The answer for the question whether fat free milk is nutritious and healthy cannot be given by simply nodding the head. There are controversies over this matter. We can only consider discussing certain ideas evolved by experts on this issue.
When the Dairy Association says that milk is essential for health, groups like PCRM and PETA say that milk is an evil. The Dairy Education Board says that milk is a deadly poison. There is a belief among experts that cow milk contains hormones which can trigger cancer. Yet, many people thrive on cow milk. However, our body does not require any hormone which is contained in the cow milk. Digesting the lactose of the milk is difficult and it contains calcium in the form of casinate which is not absorbable easily. Perhaps, lactose free and fat free milk can give good results. It is the opinion of some people that milk has protein only as its nutrient.
Statistically, people consuming good amounts of milk had lower risk of heart disease and also stroke. As adding milk in the diet agenda is a common phenomenon worldwide, the above finding encourages taking milk due to the support it gives to health. Anyway, there is also an increase worldwide in cancers related to hormones. Milk from a cow is a good source of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) and estrogens, but mostly can cause cell multiplication in an irregular manner.
Other beliefs that we know are as follows. Drinking milk can increase the risk of ovarian cancer. It has been but proved that milk can reduce the risk of colorectal cancers. These cancers are more common. There seems to be no link of evidence between type I diabetes and milk consumption. Major portion of the human population have lactose intolerance to some degree. This means that milk can cause problems in them. Therefore they should take lactose free milk only. Cheese and yogurt may not cause problems as they contain very less lactose.
Osteoporosis is less common in Asian countries than in Western countries. However, Asians consume less dairy. It has been proved by the Nurses Health Study that women consuming two glasses or more of milk per day had suffered bone fractures. However, milk cannot be solely responsible for this as the overall diet and lifestyle of Asians have much difference from that of the Westerners.
Many people are in favor of pasteurized milk and believe that pasteurization is a must to remove harmful bacteria from the milk. This process does not change significantly the nutritional value or flavor of the milk. Whereas, people who are not in favour of pasteurization believe that this process also destroys vitamins, minerals and enzymes, which are essential to our health.
Conclusively, whether to have milk in raw form or fat-eliminated form is your option. Alternative milks to cow milk are also available. Your experience should be able to guide you properly. However, you should bear in mind that industry sponsored researches may have biased versions and can misguide you in this respect.