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STROLL INTO ANY upmarket café and you might be surprised to find plain old milk as only one of the available beverage options to add to your coffee.
You can try soy milk, almond milk, even cashew or coconut milk.
The options are a little confusing, but are any of them actually healthier?
Not really.
Here’s a quick look at the nutritional value of some of the most popular — and often far more expensive — milk alternatives.
By themselves, almonds are protein powerhouses: A typical serving of the nuts has 160 calories and 6 grams of protein.
But a typical glass of almond milk, by volume, is just about 2% almonds and contains almost no protein.
So while the “milk” only has about 30 calories — good news if you’re looking to lose weight — it packs just 1 gram of protein, which won’t feed your muscles or keep you feeling satiated.
Plus, all the vitamins inside, from potassium to vitamins A and D, are added during the manufacturing process.
Although typically pricier than regular milk, soy milk is a great source of protein (8 grams per serving) and fiber, is relatively low in fat, and has 6 grams of sugar.
Some have cited potential fears of soy having “estrogen-like” activities in the body, but studies don’t support this.
One “unusual” case from 2008, for example, described a man who’d experienced feminizing bodily changes after he reported drinking 3 quarts of soy milk each day. (When he quit soy, his symptoms disappeared).
But there’s likely no reason for concern: Even at higher-than-average soy consumption rates, there is no evidence suggesting that men should stop eating or drinking the stuff.
What the studies do show is that moderate soy consumption has been linked with lower rates of developing prostate cancer.
Like almond milk, most of soy milk’s calcium is added during the manufacturing process (a process known as fortifying), along with its B vitamins.
While a bit higher in calories than almond milk (60 per cup compared with 30), cashew milk has the same amount of protein — just 1 gram— and 7 grams of sugar.
And, like almond and soy milks, its calcium and vitamins are added.
Yet it’s the priciest of the milk alternatives.
As opposed to coconut water, the clear liquid found in a young green coconut, coconut milk is the liquid that’s produced when the meat of a brown coconut is smashed up.
Thanks to its high oil content, coconut milk has a creamy, thick color and buttery taste, but it’s also very high in fat.
A cup of coconut milk has roughly 550 calories (about four times the amount in regular cow’s milk or soy milk), a whopping 57 grams of fat (close to the amount the average adult should consume in a day), and 51 grams of saturated fat (more than twice that amount).
It also has about 8 grams of sugar.
Coconut milk has 6 grams of protein, about the same as a glass of cow’s milk or soy, and some vitamins, but little calcium.
Cow’s milk is the only beverage on this list that qualifies as actual milk; the rest are sourced from a plant.
Of all the “milks”, cow’s milk has the most naturally-occurring calcium and has the same amount of protein as soy milk, at 8 grams per serving. It does have a bit more sugar than cashew and soy milks, however, at about 12 grams per serving.
It’s a fairly good source of several other nutrients, too, including B vitamins. Like the over beverages, manufacturers add some ingredients, like vitamin D, to cow’s milk to help us absorb its calcium.
And while whole milk is high in fat and saturated fat, low-fat and skim milks provide almost all of the protein without the extra fat.
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Ordinary cows milk is only 3.5% fat, I fail to see the point of a lot of the drama around the fat content of milk.
The 1970s “fat is bad” brainwashing is still strong in IRL and people go out of their way to eat & drink low fat products that are actually more fattening than fst.
To be honest, I fail to see the drama about any of this absolute BS!
In case people need a memo – here’s one – if your asking for any type of specific milk for your tea or coffe due to it’s protein levels YOUR DOING IT WRONG!
I mean REALLY? The only excuse people have for being as specific is either taste or a genuine significant medical reason – like people who might be lactose intolerant. Not people who CLAIM to be – people who actually ARE – or at the very least, people who are willing to say to the guy/girl behind the counter that they think they might be and they’re just trying a weak without dairy.
NOT the people who say “oh, oil howv the melk of a kewkewnot pleece – ond extra cheese on the choona melth roysh?”
I drink whole cow’s milk, as I have done since childhood, and am a lot leaner than I would like. it is healthy and nutritious – the alternatives are fads, in Western countries, although they may be useful in tropical climes. methinks we in the West may eventually run out of things to be allergic to.
Why non cow milk as a market segment is exploding is down to a variety of reasons. Some people looking for plant based alternatives. An alternative with a with higher protein content lower calorie content, dairy intolerance and cows being kept in a permanent state of pregnancy to produce milk, hormones etc..
@Declan – I’ll admit you’ve raised a few things that are very valid reasons for choosing alternatives – but I’m still not convinced that for the majority, fad is in action. A bit like ordering a diet coke with a supersized Mckillmeburger for any reason other than taste. If you like diet coke, fair enough – but let’s not pretend it’s about calories/diabetes/loving the animals when accompanied by contradictions of same….
Genuinely Tony I don’t believe this is a fad. the shelf space being given to these products is growing all the time. tesco Musgrave etc wouldn’t list them if they weren’t paying their way. also the people who buy these milks tend not drink it with mckillmeburgers. listen each to their own but the choice is a good thing.
Ok, I’ll give you that – but it doesn’t mean that it’s not based on people’s perceptions….. That’s very different to market space and value.
There are some markets that have almost to some degree created their own space. Plenty of examples of filling a need that wasn’t there.
For example, the smartphone – it really doesn’t NEED to be there – some will buy one and never use much more than whatsapp beyond what an old cellular could do – so I’m not sure that the size of the market is an indication of what the need is.
In saying that, as long as people aren’t being fools about what the positives are (for many in this case that doesn’t apply) then let them spend their money as they wish….
Is this article sponsored by the dairy council or something?
It reads like it is. Who drinks plant milk just for protein??
If you can’t or don’t want to have traditional milk you still want something in your tea or coffee!
Probably.
Reads like it was lifted from an American Dairy Board website. All the measurements are in cups. If only we were any good at dairying here in Ireland…
There’s a lot on thejournal that reads like native advertising – I’ve asked similar before and had the response that “every piece of advertising is clearly marked” or something similar.
Of course nothing like doing a favour for someone could ever happen on this site. The owners are far far too respectable….
Yes Yvonne, the dairy council are trying to steer people away from milk..
Jonnie, sounds like you may have skipped the article and just jumped to the comments… which is grand but to summarise for you they’re essentially saying all milk alternatives are rubbish and cow’s milk is the only one worth drinking.. I’m not too bothered either way, I drink Almond milk and cow’s milk, prefer the taste of almond milk in general but not in my tea and I like cheese and yoghurt so i’m not anti dairy! The article is just pretty biased i think, like it was written by someone with an agenda.
If you done some more researcher you might have been able to report a lot more health benefits to the alternatives without any of the cruelty that milking cows endure. Queue the red thumbs but milking cows suffer endless to provide us with milk.
Cows don’t suffer endlessly. Absolute nonsense.
Being artificially inseminated to continually pump out gallons of milk? Yeah, that sounds like great craic.
Do some research.
@Cheryl Can you explain how exactly you believe milking cows is cruel to them? Have you ever spent time on a dairy farm, do you know what happens if the cows miss or are late for a milking? I find it very strange to describe this as cruel as it’s not in anyone’s interest to treat the cows with cruelty, in fact all the studies have shown that cows that treated well deliver higher quality milk yields. Some dairy farmers, if they can afford it, will go so far as play music to their cows as they are being milked to relax them, they are washed and massaged, the floor is often rubberised and it too is washed down. Many will know the individual cows and have names for them. So, I ask again, where is the cruelty here?
Broken design, absolutely ridiculous comment, what research should I do?
I live this everyday. I know what I do isn’t cruel.
The milking machine is a lot more gentle than a 200 pound calf so you obviously haven’t a clue.
being kept in a permanent state of pregnancy to keep producing milk. Nothing natural about that.
For millennia man has domesticated and milked animals, it would be completely unreasonable to expect anyone to keep a large herd of cattle, hope as many as possible became pregnant naturally and then chase them around a field with a bucket and a wooden stool. If this did occur your litre of milk would be priced beyond the reach of the average person.
Yes dairy farming has been somewhat industrialised, but this has not been at the expense of the cows, they have not been discarded, rather their welfare is paramount as I have described above.
Or instead of sitting around hoping that one of your cows gets up the duff so you can milk em, you could just.. not?
And what happens to all the calves that are born from all the AI? Doesn’t seem too normal..
Females – both human and animal – typically only produce milk when pregnant. This is to nourish their baby until it can eat. Then females stop producing milk. Logically, this is also when you should stop drinking milk.
(Also – I’m in bits imagining that scene in a field)
Maybe instead of being so hostile, you should have a look at nature.
So after all your “research” this is the limit of your knowledge. You really don’t know anything about animals.
@Broken Oh, where do I begin? May I suggest you actually do some research on this subject yourself before putting your hands on the keyboard, I’m sure you’re well intended and don’t want to see animals suffer needlessly, neither do I, but it’s quite apparent you’re not familiar with this subject matter. I don’t mean to be rude but have you considered visiting a dairy farm, asking questions and finding out how they operate, it might be an eye opener for you, you may learn some surprising things.
Just a few small points for those lost in a maze of simplistic sentimentality.
Most female animals (in nature) will spend more than half of their lives pregnant, exceptions would be animals that are seasonally regulated to be lactating when food is plentiful.
Non dairy cows will spend up to 9 months lactating supporting a single calf.
Animals don’t have the same emotions, motivations and values as humans.
um… no Declan…. just…no!
@Broken Design. Do you know how AI is carried out? Here’s a hint – robobull doesn’t chase cows around a field and mount them. Also, if a cow only produces milk while pregnant then what would be left for a calf?
Cows are kept pregnant, lactating artificially to provide milk. It’s not a difficult thing to understand. Of course the cow will therefore be in pain if the milk is not taken. You’re putting the art before the horse – if you’ll pardon the pun. Cows would not be in need of constant milking if they weren’t kept artificially lactating in the first place
Fine so, Boyne since we put our own welfare far above any other creature’s. Not forgetting that we don’t actually NEED cows milk, we just happen to like it
Because it’s a white liquid doesn’t make it milk. Milk is milk when it comes from mammary ducts…
They should put a warning on the carton: this drink is an expensive rip off.
There are some who have genuine food allergies and intolerance. I’m fine with them – that’s fair enough – but they are not enough to drive a market like this. It’s like a case of “subscribe to your idiocy here”
Just wait until kale milk comes out – my head is going to explode….
I don’t like the taste of plant based milks and I have severe bovinophobia, so we just use my own milk in my house.
PMSL…!!!!! I spat me tea out laughing at that Mrs!!
Newsflash: veggie “burgers” contain no meat either!
What is this article on about?…
Isn’t soya the most genetically modified crop in the world? God knows what’s in it
soya
Once had a man say to me how disgusting it was to see me drink so much milk as humans were not suppose to… Same man eats meat till it comes out his @rse… Guess the cow would rather me suck it’s teat than eat it behind….
I feel really sorry for the sheep and goats who didn’t get a look-in in this article
48 views, no comments. I’m gonna say it. Dingleberries.
Remember high in fat is a good thing. Sugar is the problem not naturally occurring fat.
Not only found on cows………
…and on that piece of “news” I am out. Goodbye thejournal.ie. I would like to say it’s been great, but… well… it hasn’t. I might use the free space to re-install angry birds.
As I said do some research….
Now Cheryl, don’t be putting people in a position whereby they have to defend the indefensible. They don’t like that. Here’s one for the defenders of the dairy industry…. A female cow lactates having been artificially inseminated and gone through the pain of giving birth. So we now have a female cow, and a newly born calf. The calf needs nutrition, so naturally it wants to feed from its mother’s teat, just like you did when you were a baby. Wait though, if it feeds from its mothers teat, it will be taking the milk that the farmer can sell for profit to humans who believe it natural to drink the milk from another species. So we’ll have to remove the nursing calf from its mother, an extremely traumatic experience for both mother and her new born calf. Now we can milk the mother until she ‘Dries’ up, at which point we’ll have her artificially inseminated again, and another calf will be born. So we now have lots of milk (from another species) packing the supermarket fridges, except there’s one thing we haven’t considered…. The calf…. Well if you’re bothered to care have a look at the reality, and not what the dairy industry tell you, or indeed what is more comfortable to believe as being the truth… YouTube ‘Dairy calves get shot , Jimmy and the giant supermarket’. & ‘The real price of dairy’ & ‘Peta Dairy’. Also research the veal industry. Then again it’s easier to remain ignorant , and continue to be complicit in this cruelty.
Oh well if you saw a YouTube video of something happening elsewhere then it must happen here too, why didn’t you say so?
Stop and think about that logically, if I were to harm my dog, who I love dearly, anyone could report me and I could find myself in front of a judge. And rightly so. It’s even stricter for farmers where the welfare of their animals isn’t just reliant upon someone reporting them, it’s regulated and monitored by Department of Agriculture vets and their own vets. As I said above, it isn’t in their interests to harm an animal, for the punishment it’ll likely incur and to allow harm to come to one of their animals will likely incur costs they don’t need. There’s also the obvious fact that it just isn’t in the nature of any good farmer to allow harm to come to any of animals in his care, nobody wants that kind of name.
In recent years we’ve seen farmers desperate to feed their livestock brave the worst of weather and go without food themselves so that their livestock could be fed. This is not the actions of the people you describe.
Exactly…. but there are none so blind as those who refuse to see! There is a serious lack of empathy in general towards animals in Ireland anyway so no surprise with the red thumbs.
@Cheryl So if I understand you, you like animals and therefor have an opinion on dairy farms, yet clearly don’t know very much about livestock farming in Ireland, preferring instead to do your research on YouTube and when anyone points these shortcomings you say no surprise?
I’m trying to be restrained here but what exactly is it you want? You keep calling for everyone else to do research yet it doesn’t seem to have crossed your mind yet. We live it!!
@lovelyweather. Tell me more about your first hand farming experience.
It always amazes me the ability some people have of speaking so authoritatively on subjects they know next to nothing about.
Actually no I’ve not done my research on youtube but in real life.
It’s sugar that puts on weight.
So would coconut milk be good for weight gain?
The eating crap method just makes me feel like crap.
Lets let all cows run wild with bulls. And if the bull inseminates them; great. Then when the cow calves, and comes back on heat, let’s hope the bull thinks about the cow and how long she’s been pregnant and decides to leave her alone for another while.
Or let’s be realistic. We can let them all run wild and watch cows have calves and possibly reject them, leaving the calf hungry. Then when the bull notices the cow on heat again shortly after calving he can mount her, with a strong chance of injuring her. Let’s just hope that while she’s injured and laid out on the ground all the other bulls don’t think ‘I’ll have a go of her too whiles helpless’.
I suppose dogs are supposed to be kept in houses too, is that natures way?
“Thanks to its high oil content…. but it’s also very high in fat.”
for those that think that oil and fat are different…for shame
pasture fed cows have a low impact on the environment. can be done organically. growing soya beans involves massive numbers of rodents cultivated into the ground and insects poisoned, almonds use HUGE amounts of water depriving aquatic birds and fish their natural environment. avoiding dairy/meat does nothing to reduce “suffering”. have worked with the dairy industry and there are no people more committed to animal welfare.
milk goes off fast ya know. well apart from that UHT sthuff but there’s no demand for it because it’s pure shite
have your say