Making their debut in the competition, the Irish were unable to cope with an attacking Polish outfit that dominated most of the opening match of the group to clinch their first win in three appearances in the finals.
After a goalless first half, a Jakub Blaszczykowski cross found Milik in the penalty area in the 51st minute and the forward blasted his left-foot shot through defender Craig Cathcart's legs and into the net.
It was Northern Ireland's first game at a major finals since they lost 3-0 to Brazil at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, exactly 30 years ago to the day.
Despite a late rally from the industrious Irish, Poland never looked likely to lose although coach Adam Nawalka said they had to adapt for the abrasive style of their opponents.
"I have to praise the players for their commitment," Nawalka added. "Northern Ireland are known for their physical football so we had to adjust and offer the same in order to demonstrate our skills."
Midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak believes there is plenty more to come from Poland.
"The next matches will show that we can be even better and go further," he said.
Poland, who had failed to win their previous six games at European Championship finals, dominated the first half but were unable to turn the pressure into goals.
FIERCE DRIVE
They had a chance to go ahead after 32 minutes when Milik found himself unmarked on the left of the box but his left-foot shot flew over the bar.
Seven minutes later a fierce drive from Bartosz Kapustka from just inside the penalty area forced goalkeeper Michael McGovern to make a superb save.
The Poles were rewarded for their industry six minutes into the second half when Milik took one touch from the cross and fired home.
The goal helped them to relax while the Irish were forced to play more attacking football.
Substitute Conor Washington forced Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny to race off his line to save in the 72nd minute.
The Irish, however, did not create enough chances to earn a draw and now need a better result against Ukraine in Lyon on Thursday to have a chance of reaching the last 16.
"We gave it our all today but it was not good enough," captain Steven Davis said. "It's a learning curve for us and hopefully we can learn from it."
(Writing by Adrian Warner; Editing by Tony Jimenez)
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