March 18, 2008

You Ask, I Answer: Cow Or Soy Milk?

When it comes to milk, is soy milk better for kids than regular cow's milk?

-- Anonymous

Via the blog

I don't consider either "better" than other. This ultimately depends on personal preference and a few other factors.

I don’t have a problem with children drinking skim or low-fat milk, provided that they aren’t lactose intolerant, of course.

What disappoints me is that so many schools offer chocolate milk to children (and label it a "healthy" alternative simply because it contains calcium).

A single cup contains a tablespoon of added sugar. It's fine as a treat, but I don't find it to be the optimal beverage to accompany a meal on a daily basis.

Unfortunately, the majority of milk in the United States -- chocolate or not -- in the United States is produced by cows that chow on corn all day long and are injected with antibiotics and growth hormones.

Milk in and of itself is a nutritious beverage, though, providing high-quality protein, calcium, vitamin D, vitamin A, phosphorus, and potassium.

I would highly recommend opting for organic, grass-fed varieties.

Soy milk is a perfectly fine alternative.

Most varieties are fortified with vitamin D and provide a good amount of calcium, protein, and potassium.

I would be more concerned with what they're eating along with that cold glass of (dairy or soy) milk.

*UPDATE* Thank you to reader "gd" for pointing out that vanilla and chocolate flavored soy milks also contain quite a bit of added sugar.

I erroneously assumed everyone reads minds and would telepathically infer I was only referring to regular soy milk in this post.

So, if you are opting for soy milk, I suggest going for plain or unsweetened varieties.

5 comments:

gd said...

id like to make a couple comments regarding soy milk.

make sure you choose plain soymilk, because vanilla and chocolate and other flavored soymilks have quite a bit of sugar in them.

choose an organic soymilk to avoid GMO soybeans.

and if you are concerned about plant estrogens for kids, opt for a plain organic rice, almond, oat milk, etc.

i dont drink cow's milk anymore (even though i live in Vermont!), so ive tried to find a replacement that tastes good with my cereal in the morning. and i think that rice milk works well with cereal. soymilk was fine for awhile but kinda grossed me out after having it daily with my cereal. not sure why....

gd said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Hello. This post is likeable, and your blog is very interesting, congratulations :-). I will add in my blogroll =). If possible gives a last there on my blog, it is about the Smartphone, I hope you enjoy. The address is http://smartphone-brasil.blogspot.com. A hug.

Andy Bellatti said...

Thank you for your comments, gd. I erroneously used the term "soy milk" to mean "plain", although I know many people also buy vanilla and chocolate versions.

I actually enjoy Silk unsweetened soy milk in my cereal. The plain variety has a little bit of sugar in it; not much, though.

Anonymous said...

Hi, I found your site today while searching for another topic, but I instantly bookmarked it! I have to look back at your older posts when I have some time. I recently decided to buy chocolate soy milk as an alternative to chocolate cow's milk, just for a treat, but am concerned about the added sugar. After reading your post, I've decided that it's probably best to drink skim or 1% cow's milk vs. a flavored soy milk if I'm concerned about saturated fat and added sugar. Thanks for the great info!