The Dairy-Free Revolution Alternatives: 5 Things To Consider

We have heard about the environmental footprint of plant-based milk alternatives. Almond ‘milk’ is great if your priority is fewer CO2 emissions, while soy and oats are best if you want to consider water scarcity. But if your priority is your health, you might want to consider another option. Read on to find out more about plant-based milk nutrition

Chalupa-Krebzdak, S, Long, C.J., Bohrer, B.M. (2018): Nutrient density and nutritional value of milk and plant-based milk alternatives. Elsevier: International Dairy Journal, Volume 87, pp 84-92. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.idairyj.2018.07.018

Plant-based milk alternatives don’t contain lactose or cholesterol
Good news for the 65% of the global population suffering from some degree of lactose intolerance.
NIH U.S. National Library of Medicine
Milk alternatives are diluted with water.
Oat ‘milk’ may have the lowest environmental impact, but it lacks sufficient nutritional value . This is due to its high dilution with water, explains Michalis Hadjikakou, a researcher at Deakin University.

The Guardian
All plant-based alternatives have a lower protein
These large molecules are what our genes code for. These molecules are both the building blocks to life and the tools used to make them.
content than cow’s milk.
Proteins also contain essential amino acids
Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins and responsible for many life-sustaining processes in our bodies. We can produce some ourselves, others (so-called essential amino acids) have to be taken up with food. There are 20 different amino acids, 9 of which are essential ones.

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which we need for good health. The World Health Organization introduced a scoring system for digestible amino acids, which showed that soy protein had the highest values. In contrast, no proper source of protein could be found in almond milk.

In terms of protein content levels, soy-based milk alternatives score the highest on the protein spectrum, while rice products score the lowest.
Plant-based alternatives have less saturated fats.
Plant alternatives to fat might have beneficial effects since they contain fewer saturated fats, which raise cholesterol levels in the blood and, therefore, increase the risk of heart disease.
Plant-based milk alternatives have calcium supplements.
Many plant-based milk alternatives contain added calcium and B vitamins, and some have higher levels of calcium. However, since most calcium is supplemented in plant-based products, it can sediment when not shaken appropriately and, therefore, not be available for intake when we drink it. Make sure you give your plant milk a good shake before using it!

What kinds of plant-based milk alternatives are there?

Cereal-based	Oat, rice, corn, spelt
Legume-based	Soy, peanut, lupin lupin beans or lupini are round yellow legumes traditionally eaten in the Mediterranean , cowpea
Nut-based	Almond, coconut, hazelnut, pistachio, walnut
Seed-based	Sesame, flax, hemp, sunflower
Pseudo-cereal based	Quinoa, teff, amaranth

So, there you have it. There are many different plant-based milk alternatives to choose from, all of which vary in their nutritional value and environmental impact. Which type of milk will you choose?

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