Donkey milk potential substitute for children

Research in Italy has found that donkey milk could be a suitable substitute for children who are unable to tolerate cow’s milk. Scientists in the Department of Biomedicine of the Developmental Age at the University of Bari carried out tests to ascertain the nutritional adequacy of donkey’s milk on 25 children with a confirmed cow’s milk allergy. Twenty four of the children could tolerate the donkey’s milk, and all of them found the milk palatable. Donkey’s milk was found to be nutritionally adequate for children eating a varied diet.

Donkey milk is nutritionally similar to human milk, with a very similar protein composition. All children who took part in the study had improved height and weight during the study, but their body mass index remained unaltered by the end of the study (4-6 months).

First published in August 2010

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