in autism with poor ability to plan or to do some actions. This BCM-7 opioid found in infants milk is due to the consumption of formula milk while this BCM-7 was absent in breastfed infants.
Digestive Problems:
One research says about the consequences of consuming A1 milk in Chinese adults that it may cause higher digestive discomfort. But consuming A2 milk may cause less digestive discomfort.
Drinking A1 milk (8) also increase gut inflammations & stomach bloating. Thus, consuming A1 beta casein promotes adverse digestive symptoms in few people.
Why A2 Beta-Casein is a Healthier Choice?
Because A2 beta-casein doesn’t interfere with the healthy bodily functions means it doesn’t causes any kind of disease which is caused by consuming A1 beta-caesin. Even though the Professor Bob Elliot from the university of Auckland also claims (9) that drinking A2 milk could solve almost all problems which is linked with dairy consumption.
Conclusion
As, we know that A2 milk is more preferable over A1 milk due to its amazing benefits over health. So A1 milk is avoidable.
