I have conducted a survey to find out how many people drink dairy milk compared to plant-based alternatives. I asked 20 students from my class and in my survey found that 9 people drink dairy milk and 11 use an alternative. The majority of students that don’t drink milk said their reason was that it tastes bad rather than for a health reason.

Milk is a great source of protein and calcium as well as important vitamins and minerals. Protein is crucial in building muscle, which keeps you healthy and reduces your risk of injury. One glass of whole milk contains 8 grams of protein, 160 calories, 115 IU of vitamin D, 366 mg of potassium, 260 mg of calcium, all with 0 grams of added sugar. Milk contains high amounts of calcium, which contributes to strong healthy bones, which prevents injury and helps regulate heart function. 

People often hear of plant based milk alternatives and think they must be healthier, but that is not the case. Plant-based milk does not naturally contain the same vitamins and minerals as dairy milk; they attempt to create them synthetically. One of milk’s most profound minerals is calcium which is often replaced in milk alternatives with calcium carbonate. Calcium carbonate is essentially just chalk and a 2018 study showed its associated with constipation, bloating, and flatulence (Longevitylive.com). Plant-based milks also contain significantly lower amounts of protein and way more sugar. Almond milk on average contains 1 gram of protein and 8 grams of added sugar. Soy milk has about 7 grams of protein and 10 grams of added sugar. Oat milk has around 3 grams of protein and 7 grams of added sugar, compared to dairy milk, which has 8 grams of protein and 0 grams of added sugar. As you can see dairy alternatives contain significantly more sugar in order to get rid of the bad taste they have naturally. Added sugar increases your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. It also causes weight gain, is bad for your teeth, and leads to a fatty liver (healthline.com). On top of that, milk only has one ingredient compared to all plant-based milks having over 10 ingredients while still having less protein and minerals. 

According to studies conducted by the KU Medical Center older adults that drink 3 glasses of milk a day experience powerful antioxidants in the brain. For older people that drink milk, it helps reduce the effects of aging in the brain and aging-related diseases. Milk is a major contributor to brain development and improved cognitive performance later in life. Milk’s high levels of anti-aging nutrients, retinol and Vitamin D, can help increase health at older ages.

There are also some major environmental effects from soy and almond farming. Soybean farming contributes to deforestation, eviction of native tribes, and can destabilize ecosystems. Soy farming is one of the driving factors of deforestation in the Amazon. The Amazon has receded by 20% in the last 50 years. Almond harvesting takes significantly more water to produce than dairy milk. Just one almond takes 1-3 gallons of water to produce and half a gallon of almond milk takes around 250 gallons of water. This is important especially when you consider that almonds are mostly grown in California where we regularly run low on water.

 In my study it seems people are pretty divided on drinking milk, but most people think plant-based alternatives are more healthy. Through my research I found milk alternatives are not healthier, they contain less protein, vitamins and minerals while having significantly more sugar. The main agenda is that dairy farms are bad for the environment and plant based milks are the solution but fail to see all the environmental effects soy and almond farming has on the world. Interestingly, too, although this was a small sample size, in my class the average height of plant milk drinkers was 5´6 compared to 6ft for those who drink cow milk. This shows a direct correlation between drinking milk and being tall! I strongly encourage more people to start drinking dairy milk as it is cheaper, healthier, and more natural.