Got (the healthiest) milk? Are plant milks healthier than old fashioned cow's milk

We all know that people have been drinking cow's milk since before grocery stores were even built. Newer plant varieties of milk like soy, almond, rice, hemp, and coconut are available now and tend to cost a little bit more than cow's milk. Is it because they are healthier than cow's milk?






Cow's milk nutrition, the facts:

• Since milk comes from an animal, even reduced fat and fat free (skim) versions contain cholesterol. 
• Contains unhealthy saturated fat, 1 glass of 2% milk has 15% of your daily saturated fat intake. (skim or fat free has no saturated fat).
• Vitamin D is NOT just in whole milk, it is now added lower fat and fat free versions. 
• Milk is a good source of calcium
• One 8 ounce glass of milk contains around 8g of protein, it does not matter if it is whole milk or skim milk. 

Everyone knows that adults should not be drinking whole milk because of the high calorie and fat content. However, did you know that it is now recommended that after the age of 2,  children should be drinking reduced fat or fat free milk as well?

Plant milks nutrition, the facts:  

Benefits:

• Contain 0mg of cholesterol since they come from plants (Animals make cholesterol naturally)
• Contain heart healthy fiber
• Contain heart healthy fat, if any fat at all (cow's milk contains unhealthy saturated fat)
• Contain antioxidants which help fight aging, heart disease, and certain types of cancer
• Lower fat versions are thicker than lower fat cow's milk
• Can be lower in calories than skim milk and come in a variety of flavors

 Pit falls:

• Some flavored versions can be as many calories as whole milk due to high sugar content
• Some types of plant milks contain less protein than cow's milk
• Plant proteins are not absorbed as well as cow's milk proteins

Summary: What milks are the healthiest?

1. Skim cow's milk
2. Soy milk
3. and almond milk

• Cow's milk and soy milk have about the same amount of calories and protein (choose light versions of flavored soy milks because regular versions are high in sugar) 
• Almond milk is the lowest in calories, is higher in calcium than cow's milk,  but lower in protein (only 1g per cup) than soy and cow's milk. 

Why not other milks?

• Rice Milk- higher in calories, higher in carbs, no fiber, low in protein
• Hemp milk - higher in calories, higher in fat (mostly good fats), low in protein
• Coconut milk- a lot higher in calories, high in saturated fat (bad kind), low in protein. Limit your use of this milk as much as possible. This milk is worse than whole milk.