As of late there has been a craze over nutrition. Weather people have appalling dietary habits and gorge to the point of destroying their bodies or they have reached never before seen levels of asceticism and look for nutrition in various unorthodox food sources (and damning those who choose otherwise). Without a doubt this is the age when we know most about our own metabolism and needs and yet we opt to ignore all of them and trust our own clandestine source of doubtful eating advice.

• Got Milk?

The point of this post is not to bash those that are deluded and to instead showcase something truly bizarre and unique: cockroach milk. Well the scientists who have discovered it have given it this moniker, it is milk in the sense that crop milk is – a substance high in nutritious ingredients used to feed one’s offspring.

• Mama roach

No you are not mistaken, the Pacific Beetle Cockroach is in fact not a mammal (real surprise there), but akin to them and unlike many of its closer relatives it is viviparous. This means it gives birth to live cockroaches and does not lay eggs.  It is actually one of the few non-colonial insects to give their young extended care.

• Crystal milk

Much like you would do with baby formula the mothers feed their young this substance, rich in carbohydrates, fats and protein to help them grow. Once ingested it crystallizes in the gut of the larvae and serves as  long-lasting food source.

• Arthropod milk shake

For the time being the only method to extract the milk in an useable form is by physically removing it from the intestines of the roaches. Scientists are looking for a way to mass-produce it that does not involve the roaches themselves (making it that much more appealing for human consumption).