Almond Milk The Choice Milk for a Healthy Lifestyle

By Mystify on September 6th, 2009 HealthMad.com

Traditionally almond milk was used as a cleansing,purifying drink that was ingested before rituals or feasts but today it is used as an excellent alternative to cow and soya milk and is suitable for vegetarians and all of those wanting to avoid lactose,gluten and soya .For the rest of us it is used as a way to achieve a healthy lifestyle.

There is a saying I heard for almond milk, healthy food for lazy people and even though this saying does make sense to an extent,I don’t believe you have to be lazy to drink it because with todays hectic lifestyles many of us simply just do not have the time to have a nutritional healthy meal.

So what makes almond milk so healthy?

Almonds are high in unsaturated fat which has been proved to greatly reduce heart disease by causing rise in good cholesterol levels.
The milk is cholesterol free and contains high levels of omega fatty acids and protein,which are proven sources to help aid and maintain healthy living.
Almonds also contain an unrivaled source of vitamin E which is a powerful antioxidant and one of the only known vitamins to help reduce stomach fat.
Zinc, Magnesium,Potassium,Fiber,Phosphorus,Iron and Calcium are among the other vitamins and minerals in this powerhouse of a drink, helping aid everything from your bones to your blood.
In fact just by drinking one ounce of almond milk you will have gotten 10% of your daily intake of calcium.

If your a skeptic like myself you may need a bit more convincing than that to actually want to try it, so upon doing some extra research, I came upon a physicians website aimed at cows milk and what I found was quite shocking.
A number of physicians worldwide have noted a link between Multiple Sclerosis, a neurological disease, to dairy products.
Because Norway has the highest intake of dairy and the highest rate of Multiple Sclerosis it didn’t take long to link the two together.
Dr.Luther Linder , involved in clinical MS experiments at Texas A&M university wrote,”It might be prudent to limit the intake of milk and other dairy products.”

Quite shocking, I know but yet another benefit almond milk has over cows milk.

Personally I think it is not too bad as a drink. But to be completely honest with you the true reason I began to look for an alternative to cows milk is due to my son who suffers from a very bad case of eczema. Cows milk is a known cause to aggravate eczema making it worse. So for anyone suffering from this and/or lactose intolerance this is simply just one more good reason as to why you should try it.

Almond milk is non dairy product and because it doesn’t have the powdery temperament that other non dairy products have such as soya , it behaves well in the kitchen, making nice foods, desserts and wonderfully creamy sauces.
It is great to have as a drink or to add to your coffee and because it is creamy texture it can be whipped into a spread, a lot like butter, although, a lot healthier.

So now that we have covered the benefits of almond milk, perhaps you would like to try making your own and fortunately, it is simple to make but if you cannot be bothered to make it, you can always buy it already made which is just as good.

Raw Almond Milk



1 cup of soaked almonds
3-4 cups of water
1/4 cup of agave nectar (optional)
Pinch of sea salt

Blend soaked almonds and water until thoroughly blended. Strain the milk through a nutbag or cheesecloth into large bowl. Rinse blender and put strained milk in with agave nectar and sea salt. Blend.

Cooked Almond Milk

1 1/3 cups of ground almond
2 cups of water
1/4 tsp vanilla extract (Optional)

Bring water to boil. Turn off heat. Add almonds and let steep for 10 minutes. Strain with cheesecloth or strainer into blender. Add vanilla extract. Blend!

Copyright © 2007 Tanya Kime-Wallace

Review of So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage

By Kristie Leong MD July 30, 2009 Quazen.com

Are you looking for alternative milks that taste great? Give So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage a try. It’s healthy and delicious.

Some people can’t drink dairy based milk because of milk allergies, lactose intolerance, or because they follow a vegan diet. Fortunately, the number of alternative milks on the market has expanded in recent years. These days you can choose from rice milk, hemp milk, soymilk, oat milk, and a variety of nut milks to get the creamy taste of milk without the dairy or lactose. Now, there’s a new addition to the non-dairy milk market – So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage and it’s an alternative that’s well worth exploring.

What is So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage?
So Delicious is manufactured by Turtle Mountain, a company that makes a variety of dairy-free and lactose-free frozen desserts and yogurt that are already quite popular at health food and natural markets nationwide. They’ve now ventured into the world of alternative milks with the introduction of this tasty, coconut milk beverage.

So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage is packaged in attractive half gallon cartons with a top cap spout that requires refrigeration once purchased. This unique drink is made of coconut cream and natural coconut, water and fillers such as guar gum and carrageenan to thicken the beverage without adding additional calories. It’s also supplemented with magnesium phosphate, calcium phosphate, vitamin A, vitamin D-2, vitamin B-12, folic acid, and selenium and is sweetened with organic evaporated cane juice.

What About the Nutritional Profile?
A cup of So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage has only eighty calories, slightly less than fat-free dairy milk and fewer than most alternative milks. It contains five grams of fat, consisting of 65% medium chain fatty acids. Medium chain fatty acids are more easily absorbed by the body than long chain fatty acids found in most fats. This can be a positive for people who suffer from maladsorption type syndromes or who have difficulty absorbing fat. Another positive? Medium chain fatty acids are being studied for their potential to accelerate weight loss. It seems they’re more likely to be used directly by the body for energy, unlike long chain fatty acids that end up being stored as fat deposits.

How Does It Taste?
So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage has a smooth, creamy texture and a flavor that’s not too sweet. It lacks the subtle aftertaste that can be a problem with some soy milks. In addition to plain coconut milk, Turtle Mountain makes a vanilla flavor and a sugar-free plain version. Because this beverage has such a creamy taste, it can be added to coffee or served on top of hot or cold cereal at a considerable calorie savings. It can also be used as a replacement for milk or alternative milks in recipes.

The Bottom Line?
Give this tasty coconut milk beverage a try if you want a healthy and tasty alternative to dairy. Carb watchers should consider getting the sugar-free version since the plain coconut milk beverage has six grams of carbohydrates in each serving.

One caveat. So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage isn’t cheap. A half gallon carton will cost around $4.49, but judging from the taste and nutritional profile, it’s worth every penny. To find a location near you that sells this product, visit the Turtle Mountain website.

Choice, Choice and More Choice

By will123 August 12, 2009 Quazen.com

Have you ever walked into a supermarket looking for the basics and been bewildered by choice?

Yesterday I walked into my local supermarket, with a long shopping list in my hand looking for the basics and a couple of other luxuries. I quickly found the ‘dairy’ row and walking down looking for some cheese and milk
. I have been to this supermarket a couple of times before and every time I’ve gone, the cheese selection has grown and every time I’ve gone It’s been harder and harder to make the choice. The cheese brand I’m looking for has recently become lost in a mountain of others.

The milk isn’t much different, now you get all different types, sizes, packaging and tokens with the milk you buy. Do you want your milk in a bag? Would you like tokens or free cereal with your milk? What colour cap do you want on your milk?

There comes a point when you have so much choice, you really don’t want to make any kind of choice. This is my relationship with the cheese and milk at my local supermarket.