6 Dairy-free milk substitutes

There are a number of reasons why you might like to eliminate cows milk from your diet. Whether it’s due to a dairy allergy or simply because you want to make more health conscious decisions about what you consume (it’s nearly that time of year again!), you can find a couple of nutritional substitutes for regular milk that aren’t heavy on the saturated fat or loaded with calories.

Soy milk

Soy milk is probably the most widely available substitute for cow’s milk. It is full of protein & fiber, and is safe for people who are lactose intolerant. However, it has been said that soy milk is a bowel irritant and if you don’t go organic, it can be quite high in sugar too! So if you’re keeping an eye on your sugar intake, do keep this mind when consuming soy milk.

Rice milk

This is by far my favourite substitute for normal milk.  Not only is it the most hypoallergenic, but it’s also the least fattening! Rice milk has a lot of hearty goodness which can help lower blood pressure. The downside to using rice milk is that it hasn’t got as much protein as the other substitutes and it can cause a spike in sugar levels too. That aside, it tastes amazing!

Coconut milk

Coconut milk is another tasty alternative and it just seems like the benefits of drinking coconut milk are endless: it is soya-free, gluten-free, cholesterol-free, nut-free and its fat content is regarded as being ‘good fat’, since it’s easily metabolised by the body and converted into energy instead of being stored as fat – oh, and did I mention it was a vegan drink?

Hemp milk

I bet this photo caught your eye! 🙂 Hemp milk is full of healthy omega fatty acids as well as protein. If you have a soy or nut allergy, then this is the milk for you! Since it’s much thicker and a bit nuttier than the other milk alternatives, it isn’t to everyone’s taste so if you like the taste of cows milk, but just want to stay off if for diet reasons then remember that hemp milk doesn’t taste like cows milk by any stretch of the imagination – don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Oat milk

Since it’s derived from a plant, oat milk is free from both cholesterol and lactose. It has an abundance of the antioxidant vitamin E, but is not so high when it comes to protein. Because of its oaty flavour, oat milk works really well with hot cereals or breakfast foods. A huge drawback to using oat milk is that you have to be able to take in gluten, so if you’re coeliac then this is a big no-no!

Nut milk

From cashew milk to hazelnut milk to almond milk – there are just so many to choose from! Nut milks are generally loaded with protein and vitamin E, and are usually quite thick. Almond milk is probably the most popular nut milk and because it’s so thick and creamy, it is a natural match for making sweet desserts. The main argument against nut milk is that nuts are a common allergen for people. But if this isn’t an issue for you, then enjoy!

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