Myth No. 11

"Pasteurization turns the sugar of milk, known as lactose, into beta lactose, which is far more soluble and therefore readily absorbed in the system, with the result that the child soon becomes hungry again."

• Allusion to the B-anhydride form of lactose
• The alpha-monohydrate form is the stable solid form of lactose, since, in the presence of water and at temperatures below 93.5C, all other forms change to the monohydrate. The monohydrate has an initial solubility of only 7g/100g water at 20C.
• The Beta-anhydride form of lactose is formed when crystallization takes place from aqueous solutions at temperatures above 93.5C. The B-form is considerably more soluble than the a-form, having an initial solubility of 50g/100g water at 20C.
• Given all of the above, it should be clear that minimum pasteurization conditions will not turn the a-monohydrate into the b-anhydride.