6. Nutritional properties and health benefits of dairy protein ingredients

The nutritional quality of dairy proteins is excellent, thanks to excellent digestibility (close to 100%) and a good composition of essential amino acids (AA).

The digestive utilization of milk proteins is excellent, close to 100% for total proteins and around 98% for casein. Whey proteins are rich in sulfur-containing amino acids, so their protein utilization is close to that of egg white protein (the reference protein).

Dairy proteins and certain peptides derived from their digestion have biological properties that go beyond mere nutritional intake. In vitro and in vivo animal experiments have revealed a range of properties, which will be discussed in turn.