Cow, Soy or Almond: Which 'Milk' Is Best for You?

Almond milk, soy milk, rice milk and coconut milk may all offer lactose-free alternatives to cow's milk, but new research suggests that the dairy version remains the most nutritious option. The finding stems from a Canadian analysis that assessed the nutritional value of a single serving of the four most popular plant-based milks relative to cow's milk."We thought that a review was much overdue in understanding the nutritional information of various plant-based milks," explained study author Sai Kranthi Kumar Vanga.And ultimately, "we were surprised that many of these milks do not have the nutritional density of cow's milk, both in terms of micro and macro nutrients."Nutritionally speaking, cow's milk is still the go-to beverage that has a balanced profile," said Vanga, a Ph.D. candidate in the department of bioresource engineering with the faculty of agriculture and environmental sciences at McGill University in Quebec.