Donkey Milk: An Overview of its Chemical Composition and Main Nutritional Properties or Human Health Benefit Properties.
Authors: Živkov Baloš Milica, Ljubojević Pelić Dragana, Jakšić Sandra, Lazić Sava
Journal: Journal of equine veterinary science
Summary
Donkey milk exhibits a compositional profile remarkably similar to human milk, prompting international research into its potential as a functional food with significant nutritional and immunological properties. This 2023 review synthesised existing literature on donkey milk's chemical composition and bioactive components, documenting consistent findings across multiple studies: notably low fat (approximately 0.3–1.5%) and cholesterol content relative to bovine milk, moderate protein levels with reduced casein, elevated lactose concentrations, and substantial micronutrient density including calcium, selenium, and vitamin D₃. Beyond basic nutrition, donkey milk contains protective proteins such as α-lactalbumin, lysozyme, lactoferrin, and immunoglobulins that confer documented antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiviral, and antiparasitic activity, alongside emerging evidence for hypoglycaemic and antitumour properties. For equine professionals advising on alternative nutrition or working with clients seeking specialty dairy products, understanding donkey milk's favourable fatty-acid profile and low allergenicity is valuable; however, the authors emphasise that therapeutic claims remain preliminary without rigorous human clinical trials, and commercial availability remains severely constrained by limited production capacity. The gap between promising in vitro and preliminary in vivo data and established clinical efficacy warrants cautious interpretation of current marketing claims around donkey milk's health benefits.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Donkey milk shows promise as a specialty functional food product, but equine practitioners should be aware that robust human clinical evidence is currently lacking
- •If considering donkey milk for human consumption, practitioners should note that fat content requires supplementation to meet caloric requirements in pediatric diets
- •The market remains nascent with limited commercial availability; practitioners seeking evidence-based recommendations should await completion of human clinical trials before making specific endorsements
Key Findings
- •Donkey milk has compositional similarity to human milk with low fat and cholesterol but high lactose, whey proteins, calcium, selenium, and Vitamin D3
- •Donkey milk contains protective proteins including α-lactalbumin, lysozyme, lactoferrin, and immunoglobulins with demonstrated antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties
- •Donkey milk can be classified as functional food with beneficial fatty-acid profiles for cardiac health, though total fat content is lower than human milk
- •Current evidence base lacks human clinical trials; commercialization remains limited due to low production levels and insufficient market products