Reading this post at A Stitch in Haste caused me to seek out a bit of information on milk. I don't regularly research milk, but I was intrigued by a point that Kip made regarding New York City removing whole milk from public schools due to childhood obesity. He pointed out that the chocolate skim milk that's still available has only 20 fewer calories per serving, so the effect is mostly a move to do something for the kids show, instead of a thought-out (and appropriate) action. As I commented on his post, the sugar content of chocolate skim milk is more than twice that of whole milk. Is it really better to encourage diabetes over obesity? Of course not, but misguided policies always have unintended consequences. Such is life when parents let government raise their children.

In my searching, though, I found an interesting "fact". Consider:

Got chocolate milk? You may want to after you hear this. Research suggests that chocolate milk may be an ideal exercise recovery drink to refuel exhausted muscles – allowing for future enhanced performance.

A study conducted at the University of Indiana found that chocolate milk effectively helped athletes recover from an intense workout. The researchers gave cyclists commercial sports drinks and chocolate milk after exercising to the point of exhaustion. They found that chocolate milk was nearly twice as effective compared to a commercial sports drink as a recovery product, and the athletes liked the taste of chocolate milk a lot better.

The researchers conclude that chocolate milk contains an ideal carbohydrate to protein ratio to make it an effective fuel for recharging muscles after exercise. So, the next time you’re cooling down after a big game or a tough workout, why not take chocolate milk to the training table?

I have no idea about the details of this study, but what idiot finishes a vigorous exercise and thinks "Hmm, I could really use some chocolate milk to recharge"? Especially on a hot day. Although that seems apparent to me, it's worthwhile to comprehend what that statement really compared. Your choices are chocolate milk or a commercial sports drink. Water is good only if something else is in it and that something is sugar, apparently. Brilliant.

Marketing can overcome anything, I suppose.