Goat Milk Healthier than Cow Milk? There's something even better. Keep reading...
"GOT GOAT'S MILK?"
Article from AskDrSears.com
What does goat's milk give you that cow's milk doesn't?
In many parts of the world, goat's milk is preferred to cow's milk. Even in the United States, the goat is gaining popularity. Goats eat less and occupy less grazing space than cows, and in some families the backyard goat supplies milk for family needs. Goat's milk is believed to be more easily digestible and less allergenic than cow's milk. Does it deserve this reputation? Let's disassemble goat's milk, nutrient-by-nutrient, to see how it compares with cow's milk.
Different fat.
Goat's milk contains around ten grams of fat per eight ounces compared to 8 to 9 grams in whole cow's milk, and it's much easier to find lowfat and non-fat varieties of cow's milk than it is to purchase lowfat goat's milk. Unlike cow's milk, goat's milk does not contain agglutinin. As a result, the fat globules in goat's milk do not cluster together, making them easier to digest. Like cow's milk, goat's milk is low in essential fatty acids, because goats also have EFA-destroying bacteria in their ruminant stomachs. Yet, goat milk is reported to contain more of the essential fatty acids linoleic and arachnodonic acids, in addition to a higher proportion of short-chain and medium-chain fatty acids. These are easier for intestinal enzymes to digest.
Different protein.
Goat milk protein forms a softer curd (the term given to the protein clumps that are formed by the action of your stomach acid on the protein), which makes the protein more easily and rapidly digestible. Theoretically, this more rapid transit through the stomach could be an advantage to infants and children who regurgitate cow's milk easily. Goat's milk may also have advantages when it comes to allergies. Goat's milk contains only trace amounts of an allergenic casein protein, alpha-S1, found in cow's milk. Goat's milk casein is more similar to human milk, yet cow's milk and goat's milk contain similar levels of the other allergenic protein, beta lactoglobulin. Scientific studies have not found a decreased incidence of allergy with goat's milk, but here is another situation where mothers' observations and scientific studies are at odds with one another. Some mothers are certain that their child tolerates goat's milk better than cow's milk, and mothers are more sensitive to children's reactions than scientific studies.
Less lactose.
Goat's milk contains slightly lower levels of lactose (4.1 percent versus 4.7 percent in cow's milk), which may be a small advantage in lactose-intolerant persons.
Different minerals.
Although the mineral content of goat's milk and cow's milk is generally similar, goat's milk contains 13 percent more calcium, 25 percent more vitamin B-6, 47 percent more vitamin A, 134 percent more potassium, and three times more niacin. It is also four times higher in copper. Goat's milk also contains 27 percent more of the antioxidant selenium than cow's milk. Cow's milk contains five times as much vitamin B-12 as goat's milk and ten times as much folic acid (12 mcg. in cow's milk versus 1 mcg. for goat's milk per eight ounces with an RDA of 75-100 mcg. for children). The fact that goat's milk contains less than ten percent of the amount of folic acid contained in cow's milk means that it must be supplemented with folic acid in order to be adequate as a formula or milk substitute for infants and toddlers, and popular brands of goat's milk may advertise "supplemented with folic acid" on the carton.
Nut Milk
Now, there's a twist. How about we leave the animals alone. Let them produce and feed milk to their young, who the milk is made for.
You can buy, soy milks, rice milks, almond milks, etc. Although convenient, nothing is better and cheaper than making it yourself - and it's easy to do.
For me, there's too much controversy around soy. Is it good or not not good for women and developing children of either sex? Then there's the topic of GMO foods and soy being 100% GMO. I don't like hype and games but since there's enough about soy in circulation, I incorporate into our diet sparingly.
Back to making your own milk.
I love almond milk. I will make it creamier with the addition of some cashews and sometimes I'll throw in a few brazil nuts for extra nutrition. Here's my basic recipe:
Almond Cashew Milk
2 cups Almonds, soaked in water overnight (at least 8 hrs)
1 cup Cashews, soaked in water overnight (sometimes not)
handful of Brazil nuts, soaked like the Almonds
You will also need a nut milk bag or cheesecloth. For cheaper, you can go to any paint supply store and find the mesh bags they use for filtering paint. For just a couple of bucks, I got one with an elastic opening and love that it stays in place better when I fit it over a pitcher or bowl while I pour my milk through it.
In the morning, I put half of the Almonds and half of the Cashews into my blender (VitaMix or BlendTec) with 3 cups pure water and blend to a fine pulp.
I pour the mixture through the nut milk bag/mesh/cheesecloth into a bowl or pitcher. Most of your mixture will not journey through the bag so, you will need to secure the top by twisting it around itself, hold the top and start squeezing the milk out of the bag. You almost feel like you are milking the cow or goat.
Once you've got as much liquid out that you can squeeze out, shake out the pulp into a container to use in other raw recipes.
Now, take the rest of the Almonds, the Cashews and Brazil nuts, and another 3 cups of water - blend and filter again.
I like mine just the way it is but you might like it a titch sweeter or a titch creamier.
For sweeter, add increments of 1 Tblsp. agave nectar and you can add a little or a lot of vanilla.
For creamier, don't soak the cashews or add more soaked or dry.
There are lots of raw soups that call for almond milk so you may want some plain not sweet for these recipes.
You can use this same process to make milk out of other nuts and seeds. Almonds just have a mild flavor to go with anything.
Want to know the nutrient content of Almond Milk vs. Whole Milk?
Almond / Whole - in milligrams per 100 gram amounts
Protein 18.6 / 3.7 (add another 17.3 with cashews)
Vit A -- / 143.4 (add 100)
Vit E 48 / --
Vit D -- / 40
B-1 0.92 / 0.03
B-2 0.92 / 0.27 (add 0.25)
Calcium 234 / 118 (add 38)
Magnesium 270 / 13 (add 267)
Phosphorus 504 / 93 (add 373)
Sodium 30 / -- (add 50) this is plant sodium, not a rock
Potassium 773 / 44
Iron 4.7 / -- (add 3.8)
Manganese 2.5 / 0.02
Zinc 3.1 / 0.4
Niacin 3.5 / --
Panta Acid -- / -- (add 1.3)
Choline -- / 15
Inositol -- / 13
I don't know about you but I'll take Almond Cashew Milk over whole milk any day. And isn't it fascinating to see the numbers for Protein and Calcium. The two most sought after nutrients when choosing to drink milk and Almond Cashew milk beats the pants off of cow's milk. I must add here to look at the Magnesium content too. This is huge. We need magnesium for healthy bowels. Magnesium strengthens the intestines to keep them working properly.