Milk vs milk substitutes?

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PrayerofAmity
PrayerofAmity Posts: 176 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I recently decided to try to cut most of the gluten and other bad stuff out of my diet (just by choice, no allergies or anything) and picked up a carton of almond milk to use in place of regular milk. I started using it for my morning cereal and found that II REALLY like almond milk. I'm wondering what the nutritional advantages of making the change are now, because usually if I like something, it turns out not to be the healthier alternative after all.

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  • MeganAnne89
    MeganAnne89 Posts: 271 Member
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    I just found this on fitday.com:

    "Compared to cow's milk, almond milk is the much healthier choice. Almond milk contains a wide variety of the vitamins and minerals that your body needs to function. Almond milk also contains high levels of antioxidants, so it can help prevent many types of cancer and slow the signs of aging. Almond milk is also great for those who can't drink cow's milk due to lactose intolerance, or a casein or gluten allergy; however, those with tree nut allergies should avoid almond milk because it could elicit a dangerous allergic reaction.

    Whole cow's milk contains a lot more calories and fat than almond milk, making almond milk the better choice for those on a diet. Cow's milk also contains saturated fat and cholesterol; almond milk is free of both saturated fat and cholesterol, making it a healthier choice, especially for those with heart problems.

    While cow's milk contains high levels of calcium, and is fortified with vitamins A and D to help you meet your daily requirements of these vitamins, almond milk contains high levels of a wide range of necessary vitamins and therefore has a higher nutritional value than cow's milk. The only thing that cow's milk has more of than almond milk is protein; cow's milk has eight grams of protein per serving while almond milk has only one gram per serving."
  • lseed87
    lseed87 Posts: 1,105 Member
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    I was going to say almond milk! Love it. They have so many different flavors of it as well. I like the Diamond Breeze brand more than Silk ones.
  • PrayerofAmity
    PrayerofAmity Posts: 176 Member
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    Thanks for the info :) Glad to know something I like so much is good for me! I even got the original unsweetened kind. I think I'll keep right on drinking
  • mc_hudd
    mc_hudd Posts: 47
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    I just stumbled onto almond milk also & really like it! I think it's much better in my protein shakes! I've never been a huge fan of cows milk though. But, when I eat milk & cookies (which I'm trying to stay away from!), I'll probably stick with cows milk. Other than that, I'm going to be using almond milk!
  • Aggeon
    Aggeon Posts: 9 Member
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    Almond milk is great, I enjoy it in oatmeal and cereal and appreciate that it lasts longer than animal milk. I haven't gotten to liking it enough to drink it plain though. If you are considering completely changing over then there's some things about cow milk you might be interested in that I researched a while back.

    The ability to digest animal milk as an adult is actually a genetic mutation from the Middle Ages, and your amount of digestive enzymes designed for milk decreases as you age and as you stop drinking it. Meaning, the longer you go without cow milk, the more likely you'll have an upset stomach when you do drink it. If you enjoy milk enough to know you'll have it in the future, just plan to drink a glass every now and then. Cow milk does have more Vitamin D, which is hard to get from other sources (except for the sun, but you don't want it from there) and saturated fat, which can be good for you if you want to increase your fertility for family planning.

    If you can get your Vitamin D from another source, then there's no need to rely on animal milk.
  • Sunitagt
    Sunitagt Posts: 486 Member
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    I prefer regular skim milk for most things. You get more protien than other things, and that's important for my goals. I do like almond milk, and keep a supply in the fridge as well, mostly for when I run out of skim milk. We cook with whole milk when making some desserts, and I enjoyed soy milk from the asian grocery stores when I was younger, but I don't like most of the soy milks you get from the regular grocery store, so I usually don't buy it unless we're going to Super H or 99 Ranch.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
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    Almond milk is fine. But there's nothing inherently "bad" about gluten unless you have an intolerance of it. You might find that sort of (unnecessary) restriction difficult to live with.
  • CA_Underdog
    CA_Underdog Posts: 733 Member
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    {edit: deleted}
  • FitnFeistyLyness
    FitnFeistyLyness Posts: 757 Member
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    im gluten free. i love almond milk.. i dont drink cows milk.. i also like coconut milk for cooking for soups.. almond milk is my choice for cereals.. if you have a high powered blender you can even make your own.. i like blue diamond brand as well.. oh wow i tried the chocolate almond milk. i know it has sugar, but as a occasional treat it was delicious.
  • LoupGarouTFTs
    LoupGarouTFTs Posts: 916 Member
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    I used to use almond milk on my cereal during church-related fasts. It's not bad. I never got used to just drinking it, but I used to enjoy it in or on things. I don't do the fasts any longer because I have a really hard time controlling my blood glucose level if I do, but I'd probably use it again if I had to. I still prefer cow's milk and goat's milk, though.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Whatever you like IMO. I can't stand almond milk in anything else than smoothies, typically.
  • Yellerie
    Yellerie Posts: 221 Member
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    Almond milk is fine just go with which you prefer almond milk or regular milk. But I have to say be very careful following a gluten free diet especially if you really don't need I have found especially in the processed items they have a high sugar content. One of my GS after being gluten free (for need) for several yrs ended up being diagnosed with type one diabetes & the children's hospital drs said it is actually becoming quite common that those following a gluten free diet can become diabetic. That being said those are actually people with celiac so that may be the connection between the two. But just watch your labels & good luck!!!.
  • callie006
    callie006 Posts: 151 Member
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    I like almond milk a lot. Do make sure it's unsweetened, though, (or make it yourself- pretty easy and incredibly delicious) because otherwise it tends to have quite a bit of added sugar. It also doesn't have the protein that cow or goat milk does.

    Personally, I would probably just use regular milk, but I have to limit my dairy intake to avoid unpleasant intestinal side effects, so I make shakes with almond milk.

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