Is Dairy Healthy? And Should You Switch to a Plant-Based Milk?

You’ve seen the rise of plant-based “milks” over the past couple of years.

From coffee shops serving oat milk lattes to grocery stores carrying endless options of almond milk and soy milk…plant-based milk is everywhere!

But is it better for you than dairy?

Is dairy healthy for you?

Should you switch out the cream in your coffee to oat milk?

Or switch out the cow’s milk in your cereal to almond milk?

I get these questions all the time from clients, so you’re not alone if you’ve questioned whether you should be having cow’s milk or not.

I thought it would be helpful to first share what current research is showing, and then share my professional opinion 😊

There are a few reasons people drink milk.

After all, “Got Milk?” ads show children need milk for strong, healthy bones.

Numerous celebrities have been sponsored for the “Got Milk” campaign, from Shaq dunking Oreos into milk to Taylor Swift saying she has 3 cups of low-fat milk every day.

Athletes are sponsored to show that they drink chocolate milk for optimal recovery after exercise.

A few reasons you might be drinking cow’s milk:

• It has 8 grams of protein per cup (making it an easy recovery drink as part of a smoothie or providing more filling staying power to your cereal in the morning)

• Whey and casein protein in milk contain all 9 essential amino acids (the small units of protein our bodies need that we have to get from food)

• It’s a great source of calcium (hence, all the ads for strong bones)

Here’s the tricky thing about these seemingly positive aspects of dairy:

The ads, marketing campaigns, and public health campaigns used to get these health claims into our minds are funded by Big Dairy.

Big Dairy includes the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board and the National Dairy Council, a lobby group.

According to the nonpartisan group, Center for Responsive Politics, Big Dairy gave 46 million dollars to politicians between 1990-2016.

In 2019 alone, Big Dairy gave almost 8 million dollars to politicians.

And research funded by Big Dairy is 8X more likely to find health benefits of drinking milk than studies not funded by the dairy industry.

Hmmm…do you find anything about these scenarios questionable?

Here’s what we know about cow’s milk:

It contains lactose.

According to the US National Library of Medicine, 65% of the population is lactose intolerant.

And in some minority groups (African, Asian, American Indian, Hispanic) and those of Jewish, Greek, Arab, and Italian descent, the percentage of those who are lactose intolerant is even higher.

Lactose intolerance often develops in adulthood.

What does lactose intolerance feel like?

• Bloating

• Gas

• Diarrhea

• Stomach Cramps

• Nausea and/or vomiting

Yikes, no one wants to feel bloated and gassy.

But what about calcium?

Doesn’t cow’s milk have more calcium than plant-based milk?

And isn’t the calcium from plants not as readily available for our body to use as the calcium found in dairy?

It turns out, research shows that it doesn’t matter how much calcium is in the food…rather, it matters how much your body is able to use.

In other words, it’s not how much calcium you ingest that matters, but how much your body is able to absorb from what you eat that does.

This table, from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, paints the picture of available calcium nicely:

Your body absorbs the same amount of calcium of 1 cup of dairy milk as it does with 1 cup of kale or 1 cup of soy milk.

So what?

Well, the story continues…

An average glass of cow’s milk has 60 hormones.

One of those hormones is called IGF-1.

IGF-1 is great for bone healing and bone formation.

Great, right?

Actually, no.

Research shows that IGF-1 is associated with cancer, as well as with heart disease, diabetes, and kidney disease.

Again, yikes.

Does that increased risk of cancer also stem from other habits, like more alcohol, more sugar, and less exercise?

More research is needed.

But you know what promotes strong bones and DOESN’T increase your risk of cancer?

Plant-based sources of calcium and physical activity.

And there’s something else you need to know about calcium…

It’s called the “calcium paradox.”

Research shows that countries with lowest dairy consumption have the lowest rates of bone fractures and osteoporosis.

Countries with highest dairy consumption and calcium intake have the highest rates of bone fractures.

Weird, isn’t it?

Here in America, Big Dairy tells us to drink milk for strong bones.

But is that really the case?

If you’re concerned about your child or you having strong bones, or you’re trying to prevent fractures or reduce your risk of osteoporosis, dairy, including cow’s milk, just might not be the answer.

Research shows that fractures increase with high protein intake.

And diets high in animal protein and sodium increase your body’s calcium loss.

So what are your options for health-promoting ways to help you have strong bones?

Getting adequate sunshine, physical activity, reducing animal protein and sodium, and increasing your fruit and veggie intake are great ways to boost calcium absorption, reduce inflammation, and increase your fiber intake for good digestion and a healthy microbiome.

Ok, so we’ve talked about calcium a lot. But what about the protein in cow’s milk?

Don’t plant-based milks have almost no protein?

It turns out that soy milk and plant-based milks made with pea protein (like Ripple) have 8 grams of protein per cup, just like cow’s milk.

Nice!

And if you choose a low-protein plant-based milk, like almond milk or oat milk, there’s still plenty of opportunities to get enough protein for the day.

So, should you switch from cow’s milk to plant-based milk?

At the end of the day, that’s your call.

You have to make decisions based on your own desires, health goals, environmental beliefs, ethical beliefs around animals, symptoms you may be experiencing and want to limit, etc.

But, in SUMMARY, I will say this:

1) You don’t need milk for strong bones

2) You can get plenty of protein from other sources besides cow’s milk

3) Sunshine, physical activity, fruits and veggies, low-sugar and low-sodium intakes, a balanced diet, and eating in moderation will help you be and feel healthy

My advice to you (and to myself):

“Don’t live in the extremes.”

The quality of your overall diet, your daily habits, your physical activity regimen, your mental and spiritual health- they all add up to your health much more so than whether or not you’re having cow’s milk in moderation.

You don’t need to cut out dairy products completely from your diet.

In fact, people living in the Blue Zones enjoy the occasional goat cheese or sheep’s milk cheese.

The middle way and balance is always best.

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