What Drinking Milk Every Day Does to Your Body – Martha Stewart

What Drinking Milk Every Day Does to Your Body, According to Nutrition Experts

From calcium and protein to key vitamins, here’s how a daily glass of milk can impact your health.

By Kirsten Nunez, Published on April 4, 2026

Key Points

• Drinking milk every day can support your overall health by providing essential nutrients that benefit your body.
  
• Milk is packed with calcium, vitamin D, and protein, which strengthen bones, support muscles, and reduce osteoporosis risk.
  
• Milk’s combination of protein, fat, and water helps keep you full, hydrated, and energized throughout the day.

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With the rising popularity of plant-based milk, it’s easy to forget about the benefits of dairy. But when it comes to nutrition, cow’s milk still reigns supreme; it’s a source of essential vitamins and minerals as well as quality protein. Cow’s milk is also generally less processed than plant-based varieties, which might be desirable if you’re trying to eat more whole foods. 

So, if you can tolerate dairy and enjoy the taste, it’s worth adding milk to your daily rotation. What will happen if you do? Here, registered dietitians share how drinking milk every day affects your body, plus how much to drink for the most benefits. 

• Roxana EhsPani, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN, sports dietitian and adjunct instructor at Virginia Tech University
• Diane Lindsay-Adler, RDN, CDN, assistant professor of pediatrics at New York Medical College
• Nicole Roach, RD, CDN, CDCES, Northwell’s Lenox Hill Hospital

What Drinking Milk Every Day Does to Your Body

Milk was a desirable daily staple for decades. Its popularity started to dip in the late 20th century as dietary advice shifted. Concerns about saturated fat and cholesterol made whole milk seem less healthy. Now, scientific research points to the many positives of drinking milk daily.

Improves Bone Health

“Drinking a glass of dairy milk every day provides essential bone-supporting nutrients, including calcium, vitamin D, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, and protein,” says Roxana Ehsani, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN, sports dietitian and adjunct instructor at Virginia Tech. Specifically, one cup of dairy milk offers 310 milligrams of calcium (about 25 percent of your daily needs) and 8 grams of complete protein, according to Ehsani. The same serving also provides about 2.9 micrograms of vitamin D, a nutrient that’s found in fortified milk.

“Calcium provides the structural foundation of bone, vitamin D enhances calcium absorption, and protein supports the collagen matrix,” says Diane Lindsay-Adler, RDN, CDN, assistant professor of pediatrics at New York Medical College. These nutrients are important during periods of growth and help reduce the risk of osteoporosis and fractures later in life, says Lindsay-Adler.

Increases Protein Intake

“The protein in milk can significantly contribute to your daily protein intake,” Ehsani says. “Milk provides all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete, high-quality source of protein,” she notes. Thus, drinking milk daily may be helpful if you’re trying to build muscle, recover from illness, or eat more protein as you age.

Repairs Muscle

As mentioned, milk is a complete protein. This means it contains all the essential amino acids needed for muscle repair and maintenance, says Lindsay-Adler. It’s especially rich in branched-chain amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine), which are absorbed directly from the small intestine into the bloodstream and taken up by skeletal muscle, Lindsay-Adler says.

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