Best alternative to dairy milk?

[Diana W]

I'm a new vegetarian. While I'm not sure I want to go vegan I would like to cut dairy milk out of my diet or at least drastically cut it down. I tried almond milk a year ago but couldn't get used to the taste. Can anyone suggest which alternative tastes closest to cows milk? Is there a lot of difference in how soy milk tastes? Thanks in advance.

[knightofalbion]

Most plant milks are fortified with calcium, B12 and vitamin D. So there isn't a great deal of difference nutritionally.

There are numerous plant milks - soya, almond, rice, oat, hazelnut ...
I believe in America you can also get hemp milk.
There is also coconut milk, good and very tasty, but a high fat content.

From my own experiences, and I'm sure others will back me up, there can be a great difference between flavours of soya and almond milks, so it might be a good idea to try other brands.

[Diana W]

Thanks Knight. I've tried almond milk, there's just something in the taste I can't get used to. We're going to Trader Joe's in the next day or two so I'll pick out some soy milk to try.

[LadyMay]

I'm not knowledgeable in this directly but my mother is and she always tells me not to drink soya. Something to do with estrogen I think. She gets us almond milk. I don't know why it's better but health is her number one topic so I would say look it up and try it if you're interested. You can buy it or make your own.

Sorry if that wasn't much help.. just what I drink.

[Diana W]

Thanks Scarlett, I did see a reference to too much soy not being good for you. I think I'll have to do some research and maybe revisit the almond milk. Maybe I'd like a different brand.

[knightofalbion]

Try this

http://www.aviva.ca/article.asp?articleid=14

I've been drinking it for 30 years without any issues.

[Diana W]

Originally Posted by knightofalbion

Try this

http://www.aviva.ca/article.asp?articleid=14

I've been drinking it for 30 years without any issues.

Oh, what a surprise. Most of the hype against soy should come from people in the dairy industry. I'm going to go ahead and try soy milk. After all, it can't be any more unhealthy than cow milk, can it.

I guess the old adage applies though...too much of anything is bad for you. Thanks for the link!

[mogenblue]

Yes, you really need to be aware of information to point you in another direction from sources that have a specific purpose for that and don't tell you that.

When I switched to vegetarian five years ago I used soy milk because it was the most common fortified cow milk alternative available. I have been drinking it for a number of years without any problems.

Half a year ago I switched to making my own soy milk and then I did encounter some problems in my digestion. I thought it was because of my own home made soy milk, but after careful analysis and ruling out all the different sources, I concluded it was because I used deep frozen food mixes that included beans and peas (italian mix, mexican mix, special mix).
I use a lot of frozen vegetable food for ease and price, but I didn't understand the consequences it may have on my digestion.

So now I only use single frozen vegetables for deep frozen food (cauliflower, broccoli, spinach). And my digestion problems have disappeared. It had nothing to do with the soy milk. Wether I would buy it in the shop or make it on my own.

[Diana W]

Originally Posted by mogenblue

Yes, you really need to be aware of information to point you in another direction from sources that have a specific purpose for that and don't tell you that.

When I switched to vegetarian five years ago I used soy milk because it was the most common fortified cow milk alternative available. I have been drinking it for a number of years without any problems.

Half a year ago I switched to making my own soy milk and then I did encounter some problems in my digestion. I thought it was because of my own home made soy milk, but after careful analysis and ruling out all the different sources, I concluded it was because I used deep frozen food mixes that included beans and peas (italian mix, mexican mix, special mix).
I use a lot of frozen vegetable food for ease and price, but I didn't understand the consequences it may have on my digestion.

So now I only use single frozen vegetables for deep frozen food (cauliflower, broccoli, spinach). And my digestion problems have disappeared. It had nothing to do with the soy milk. Wether I would buy it in the shop or make it on my own.

I know what you mean. There are a lot of agendas out there. I'll give soy milk a try. I'm not sure if I'm going to go full vegan but I would like to drastically cut down on cows milk. Thanks for the advice!

[Adrienne]

There are a variety of almond milks and they each taste different... I think Blue Diamond is a good one. Soy milk tastes weird, lol . I have heard soy milk isn't that good for you, or soy in general.

Goats milk is supposed to be good, not sure where one gets that though ...... Switzerland ?