THE DELICIOUS ICE CREAM

Ice cream. Who does not like the cold and sweet sensation that this dish produces once it enters our mouth? Most people from wide range of ages love it. However, there are several issues regarding ice cream. There are opinions saying that it can cause coughing, and even obesity. Another opinion claims that it is good for the bones. 

Ice cream is basically a semi-solid form of dish, which is made of milk-fat, non-fat skim milk, sugar, stabilizer ingredients, emulsion, and flavors. According to Indonesian National Standard, ice cream is a semi-solid food made by freezing the ice cream flour/ powder or the mixing of milk, animal or vegetable fat, sugar, with or without other edible ingredients. While the wikipedia describes ice cream as a frozen dessert made from dairy product such as milk and cream, combined with flavorings and sweeteners, such as sugar, and possible other ingredients.

It is said that ice cream came from China. It was during the Tang period (618-97 AD) when a dish similar to ice cream appeared in the region. The ice-cream-like dish was made especially for the King using buffalo milk, flour, and camphor. Then around 2000 BC, ice cream showed up in the country with the form of a soft milk and rice mixture packed in snow, which made it solid. One of the earliest records of ice cream was during the 54 AD when the Emperor Nero ruled. He would serve “sweet snow’, snow from the mountain that flavored with honey, wine or fruit, for his guests at the palace.

Ice cream is probably the most popular dish through out the world.  In 2003, the production of the world’s ice cream had reached up to one billion liters and was consumed by billons of consumers per year.

There are several opinions develop these days by media that ice cream is actually healthy, unlike what has been said before. There are researches that said that ice cream is one of the dishes with high values of nutrition. The high-value of nutrition inside ice cream very much depends on the nutrients inside the ingredients.

The nutrition contained inside ice cream was supported by its main ingredients, non-fat milk and skim milk. It is safe to claim that milk is an almost perfect food due to its almost perfect complete nutritional substances content. Scientists had found more than 100.000 kinds of molecule contained inside milk. Other than water and fat, the molecules include protein, carbohydrate, mineral, enzymes, vitamin A, C, and D. Some scientists even proclaimed that milk is included in the group of functional foods, which own other health effects beside the nutritional effects.

One expert, Dr Ali Khomsan, an expert in nutrition from Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB), once stated that ice cream is actually has higher nutritional value compared to other kind of beverages, because it is made of milk. The dominant nutritional components in 100 gram ice cream are the amount of calorie (207 gram), protein (4.0 gram), and fat (12.5 gram).

There are several “stories about ice cream that being misinterpreted. It is said that there has been a misconception among people regarding the idea that ice cream can cause obesity. The truth is, there are only 10% calorie and 15% fat contained inside ice cream, which are a very small amount to be able to cause obesity. The obesity is more caused by over consumption of calorie, lack of physical activities, and genetic.

What about the belief among people that ice cram can also cause a person, who consume it get cough and cold? This is also said to be a misunderstanding. People most-likely believe in this due to the cold sensation of ice cream. On the contrary, once ice cream enters the mouth, it will immediately melt because of the influence of body temperature. When ice cream got inside the throat, its temperature would no longer be as cold as cold water. Unlike when we drink cold water or cold orange juice, where the cold water went straight through the throat.

So consuming ice cream is actually quite safe and healthy. As long as we do not consume it more than what we supposed to. And another thing is that we have to be cautious with unbranded ice cream, which is a homemade industry ice cream. Because the process of making the ice cream in this kind of industry cannot be monitored by the authorized party. Moreover, the hygienic quality of the ingredients they use cannot be guaranteed.

 

Sources:

http://www.cbsnews.com

http://www.cnn.com

http://www.NaturalNews.com

http://www.msnbc.msn.com

http://www.sinarharapan.co.id

http://honeybunnyyummy.blogjurnalistikonlain.com

http://en.wikipedia.org