soy milk VS almond milk VS coconut milk

careyannal
careyannal Posts: 161
in Food and Nutrition
Which is better for you? I would be using it mostly in my morning cereal
«13

Replies

  • cbevan1229
    cbevan1229 Posts: 326 Member
    I've tried almond milk and coconut milk and prefer the coconut. I avoid soy milk because of some things I've read about the potential negative effects of soy.
  • veganbaum
    veganbaum Posts: 1,865 Member
    All of them are fairly processed. If you do soy I would make sure it's organic, but really I would avoid it. There's nothing wrong with soy (despite what the fear mongerers might say), but it's best eaten in a minimally processed way. So to me, soy milk is a very, very occasional thing. As for almond milk - you can make it at home, which means you know exactly what's in it, but it can get pricey. I would compare the ingredients in the coconut and almond and see which looks better to you.
  • mandypizzle
    mandypizzle Posts: 633 Member
    I heard almond is the best for you. It's very low in fat and calories too. That's the one I drink. What I'm curious about is coconut WATER.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    I'll be the lone pro-soy voice then!

    I like the slightly chalky taste, it has a good amount of protein and calcium with less sugar than dairy milk. I;ve tried almond milk and didnt really care for it.
  • mageets79
    mageets79 Posts: 14 Member
    I guess it depends on what type diet you are doing, high protein, low calorie, or low fat. I know soy milk has protein comparable to cow's milk, almond milk tends to be lower calorie, and coconut milk tends to be higher calorie, higher saturated fat. HTH.
  • CoffeeNBooze
    CoffeeNBooze Posts: 966 Member
    I go based on taste and I like almond milk the best. In fact, I love it and there's so many brands to choose from. Some of the unsweetened almond milk out there is as low as 35 calories per cup!

    Soy milk is all right, I grew up around it. Rice milk too. Too bad I heard soy isn't that great for you after all? Even my mom who always bought it for us cut way back.

    Coconut milk was mixed in with the last quart of almond milk I bought and it really added a kick to my protein shakes.
  • loandlette1307
    loandlette1307 Posts: 13
    There is a blend of coconut and almond milk that I'm going to try next week when i do my grocery shopping. The nutrition label seems to have lots of good things! And I already know that taste wise almond milk is better than soy.. I'm assuming that's partly because it has a little more sugar in it. Right now I'm drinking soy milk in my milk replacement shakes (and my cereal), because I was looking for something with a low sugar content because my shake powder already has 6g of sugar in it and most milks have 12g! That's 18g of sugar in one sitting and I'm only allowed 24g for the whole day! So I guess it depends on what ur looking to get out of it. But when I try that almond/coconut blend I'll post on mfp to let everyone know how it tastes! Everyone Feel free to add me! Together we can get healthy one meal at a time!!
  • veganbaum
    veganbaum Posts: 1,865 Member
    There is a blend of coconut and almond milk that I'm going to try next week when i do my grocery shopping. The nutrition label seems to have lots of good things! And I already know that taste wise almond milk is better than soy.. I'm assuming that's partly because it has a little more sugar in it. Right now I'm drinking soy milk in my milk replacement shakes (and my cereal), because I was looking for something with a low sugar content because my shake powder already has 6g of sugar in it and most milks have 12g! That's 18g of sugar in one sitting and I'm only allowed 24g for the whole day! So I guess it depends on what ur looking to get out of it. But when I try that almond/coconut blend I'll post on mfp to let everyone know how it tastes! Everyone Feel free to add me! Together we can get healthy one meal at a time!!

    I've had the blend! It's delicious. But if I recall correctly I think it might be sweetened, which I don't usually do. So now, sometimes I mix half unsweetened coconut with half unsweetened almond milk.
  • loandlette1307
    loandlette1307 Posts: 13
    Oh and as far as coconut water I have a few health addicts as friends and they do not! Recommend drinking it! Acording to them it's not good nutrionally, just a waste of money. Of course I don't have personal experience, this is just what I've heard.
  • rawfull
    rawfull Posts: 178
    I use raw pumpkin seed milk. I make it at home in a blender, no straining needed, cheaper, lots of nutrients...
    I sweeten mine with stevia for less calories and sugar. Add some raw cacao and a few ice cubes for a healthy chocolate shake.

    Video on how to make:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpPZGXA1_7o

    Enjoy...
  • aholly70
    aholly70 Posts: 577 Member
    I drink almond milk i like the taste better.
  • loandlette1307
    loandlette1307 Posts: 13
    That's a really good idea! But for me I'm the only one in my house that would drink it and isn't it only good for so many days after u open it. I know soy milk is 7-10 days. I would have to drink the homemade blend twice as fast. Because it would be a whole gallon instead of a half gallon. I'm not soo sure i want 2 servings a day instead of one. But then again if it's unsweetened it shouldn't be too much of a problem! Ty!!!!! :D
  • kittyoates
    kittyoates Posts: 6
    I loved drinking coconut water when I lived in Indonesia and you could just drink it straight from the coconut, but here they're a lot more processed and most of the ones I've seen have lots of added sugar, and to top that off they are EXPENSIVE. So now I just skip it and go for natural yogurt. I don't eat cereal a lot but when I do I just mix in some natural yogurt (no sugar added ones) instead of milk.
  • amanda_ataraxia
    amanda_ataraxia Posts: 400 Member
    Flax milk.
    25 calories per cup plus omega 3's.
  • igora_soma
    igora_soma Posts: 486
    If I wasn't allergic to coconut I'd drink coconut milk! It has a lot of great nutritious value, at the moment I drink unsweetened almond milk and really like it. I'll have soy if I go to Starbucks though.

    I would try all of them out and see which one you like better taste wise and how your body feels.

    Good luck! :)
  • relucas81
    relucas81 Posts: 76
    cow milk is best
  • 2_young_2B_old
    2_young_2B_old Posts: 90 Member
    I've tried almond milk and coconut milk and prefer the coconut. I avoid soy milk because of some things I've read about the potential negative effects of soy.

    This plus, I'm allergic to soy and almonds so its coconut for me.
  • fueledbychange
    fueledbychange Posts: 132 Member
    Almond milk, definitely! I buy the unsweetened vanilla kind and it's 30 calories per cup. Put a little stevia in there and it's delicious!
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    1)Coconut milk - high in MCT and tastes yummy.
    2)Almond milk - tastes ok but I already snack on hazelnuts.
    3)Soy milk - tastes like paper soaked overnight in water (disgusting)
  • Tiffpow01
    Tiffpow01 Posts: 1 Member
    I prefer almond milk whole foods brand unsweeted has only 40 calories.
  • DrBorkBork
    DrBorkBork Posts: 4,099 Member
    Real coconut milk comes from a coconut, not a tetrapak. The better option would be to get a can of Native Forest or Thai Kitchen. The others are franken-foods.
    That said, I don't have a preference between almond or coconut but IMO soy is the devil.
  • momof8munchkins
    momof8munchkins Posts: 1,167 Member
    My kiddos prefer almond milk- I make it at home in my juicer from soaked almonds.. I personally like coconut milk in the can best
  • mandypizzle
    mandypizzle Posts: 633 Member
    Thanks! I have been wondering about it!
    Oh and as far as coconut water I have a few health addicts as friends and they do not! Recommend drinking it! Acording to them it's not good nutrionally, just a waste of money. Of course I don't have personal experience, this is just what I've heard.
  • careyannal
    careyannal Posts: 161
    why is soy milk bad for you?
  • cbevan1229
    cbevan1229 Posts: 326 Member
    I have read that soy mimics estrogen in the body which can impact fertility and upset the normal hormone balance. From what I understand, fermented soy, like what is often found in Asian diets, is a bit different because the fermentation process reduces some of these effects. There is soy in so many packaged foods in the US, and it is not the fermented kind - I found a soy product in my herbal tea recently. So for myself I am trying to avoid loading up on it where I can.

    I don't really understand it enough to give advice, and don't want to spread misinformation, but there is lots of information available online, from both sides of the argument.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
    There's a lot of speculation and rumour online, but little in the way of scientific tests.

    I switched to it during menopause because I WANTED any oestrogen mimicking properties. But I accept that it wont be everyone's choice.
  • capnwo85
    capnwo85 Posts: 1,103 Member
    I prefer it straight from the utter, although I live on a farm and I'm not afraid of real food.
  • daughterofthesea
    daughterofthesea Posts: 82 Member
    I usually drink either soy or almond milk (purely because I prefer the taste) and I think they're both OK. I don't really look at the processing/negative effects, mostly because it's a lifestyle choice for me rather than a health choice.

    Hope that helps in a small way :)
  • dittmarml
    dittmarml Posts: 351 Member
    I use raw pumpkin seed milk. I make it at home in a blender, no straining needed, cheaper, lots of nutrients...
    I sweeten mine with stevia for less calories and sugar. Add some raw cacao and a few ice cubes for a healthy chocolate shake.

    Video on how to make:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpPZGXA1_7o

    Enjoy...


    Wow, this sounds interesting...thanks for posting this reply...
  • Jacwhite22
    Jacwhite22 Posts: 7,010 Member
    where's the regular milk option?

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