[hack_edu]

No one thinks that peanuts and vegetable oil combine into some magic superfood, yet Plumpy'nut is concretely beneficial to keeping people fed and healthy. Now, consider this same rationale into to a kind of poverty close to home. There is plenty of evidence that milk in school lunches is often the only reliable daily source of calcium and protein for millions of impoverished children worldwide.

Contextualized one way, milk is a meal replacement or nutrition supplement, and one that is more practical than most other options. A serving of whole milk requires zero on-site prep time, is relatively portable once packaged, and perhaps more importantly, it is often the most palatable option for picky eaters. Public health is complicated.

[cies]

> for millions of impoverished children worldwide.

Did you read I wrote "modern diet". Those are not the typical HN reading crowd.

Also: you could give them leafy greens can lentils to achieve the same.

[cies]

Those impoverished kids you talk about are often lactose intolerant.

Sure the benefits of the dairy nutrition may outweigh the problems of the intolerance.

[hack_edu]

> Those impoverished kids you talk about are often lactose intolerant.

Exactly. Same goes for other common allergies options like legumes, seafood, and gluten. That's why you provide options.