Goat milk

Goat milk is helpful  and nutritious food of several million people in the developing countries, especially those on the poverty line. Rearing goats provides small but important supply of milk of high biological value, plus essential minerals and important fat borne vitamins. Which    are of particular significance for the most vulnerable groups, namely pregnant and nursing mothers and young children. The source milk makes the difference

Between adequate nutrition and malnutrition for many rural people who can not afford to buy these foods and are unable to produce them by rearing cattle or buffaloes. The magnitude of this contribution by goats is not known, but it is likely to be very much more significant than is generally recognized The nutritive value of goat milk does not differ appreciably from that cows milk.

Typical  composition of goat, cow, sheep, buffalo and human milk %

Composition	Goat	Cow	Sheep	Buffalo	Human
Total solid	11.9	12.8	19.4	16.8	12.6
Fat	3.9	3.9	8.3	7.4	4.5
Protein	2.9	3.3	5.4	3.8	1.1
Lactose	4.3	4.8	4.8	4.9	6.8
Ash	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.78	0.20

The protein content of goat milk is much higher than that of human milk in relation to total calories. The total energy supplied by goat milk is derived 50% from fat and 25% each from lactose and protein, whereas the proportions for human milk are 55% from fat ,38% from lactose, and only 7% from protein. The proteins also differ in proportions and kind , but the total amino acids profile is similar in  goat and human milk, with the essential amino acids of goat milk slightly in excess of infant requirements.

Total fat content is not greatly different, and goat milk is adequate for infants in essential fatty acids, with linoleic acid providing about 1% of total calories. Smaller size fat globules in goat milk is easily digestible than cows milk.

Distribution of fat globules in goat, cow and sheep milk

Size of fat globules             (    μ  )		Proportion of fat globules (%)
	Goat	Cow	Sheep
1.5	28	11	29
3.0	35	33	40
4.5	20	22	17
6.0	12	18	12
6.0	5	16	2
Average diameter	3.5	4.5	3.3

Goat milk is an excellent source of calcium and phosphorus, which is excellent source of the infant requirement. Excess of potassium and calorie, however was blamed for the severe acidosis which developed in an infant fed on diluted raw goat milk.

Goat milk contains adequacy or excess of vitamins except C, D, Pyridoxine and Folic acid.

Nevertheless, in emergency, diluted goat milk supplemented by a source of folic acid can be used for infant and obviously it could also be used to supplement the mother milk. It has much less allergic problems than milk of other species of livestock. It has medicinal qualities