Cockroach Milk: Yes! Cockroach Milk Is A Superfood Beneficial For Humans, Claim Scientists
Cockroach milk is the post-natal fluid which is secreted from the critter in the form of crystals in order to nourish its hatchlings which are close to 50.
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You must have heard about cow milk, almond milk and soy milk to name a few. But have you ever heard about cockroach milk? Weird and creepy as it may sound, but insects are the latest fad in the craze of superfoods. Researchers from the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine in India say that humans can enjoy nourishment from cockroach milk. Cockroach milk is the post-natal fluid which is secreted from the critter in the form of crystals in order to nourish its hatchlings which are somewhere close to 50. Researchers claim that these crystals contain proteins, sugars and fats, and are like complete foods. The protein sequences apparently contain all essential amino acids. Milking of a cockroach can be done with the help of filter paper along with making culture of yeast with cockroach genes for making milk.
Also read: 6 Best Non-Dairy Substitutes For Milk
Moving over to what most of you dread the most - the taste of cockroach milk - it is said that it tastes like cow milk. However, given the small size of cockroaches, it might take a lot of these insects for extracting one glass of milk.
Following this development, Gwyneth Paltrow's website Goop has added cockroaches to their animal milk guide. Alongside, the Gourmet Grubb company is already selling entomilk which is made from insects that are farmed in a sustainable manner. These companies make the claim that entomilk or milk extracted from insects is rich in protein, calcium, zinc and iron.
Also read: 7 Proven Health Benefits Of Soy Milk
On its website, Gourmet Grubb mentions that entomilk should be thought of as nature-friendly, sustainable, lactose free, nutritious, guilt-free and delicious alternative of the future.
What's more is that eating insects and insect-based dairy has become common in western diets. There are now online websites which are providing dehydrated and freeze-dried insects. Varieties like barbecue mealworm, salt and vinegar crickets and garlic chapulines are available.
It seems as if the times are long gone when insect eating was restricted to only a few countries like China, Thailand, Brazil and Ghana. The trend actually seems to be spreading worldwide.
But no matter what, getting people to drink cockroach milk or insect milk might be a tad bit difficult. Irrespective of the claimed nutrition content of entomilk, it will take a quite a while until people accept it and include in their daily diets and lifestyle. This has been accepted by both scientists and producers of cockroach milk. The unappealing name and appearance of cockroach milk and cockroaches respectively are to be credited for the same.
Also read: Toned Milk Vs Full-Cream Milk: Which Milk Is Healthier For Weight Loss
Moreover, experts are still to examine if it is safe to consume cockroach milk. There is a lack of evidence about safety of cockroach milk for human consumption.
Hence, you can still wait before you start dreading the onset of insect milk flooding the markets. While some companies are working towards developing it, there are still many questions left to be answered with respect to cockroach milk or insect milk. There is still time that it becomes a worldwide trend.
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