What alternatives to animal milk are consumed by humans?
General Reference (not clearly pro or con)
Jackie Newgent, Registered Dietician, explained in her Discovery Health Channel website article "Are Dairy Alternatives Good For Your Bones?" (accessed Apr. 11, 2007):
"Milk
alternatives, or the new 'milks,' don't actually contain any milk.
They're non-dairy beverages that many people consume instead of dairy
milk... Three popular alternatives are soy, rice, and almond 'milk.'
...
Each
of these beverages has its own distinct texture, color, and flavor. But
make no mistake, they don't taste like milk; they have refreshing
flavors of their own. There's plenty of variety - vanilla, chocolate,
carob, and cappuccino, for instance."
Scott Kessman, a journalist, reported in his Oct. 10, 2006 article on the Associated Content website "Dairy Milk Substitutes: Lactose-free Alternatives":
"If
you are simply seeking an alternative to milk and other dairy products
products, you may want to consider some other alternatives, such as
almond milk, oat milk, rice milk, and others.
Soy
Milk is currently the most popular and well-known alternative to dairy
milk, thanks to extensive advertising and the many supermarkets and
groceries that now carry the dairy substitute. [It is] produced from
soybeans that have been ground and mixed with water and a sweetener...
Rice
Milk can usually be found in health food stores and some supermarkets.
It is made from brown rice, water and a sweetener, and, like soy milk,
is lactose-free and available in a number of varieties and flavors to
suit your taste.
Almond Milk is made from almonds that have been ground and mixed with water and a sweetener...
Oat
Milk is made primarily from oats and a small variety of other grains,
such as rice, soybeans, and barley. Like almond milk, oat milk can be
purchased in different varieties and fortified with essential vitamins
and minerals...
Multi-grain milk varieties are also available, and can be made from any number of different grains."
Compassion for Farm Animals stated on the "Alternatives to Milk" page on its website (accessed Apr. 11, 2007):
"A variety of tasty alternatives exist
to drinking other mammals milk. Milks made from soy, rice, almonds,
hazelnuts, oats, [and] cashews are all available at most health food
stores. Today most major grocery store chains sell soy and rice milks
often in the dairy case along side cows' milk."
Bob Batz, Jr., a journalist for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, wrote in his May 3, 2007 article "Got Milk?":
"Add to the list of
nondairy alternatives, with an emphasis on alternative, 'hemp milk.'
The 'milk,' which just began to be sold this year, is made from the
'nuts' or seeds of the industrial hemp plant, which is illegal for U.S.
farmers to grow...
A
growing number of makers of hemp milk - they use seeds from Canada,
where hemp grows legally - tout the health benefits of other substances
in the THC-free drink [THC is the main psychoactive ingredient in
marijuana, which comes from the hemp plant], which is selling legally
and briskly across the country."
