Milk (dairy and lactose allergies)

As many of us have heard (and this brings upon mom guilt feelings for me), breastmilk/mom milk is best. This is because human milk is designed for humans.

Why is Dairy Cow's Milk a thing?

  • Cow milk is designed for baby cows thus explaining why cow milk has so much fat it in.
  • Dairy milk has typically more protein, vitamin B12, and vitamin D than vegan milks.
  • Dairy milk has calcium, vitamin D, potassium, phosphorous, protein, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, vitamin B12, and vitamin A
  • Dairy milk does not need any added ingredients such as water, sea salt, sugar, thickeners, or natural flavors.
  • Yes, dairy milk contains a sugar but there is no added sugar.

Our take: there's something refreshing about cold milk. I was raised on organic milk - though most milks I see without the organic label say no hormones nowadays. When I was little, I took to an ethical standpoint and refused to drink non organic milk at friends' houses... We are lucky we live in California, so we have a lot of local dairies to choose from and support. My favorite brand (my mom used to buy us this as a treat) is Staus Creamery milk (they make great ice cream too) - it comes in a glass bottle that you can return for a deposit.

Main alternatives:

  • Soy milk
  • Almond milk
  • Coconut milk
  • Rice milk
  • Goat milk (typically ok for people lactose intolerant)
  • Oat milk
  • Pea milk
  • Hemp milk
  • Cashew milk
  • Macadamia nut milk
  • Sheep milk (typically ok for people lactose intolerant)

There are probably more milks out there, these are the ones you will most likely consider though. I tried to rank them by most common and popular to least.

My favorite kind is pea milk and I'll dive into that in a different post. Eventually I will post recommendations of brands for each too. Each is unique and produces different flavors. I will also eventually do recommendations for yogurts, cheeses, ice cream, etc. We have a lot of opinions.