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Good or bad? Plant-based and cow’s milk are not always nutritionally equal, study says

July 25, 2023 from the CNN:

"The plant-based milk market is exploding, offering beverages made from seeds, nuts, legumes, grains and blends of those ingredients, often marketed as ready replacements for the traditional choice of cow’s milk.

"However, not all of those plant milk options are fortified to meet the levels of various nutritional ingredients contained in dairy, according to a new unpublished study presented Monday in Boston at Nutrition 2023, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.

"The study analyzed nutrition labels and ingredients for 233 plant-based milk products from 23 different manufacturers and found only 28 of the beverages had as much or more protein, vitamin D and calcium as cow’s milk.

" After analyzing the labels, the researchers found 170 of the 233 alt-milk options were fortified with calcium at levels similar to the average 300 milligrams of calcium per 8-ounce glass found in dairy milk. Those same 170 products were also fortified with similar levels of vitamin D as dairy. (Cow’s milk doesn’t contain vitamin D naturally, so it is always added.)

"Specifically, 76% of the oat-based milks, 69% of the soy-based products, and 66% of almond-milk alternatives were fortified with both calcium and vitamin D, according to the study.

"Cow’s milk is naturally a bit sweet due to a naturally occurring sugar called lactose. Oat milk is similar, in that enzymes break down starches and other complex sugars into maltose, a natural form of sugar. Other plant milks may not be naturally sweet, and Johnson found a few brands used added sugars to compensate.

"Next, the team analyzed protein levels. Only 38 of the 223 milk alternatives had a protein level greater than or equal to the 8 grams of protein typically found in every 8-ounce glass of dairy milk, the study found. "