Is Dairy milk the worst choice for milk?

ldrosophila

Because I'm a nerd I made a little comparison to share with all you little nuts of health: (1 cup/240g comparisons, and info obtained from USDA.gov, Silk brand, and Dream brand website).

Whole Milk:
Calories: 149
Ttl Fat: 8g
Sat fat: 5g
Cholesterol 24mg
Ttl Carb: 13g
Protein: 8g
Calcium: 28%

Nonfat Milk-
Calories: 86
Ttl Fat: 0g
Sat fat: 0g
Cholesterol 5mg
Ttl Carb: 12g
Protein: 8g
Calcium: 50%

Goat Milk Whole:
Calories: 168
Ttl Fat: 10g
Sat fat: 7g
Cholesterol 27mg
Ttl Carb: 11g
Protein: 9g
Calcium: 33%

Coconut Milk Original:
Calories: 80
Ttl Fat: 5g
Sat fat: 5g
Cholesterol 0mg
Ttl Carb: 7g
Protein: 0g
Calcium: 45% (fortified w/ Calcium Carbonate)

Almond Milk Unsweetened:
Calories: 30
Ttl Fat: 2.5g
Sat fat: 0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Ttl Carb: <1g
Protein: 1g
Calcium: 45% (fortified w/ Calcium Carbonate)

Soy Milk Original & Unsweetened:
Calories: 90 & 80
Ttl Fat: 3.5g & 4g
Sat fat: 0.5g & 0.5g
Cholesterol 0mg & 0mg
Ttl Carb: 8g & 3g
Protein: 6g & 7g
Calcium: 45% (fortified w/ Calcium Carbonate) & 30% (fortified w/ Calcium Carbonate)

Rice Milk Original:
Calories: 120
Ttl Fat: 2.5g
Sat fat: 0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Ttl Carb: 23g
Protein: 1g
Calcium: 30% (fortified w/ Tricalcium Phosphate)

So which one is best? You make the choice...

(personally because of the amount of calcium, lowered calories, slightly less carbohydrate, and moderate protein, non-fat dairy is the way to go although soy is close contender.)

Arkhos

Thank you for this information, nice to have it all in one location. I agree, Non Fat looks better, especially since it also has 8g of protein.

Shari325

Thank you for posting this. I was planning to make this comparison myself, to see if the others really were comparable to dairy milk. I like the taste of non-fat dairy and have no issues with lactose. It's also cheaper than the others. I think I'll stick with dairy milk!

seena511

i didn't realize soy milk had so much protein. i don't really drink any milk at all, but my husband's on almond milk now cause it makes his slimfast shakes lower calorie. i'm afraid to use the substitutes in hamburger helper though, and we have that at least once a week.

eta i'm just glad this didn't turn out to be some preachy "dairy will kill you" post :-P

ldrosophila

eta i'm just glad this didn't turn out to be some preachy "dairy will kill you" post :-P

LOL, nah although I thought if I had a Dairy will kill you title it would get more views I'm sure I've dissapointed a few Argumentative Abners out there.

neacail

This is really interesting. I've never paid that much attention. I wonder why skim milk is so much higher in calcium than whole milk?

bcattoes

The worst nutritionally would really depend on what else your diet contains. I've used unsweetened soy because I don't like the taste of cow's milk and decades ago when I switched none of those other options were available in my local stores.

majope

I love milk, but can't do skim--I think it tastes terrible, plus I find that fat satiates me a lot better. We currently buy 2% because that's what my teenage son prefers. It's okay, but when he leaves the house and we aren't going through gallons a week, I'm going to switch to organic, grass-fed whole milk from a local dairy.

majope

This is really interesting. I've never paid that much attention. I wonder why skim milk is so much higher in calcium than whole milk?

From Larissa Hirsch on kidshealth.org:

Since the fat portion of whole milk does not contain calcium, when you take out the fat, you do not lose calcium. When you drink an equal amount of skim milk and whole milk, the skim milk provides more calcium than the whole milk does. And some brands of skim milk supplement with extra nutrients as well.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_center/q_a/skinny_skim_milk.html

DaniH826

For protein purposes, nothing beats straight-up dairy milk and soy milk. I personally drink quite a bit of skim milk because I aim for a certain daily/weekly protein goal while not overshooting my fat intake and what have you, but I love soy milk also and drink it regularly (even though it's not technically "milk" but ... whatever).

So no, dairy milk is absolutely not the worst choice for milk.

I love me some coconut milk in Asian food (yummy yummy Thai soup), but as an everyday beverage it's not something I'd choose. That's just personal preference though.

Strive for an overall balance would be my suggestion because obviously they all bring their own nutritional qualities to the table, and so it's always best to look at the overall picture and be okay with choosing each of them for different reasons.

Also, if you're lactose intolerant, then soy milk might be something you'd go for rather than dairy.

Which means the answer to your question is: "It depends."

neacail

This is really interesting. I've never paid that much attention. I wonder why skim milk is so much higher in calcium than whole milk?

From Larissa Hirsch on kidshealth.org:

Since the fat portion of whole milk does not contain calcium, when you take out the fat, you do not lose calcium. When you drink an equal amount of skim milk and whole milk, the skim milk provides more calcium than the whole milk does. And some brands of skim milk supplement with extra nutrients as well.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_center/q_a/skinny_skim_milk.html

Great to know. Thanks!

I guess that means my homemade skim yogurt will be higher in calcium than my 3.25% fat yogurt. I'll have to pay more attention to this.

bcf7683

Unsweetened almond milk all the way! :drinker:

I'm not a fan of the sugar in dairy milk, and I try to steer clear of soy. I haven't tried coconut milk yet, that's on my to-do list.

_noob_

Soy milk tastes like crap, almond milk and coconut taste like water downed versions of the whole food flavor (coconut milk has a nice creaminess to it though, so least useless so far), skim milk tastes like watered down milk (good macro breakdowns for shakes, especially the mootopia version I drink) and 2% and whole milk taste the best to me and don't have to have added sugars (I'm not lacto-interolerant, so I'd prefer lactose to added sugar).

doIlhands

I find soy milk the worst personally. It messes with my hormones and makes me break out but thats not really health related lol. I think goat milk tastes the best but I occasionally drink rice milk as well. Never drink cow milk because I don't like the taste of it.

Sarauk2sf

I drink cows milk - tastes better and has better macros for me.

baptiste565

whole milk is a complete food. thats y babies can live off of it. but as adults if u r getting fats from other sources whole milk may put u over.

AlongCame_Molly

I prefer whole milk. It' easier to not have to buy two different types for myself and my son, plus whole tastes better, therefore I drink less of it and feel satisfied.

drchimpanzee

Chimpanzee Milk

FireEngineRedHead

Chimpanzee Milk

^my fav.

iulia_maddie

I'd take whole milk over non-fat any day because of the taste difference. Plus, you need fat too.

ldrosophila

Chimpanzee Milk

Because of their similarity to humans, meeting the physical needs of a chimpanzee infant is
greatly simplified. Human formulas such as Enfamil and Similac, which are very similar in
composition, have been successfully used to hand-raise great apes, including chimpanzees.
Isomil, a soy based formula, can be used if the infant is allergic to milk protein or lactose. The
amount of formula fed should be based on body weight; in great apes and humans that ratio is 20
to 25% of the infant's body weight per day. Optimally, feedings should be spread over a 24 hour
period, 2 1/2 to 3 hours apart. Not all institutions are able to provide 24-hour care throughout the
entire rearing period, but should try to adjust schedules to at least allow continual care the first
two weeks. Thereafter, a schedule comprised of seven feedings divided evenly between 6 am
and 12 am has been successful (St. Louis Zoo records). Because infant chimps in the wild begin
to test solids at about 15 weeks, this would be an appropriable age at which to gradually
introduce a variety of food items. The purpose is to allow the youngsters to experiment/play
with the taste and texture of different foods while still obtaining nutritional requirements from
their formula feedings.

Couldnt find the nutrients in chimpanzee milk, but if they are so genetically similar then I assume it would have the same nutrient profile as human milk. Just for fun lets compare human milk.