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Is Giraffe Milk the Next Trendy Superfood?

It seems that the famous scene in "Meet the Parents" where Ben Stiller asserts that you can milk anything with nipples has bred a bunch of curious Google users into wondering if you can milk a giraffe. You can. And you can drink the milk. Apparently mammals, humans included, can drink each other’s milk and reap nutritional benefits. But some milk is just easier to attain and generally tastier than others.

The only study on giraffe milk dates back to 1962 when scientists had to anesthetize a giraffe in order to milk it and study the results. As for the results, whether or not giraffe milk is really a superfood is up for debate.

Giraffe milk has a significantly higher fat content than cow milk. While this may seem like a bad thing, recent studies have shown that a high-fat dairy diet seems to lower the risk of getting diabetes. In addition, giraffe milk has also higher levels of vitamins B12 and A than cow’s milk, but similar levels of riboflavin, thiamine and vitamin B6. So from a nutritional standpoint, giraffe’s milk is pretty healthful — albeit high in fat.

So why isn’t giraffe milk a thing? There’s the fact that giraffes aren’t keen on getting milked. After all, the single attempt required anesthesia. Also, giraffes are endangered. The leggy beasts are running out of room to roam thanks to deforestation. And also people illegally kill them for their meat. Rather than trying to drink their milk, people should really try helping them out with various conservation efforts.

After all, there are other four-legged beasts that have milk already bottled and ready to go. Cow and goat milk are available in most supermarkets and you can now buy camel milk online, without having to trek to the Middle East. And if you really want to help a giraffe out, then visit the Wild Nature Institute.

[Image via Getty]

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