Whether you knew this or not, the Almond milk is the most popular plant milk in the States. Its popularity comes from the fact that it is filled with healthy nutrients but it lacks most of the fibres. The most interesting thing is that its health effects aren’t thoroughly examined in any study at all, but some of the obtained components have been studied to a great extent.
What exactly is Almond milk?
Most out there probably consume it to some extent, but I bet most of you do not know what exactly it is. Well, firstly, it is obtained by blending almonds and water, after you strain the mixture in order to remove the solids and get that milky substance. To make it a little more interesting, you can also add butter to the mixture.
The end result is a fine, nutty flavour and creamy texture, almost similar to the regular milk. If you are a bit lazy and unwilling to make this at home (which is pretty easy by the way), you can always find commercial Almond milk in the supermarkets, and you can find it in a variety of brands and flavours (be sure to pick one without added sugars).
As far as health reasons for picking this type of milk are considered, you should know that it has some healthy stuff in it but not as much as the whole almonds. Since it is skinned, blanched and watered down it offers far less nutritious and healthy substances than the whole almond, but despite that here are 7 health benefits you will gain by using this type of milk.
#1 Nutrition
If we compare cow’s milk and almond one, then it should be noted that Almond milk is far less nutritious than the first one, but thanks to the commercialisation of everything, there are some enriched products that come very close. There are some vitamins that Almond milk has (especially vitamin E) and those can be really good for you. This table below shows the differences between these two types of milk in one cup serving, and what they actually contain.
Almond Milk Cow’s Milk
Calories 39 102
Protein 1.55 grams 8.22 grams
Fat 2.88 grams 2.37 grams
Carbs 1.52 grams 12.18 grams
Vitamin 49% of the RDI 0% of the RDI
Thiamin 11% of the RDI 3% of the RDI
Riboflavin 7% of the RDI 27% of the RDI
Magnesium 5% of the RDI 8% of the RDI
You should also know that Almond milk has some minerals that are a little difficult to absorb and this is mostly thanks to the phytic acid, an antinutrient that reduces the absorption of iron, zinc, and magnesium. It should also be noted that thanks to all of this, it is not a suitable milk replacement for infants.
