Humane - what humane

When I first started about changing up my diet after reading a few things here and there.. I gave up meat and then I went about trying to find more "humane" options.. cage free eggs. Milk from Pasture fed and happier cows.
Then after finding out more and more about those farms and reading stories on vegan food blogs, I decided to replace each of the products which used animal ingredients one by one..

Whenever I read a detailed post, the questions that would come to my mind were "what the heck.. Why are these people doing all this." and not questions like " Where will I get my protein and nutrition" or " Omg I love cheese, I have to give it up?" Or "surely this is all made up information by hippies and I cant care about each and every extreme post out there"(Real questions by people in discussions).  

I just knew that I couldnt cause that much pain and suffering and there would be ways to either substitute some or just change up my taste buds.. It took a while to sub out everything especially the milk in our tea, mainly because I was not cooking breakfast for a long while. Once my health improved enough to take that over, milk was out the door. 

As for "Humane". to this day I dont understand the meaning of the term. By definition it means having or showing compassion and inflicting the minimum of pain.

Who decides how much compassion and how much pain?

Are cage free eggs "Humane" because the hens have some space to move around, even if their beaks are cut off so they dont peck at each other?

Are low calf cull rate dairy farms "humane", because the cows are not impregnated every few months and their calfs not killed(they all grow up and end up in the beef industry instead).

If there any such thing is "humane" slaughter. How about humane murder.. the notion of "humane slaughter" is at odds with the physiological reality of concussing, electrocuting, slashing open the veins of, and/or violently decapitating an animal, the idea that one can be "humane" while killing for profit is self-contradictory.

I just dont get the usage of the word humane. It seems like a band-aid term to band-aid our conscience and continue eating whatever we want to. 

Read more from a farmer's perspective here
http://www.humanemyth.org/haroldbrown.htm

and more here
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/sue-cross/humane-slaughter-a-contra_b_2220480.html

Offensive or not

So I posted this yesterday on my Fb status.
'If you can respect "my personal choice" to "pick any currently not acceptable by society behavior", then I will "respect" "your personal choice" to eat meat/dairy/eggs. - via Several sources.'

It is a quote with several interpretations. What I am talking about is "a choice", not the person.

For example, while growing up, several of us made decisions and choices that our parents did not agree with, disliked, got offended by, or even hated. Did that mean that they did not love us anymore. It is the choice they do not like.

My brother is currently a big carnivore. I love him as my brother, but I do not have to like or respect his choices in food. In fact, he hears exactly that from me every time we talk. But I love him, the person. 

To put it in better terms..please see the Extract below from Colleen's post. Entire post here

“Eating meat is my personal preference, and since I respect your desire not to eat animals, I would appreciate your respecting my preference to dine on them.”

The problem with this justification is that it assumes there is no victim, no other.

As a society, we collectively decide that certain behaviors, certain actions, certain personal preferences are inappropriate or morally reprehensible, particularly when they cause injury or harm to another. When confronted, abusive parents or spouses often protest that it is nobody else’s business how they treat their child/wife/husband, that people should not meddle into their affairs, and that they can do what they like in their own home. Though there was a time when the law protected such people and practices, this is no longer the case.

As conscious consumers, we make choices every day about the products we buy — we choose those that do not contribute to child labor, those that use the least amount of the Earth’s resources, those that do not exploit indigent farmers. How, then, can we possibly ignore the animals whose miserable lives have been so violently cut short because we hold onto a particular taste preference or habit? The animals whose bodies we have locked up, used up, and cut up for our enjoyment are no different than the victims of domestic abuse who, if they had a choice — if they had a voice — would choose not to be tormented or killed.

A choice made from personal preference might be the color I paint my bathroom, the kind of car I buy, or the way I style my hair. But a personal choice to hurt someone else???"

Sure, my fb post is probably not the best way to put things, it is offensive, distasteful, and other adjectives. It got the attention though, didnt it.


How is it a personal choice of someone who is being abusive to their family, children or their pets?

A personal choice that someone is getting hurt and tortured so bad as a direct result of someone else's action.

Does it matter that the "someone else" we are talking about is not someone's family or friend but an animal. That animal is a sentient being. That animal is my family. My family is being hurt. How is it "a personal choice".
And How do I "respect" that choice.

Please watch Earthlings here if you havent.
Or under cover videos at MFA here

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Update:2018
It is interesting to read old posts back and see the transition journey. Transition into veganism takes years with several stages of understanding, evaluating that understanding and feelings, the helplessness, the anger, the motivation to do more and so on.

In the bigger picture of things, everyone including me, vegan or not, makes certain choices (personal or otherwise), that will not be a good one. Those choices made unknowingly, knowingly or however, can affect just me, or can affect someone/some living being somewhere to any extent, small or big, and tey would still be personal choices (unlike my interpretation above). Every small choice that I make is going to affect some living beings. Who farms my food, processes it, distributes it, markets it. Farming inherently will displace/hurt/kill some small animals. So many sentient living beings are part of the whole process that is life.

We dont however use this information(this overwhelming information that everything is going to affect someone or the other) as an excuse to Not do things. There is always more information to be found,more options to be found, changes to be made based on the current options and information. We haven't stopped at changing our diet. There is more things to be done, for fair treatment of people employed in any food or commodity field, and more to be done to protect our environment, and this planet.
Every step takes its own time. The point is to keep doing something for some step/cause/issue for this planet. This singular planet full of life in this vast universe, there might be more but we havent found any yet. So this is our only home. 

Shoes

Hubbs' everyday wear shoe sole broke at office the other day, so he dropped by the puma store to pick up a new shoe. He liked a few shoes, looked inside at the material label, read the insanely tiny print, then selected a few from them, tried, found one, confirmed the materials and bought one.

Several things to note here.
He searched for the label inside the shoe and read it.
eliminated all the obvious materials he wouldnt wear.
Confirmed the materials with the salesperson to be sure. how many guys would know what polyamide or rayon are or if the fleece is cotton based or wool or synthetic.

He came home and was beaming coz he found something he really liked and could buy.

You know you are vegan when you look at the materials before looking at the price tag.

There are always more things to learn and change.... like child labor practices or eco friendly ness of the companies... finding local, all vegan and green companies.
It is one step at a time.. and I am so proud of hubbs that he remembers some of the points I keep harping about, takes time to understand why and unknowingly applies them even when he is alone..:)

Videos on dairy

Mostly words. A life of a Cow.

Why would anyone want to inflict so much pain on a mother, any mother.

More to be added..

Numbers 3 - world hunger

* 6.6 pounds of grain -> 2.2 pounds of chicken meat -> makes only 35.2 servings

* 6.6 pounds of grain -> 84.5 servings of food

* Half of the worlds grains and Soy beans are fed to farmed animals. The argument that vegans eat more soy.... really.

* The food production would have to increase internationally by 70% to feed the world population in 2050

* Bringing the meat consumption of the US down to what it was in 2000(82.5 pounds per person per year), will free up 400 million tons of grain for human consumption. -> can satisfy caloric needs of 1 billion people!

Stats from VegNews.

Why Vegan- Part 4

So, if you think that there are higher powers like the government or corporations, who will protect you from all the crazy additives, processed crap, genetically modified, cancer causing, deathly horrendous things........ you would be So Wrong...

For example, think about Smoking.

Smoking is directly linked to several cancers. Over 40 carcinogens have been identified in cigarette smoke. In the US, smoking is estimated to cause 90% of lung cancer. Men who smoke two packs a day increase their risk more than 25 times compared with non-smokers. Of the 180,000 people diagnosed in the United States alone each year, 86% will die within 5 years of diagnosis.

And what does the government do? put a tiny warning at the bottom of a pack.. Get the drift??

This is exactly the problem with the food industry. No one is going to tell you dairy is bad. The dairy industry, like the tobacco industry is large enough to lobby and make you believe otherwise.

You know Why it is difficult to quit Smoking.. because it is addictive and the withdrawal effects make it very difficult... do you think a smoker can think clearly and logically think and decline a smoke, without rock hard determination?

It is a similar problem with things like cheese. They are addictive.. If you say you cannot give up cheese because you love it too much.. it is like a smoker with lung cancer saying I cannot give up Smoking because I love it too much.

That is Not your logical brain speaking.

Numbers 2

The ecological Footprint:

■ 70 per cent of forestland cleared in Amazon was to get plain pastures for livestock

■ 6 kilograms of plant protein when consumed by the animal makes 1 kilo gram of animal protein that can be further consumed. This is called energy-in to energy-out ratio and is on an average 25:1. 25 calories consumed by an animal produce 1 calorie of protein. This ratio is the lowest in a cow – 40:1.

■ 40 percent of all the grains of the world, grown on one third of all arable lands, are fed to the livestock.

■ 73 percent of maize, 95 percent of oilmeal is fed to animals.

Excretions:

■ Livestock excreta is 130 times more in volume than that of the entire human population put together.

■ Rate of production is 87,000 pounds per second

Emission:

■ Belching and flatulence of cattle releases methane. And as per the industry figures, the ratio of meat to the total carbon emitted is:

■ 1 kg of beef – 34.6 kg carbon

■ 1 kg of lamb – 17.4 kg carbon

■ 1 kg of chicken – 4.75 kg carbon.

Source below. Viewer discretion is advised for some meat pictures : http://www.gobartimes.org/themes/gobartimes/poster/2010_march_meat_mania.pdf

Cant give up Cheese? Its because cheese is Dairy Crack!

Researchers discovered the protein casein, which breaks into casomorphins when it is digested and also produces opiate effects. In cheese, casein is concentrated, and so is the level of casomorphins, so the pleasurable effect is greater. Neal Barnard, MD said, “Since cheese is processed to express out all the liquid, it’s an incredibly concentrated source of casomorphins—you might call it dairy crack.”

It turns out that morphine is found in cow milk and human, purportedly to ensure offspring will bond very strongly with their mothers and get all the nutrients they need to grow.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/cheese-contains-morphine.html#ixzz1hKgF1Ymi 
Watch a fun Video at http://screen.yahoo.com/why-cheese-is-addictive-27621244.html
or Watch Dr Neal Barnard's Video about food addictions.. how chocolate, cheese, meat, and sugar release opiate-like substances. Dr. Barnard also discusses how industry, aided by government, exploits these natural cravings, pushing us to eat more and more unhealthy foods.

Why Vegan? Reverse Diabetes

A 2006 study, conducted by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine with the George Washington University and the University of Toronto, looked at the health benefits of a low-fat, unrefined, vegan diet (excluding all animal products) in people with type 2 diabetes.⁵ Portions of vegetables, grains, fruits, and legumes were unlimited. The vegan diet group was compared with a group following a diet based on American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines. The results of this 22-week study were astounding:

• Forty-three percent of the vegan group and 26 percent of the ADA group reduced their diabetes medications. Among those whose medications remained constant, the vegan group lowered hemoglobin A1C, an index of long-term blood glucose control, by 1.2 points, three times the change in the ADA group.
• The vegan group lost an average of about 13 pounds, compared with only about 9 pounds in the ADA group.
• Among those participants who didn’t change their lipid-lowering medications, the vegan group also had more substantial decreases in their total and LDL cholesterol levels compared to the ADA group.

Read the rest of the article here http://www.pcrm.org/search/?cid=129

and some success stories at PCRM here http://www.pcrm.org/search/?cid=612

Video about how a plant based diet helps reverse type-2 Diabetes.

Why Vegan? Part 4

Why no dairy?

If you think about the figures,theres a 50% chance of bull calf being born .. and even with a requirement of the bulls in india by farmers, the dairy industry produces so much in excess that about 8 Million calves are slaughtered or starved to death every year.

There is no way to ensure the pasture fed, free range, well cared for, not slaughtered or anything esp in India. Cow slaughter is illegal in India and so is dowry, bride killing, and girl child abortion.

As far as US is concerned, there is a big veal and beef industry but the dairy industry still produces an excess of about 700,000 calves/year which are disposed off at birth. and most pasture fed, happy cow labels are misleading. check http://www.cornucopia.org/dairysurvey/index.html for your local dairy listings. even 5 star rating means low cull rate, not NO cull rate.

Why Vegan? The last heart attack

Dr Sanjay Gupta at CNN explores plant based diet and its effects in reducing and reversing heart disease and talk to Bill Clinton. Watch the video here.

Why Vegan? Part 3

Why Cow's milk, or goat's or buffalo's milk? why not Hyena's milk. it is much higher in Calcium! its because these animals are herd animals, herbivores, docile and easy to control. If we could control the carnivorous and ferocious hyena, they would be factory farmed for their milk too.

There is NO nutritional component of Cows milk that is necessary for humans more than a hyena's milk.

Cows do not "give" milk. We steal it from them.

Humans are the only mammals drinking any kind of milk into adulthood. -Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

See her video here..

Why Vegan? Continued..

Photo courtesy: julieoneill.

That is a dying baby calf.. starving slowly to death in a local, small, family run, "caring" dairy farm in the holy city of Rishikesh.. where cows are "worshipped".

From Julie's blog post.

"In north India there is a holy city called Rishikesh. It is a par­adise for yoga lov­ing veg­e­tar­i­ans. The respect for cows fills the air here. As they roam freely, vis­i­tors and res­i­dents alike gen­tly stroke their fore­heads and offer them treats of fruits and veg­eta­bles. Through the streets traffic patiently waits for the noble beasts to pass.

Here espe­cially, the cow is con­sid­ered sacred and no meat is allowed in the entire city! But plenty of milk is con­sumed. I decided to pop into a small fam­ily run dairy just off of the main drag in Rishikesh. I fig­ured that if any­where in the world mother cows would be treated well it would be here. If there was any­where that I could have a guilt free cheese sand­wich it should be here. The fol­low­ing pho­tos are from this small fam­ily run dairy."

Please read her entire post here. http://www.julieoneill.com/blog/?p=1438

Why Vegan?

It is not about giving up your favorite foods!

It is about replacing them with similar foods which are pain free!

It is not about restricting your diet and suffering from the nutritional consequences.

It is about opening it up instead, to fresher plant based foods and knowing what and how nutritionally balanced food your body needs!

It is not difficult to go Vegan. Just think about anyone you love, who has feelings and can feel pain, going through the pain and suffering animals have to go through.

It is about living healthy, eliminating diseases created and made worse by us, by our food choices.

It is not just a diet, it is a state of mind about everything around you. If you dont eat your dog, you cannot possibly wear fur.

There are lots more facets to this state of mind. Find atleast some in yours.

Virgin Coconut Oil. why it is heart healthy

You've no doubt noticed that for about the last 60 years, the majority of health care officials and the media have been telling you saturated fats are bad for your health and lead to a host of negative consequences, including high cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and Alzheimer's disease.

Meanwhile during this same 60 years, the American levels of heart disease, obesity, elevated serum cholesterol and Alzheimer's have skyrocketed.

Did you know that multiple studies on Pacific Island populations who get 30-60 percent of their total caloric intake from fully saturated coconut oil have all shown nearly non-existent rates of cardiovascular disease? (1)

The fact is, all saturated fats are not created equal.

The operative word here is "created," because some saturated fats occur naturally, while other fats are artificially manipulated into a saturated state through the man-made process called hydrogenation.

Hydrogenation manipulates vegetable and seed oils by adding hydrogen atoms while heating the oil, producing a rancid, thickened substance that really only benefits processed food shelf life and corporate profits -- just about all experts now agree, hydrogenation does nothing good for your health.

These manipulated saturated fats are also called trans-fats -- and you should avoid them like the plague. But if one form of saturated fat is bad for you, does that mean all saturated fat is bad for you?

Absolutely not!

The Tropics' Best Kept Secret

The truth about coconut oil is obvious to anyone who has studied the health of those who live in native tropical cultures, where coconut has been a primary dietary staple for thousands of years.

Back in the 1930s, Dr. Weston Price found South Pacific Islanders whose diets were high in coconut to be healthy and trim, despite high dietary fat, and heart disease was virtually non-existent. Similarly, in 1981, researchers studying two Polynesian communities for whom coconut was the primary caloric energy source found them to have excellent cardiovascular health and fitness. (2)

Where were all the clogged arteries and heart attacks from eating all of this "evil" saturated fat?

Obviously, coconut oil was doing nothing to harm the health of these islanders.

It may be surprising for you to learn that the naturally occurring saturated fat in coconut oil is actually good for you and provides a number of profound health benefits, such as:

• Improving your heart health.(3)
• Boosting your thyroid. (4)
• Increasing your metabolism.
• Promoting a lean body and weight loss if needed.
• Supporting your immune system. (5)

Coconut oil even benefits your skin when applied topically and has been found to have anti-aging, regenerative effects.

So, what are coconut oil's secrets to success?

How Coconut Oil Works Wonders in Your Body

Nearly 50 percent of the fat in coconut oil is of a type rarely found in nature called lauric acid, a "miracle" compound because of its unique health promoting properties. Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties. (6)

Coconut oil is also nature's richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs.

LCTs are large molecules, so they are difficult for your body to break down and are predominantly stored as fat.

But MCTs (7) , being smaller, are easily digested and immediately burned by your liver for energy -- like carbohydrates, but without the insulin spike. MCTs actually boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner.

Back in the 1940s, farmers discovered this effect accidentally when they tried using inexpensive coconut oil to fatten their livestock.

It didn't work!

Instead, coconut oil made the animals lean, active and hungry.

Coconut oil has actually been shown to help optimize body weight, which can dramatically reduce your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes (8). Besides weight loss, boosting your metabolic rate will improve your energy, accelerate healing and improve your overall immune function.

And several studies have now shown that MCTs can enhance physical or athletic performance.(9)

And finally, as we have already discussed, coconut oil is incedibly good for your heart. The truth is this:it is unsaturated fats that are primarily involved in heart disease and too much sugar and processed foods, not the naturally occurring saturated fats, as you have been led to believe. (10)

Coconut Oil in Your Kitchen

Personally, I use only two oils in my food preparation.

The first, extra-virgin olive oil is the best monounsaturated fat and works great as a salad dressing. However, olive oil should not be used for cooking. Due to its chemical structure, heat makes olive oil susceptible to oxidative damage. So for cooking, I use coconut oil exclusively.

And polyunsaturated fats, which include common vegetable oils such as corn, soy, safflower, sunflower and canola, are absolutely the worst oils to cook with.

Why?

Three primary reasons:

1) Cooking your food in omega-6 vegetable oils produces a variety of very toxic chemicals, as well as forming trans-fats. Frying destroys the antioxidants in oil, actually oxidizing the oil, which causes even worse problems for your body than trans-fats.

2) Most vegetable oils are GM (genetically modified), including more than 90 percent of soy, corn and canola oils.

3) Vegetable oils contribute to the overabundance of damaged omega-6 fats in your diet, throwing offyour omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Nearly everyone in Western society consumes far too many omega-6 fats -- about 100 times more than a century ago -- and insufficient omega 3 fats, which contributes to numerous chronic degenerative diseases.

There is only one oil that is stable enough to withstand the heat of cooking, and that's coconut oil. So, do yourself a favor and ditch all those "healthy oil wannabes," and replace them with a large jar of fresh, organic, heart-supporting coconut oil.

Dr. Joseph Mercola is the founder and director of Mercola.com. Become a fan of Dr. Mercola on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, and check out Dr. Mercola's report on sun exposure!

Follow Dr. Joseph Mercola on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mercola

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(1) Kaunitz H, Dayrit CS. Coconut oil consumption and coronary heart disease. Philippine Journal of Internal Medicine, 1992;30:165-171

(2) Prior IA, Davidson F, Salmond CE, Czochanska Z. Cholesterol, coconuts, and diet on Polynesian atolls: a natural experiment: The Pukapuka and Tokelau Island studies, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1981;34:1552-1561

(3) Raymond Peat Newsletter, Coconut Oil, reprinted at www.heall.com. http://www.heall.com/body/healthupdates/food/coconutoil.html An Interview With Dr. Raymond Peat, A Renowned Nutritional Counselor Offers His Thoughts About Thyroid Disease

(4) Baba, N 1982.Enhanced thermogenesis and diminished deposition of fat in response to overfeeding with diet containing medium-chain triglycerides, Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 35:379

(5) Dr. Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., F.A.C.N. Source: Coconut: In Support of Good Health in the 21st Century
(6) Isaacs CE, Litov RE, Marie P, Thormar H. Addition of lipases to infant formulas produces antiviral and antibacterial activity, Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, 1992;3:304-308.

Isaacs CE, Schneidman K. Enveloped Viruses in Human and Bovine Milk are Inactivated by Added Fatty Acids(FAs) and Monoglycerides(MGs), FASEB Journal, 1991;5: Abstract 5325, p.A1288.

Mitsuto Matsumoto, Takeru Kobayashi, Akio Takenakaand Hisao Itabashi. Defaunation Effects of Medium Chain Fatty Acids and Their Derivatives on Goat Rumen Protozoa, The Journal of General Applied Microbiology, Vol. 37, No. 5 (1991) pp.439-445.

(7) St-Onge MP, Jones PJ. Greater rise in fat oxidation with medium-chain triglyceride consumption relative to long-chain triglyceride is associated with lower initial body weight and greater loss of subcutaneous adipose tissue, International Journal of Obesity & Related Metabolic Disorders, 2003 Dec;27(12):1565-71. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12975635

(8) Geliebter, A 1980. Overfeeding with a diet of medium-chain triglycerides impedes accumulation of body fat, Clinical Nutrition, 28:595

(9) Fushiki, T and Matsumoto, K Swimming endurance capacity of mice is increased by consumption of medium-chain triglycerides, Journal of Nutrition, 1995;125:531. http://www.coconut-connections.com/hypothyroidism.htm
(10) Barry Groves, PhD. Second Opinions: Exposing Dietary Misinformation: The Cholesterol Myth, parts 1 and 2

Post Reproduced from :

Huffington Post: Coconut Oil Benefits: Dr Mercola

Other Links:

Everything about Virgin Coconut Oil

Dr Mercola: The truth about Coconut Oil: the original detailed note.

WebMD Coconut Oil

Best Oils to cook With!

So Many oils and so many ways to cook!. Which ones are the best at what temperatures.

Non-processed and organic saturated fats (the kind that are solid or semi-solid at room temperature) are typically the best for cooking at high temperatures, as they will not go rancid nor oxidize.

When an oil goes rancid or oxidizes, it produces free radicals. Free radicals are the anti anti-oxidant. Where anti-oxidants help prevent signs of aging like wrinkles and heart disease. Free radicals cause premature aging and diseases.

When cooking at high temps or with a high flame you should use a good, hearty saturated oil or fat that will remain stable when being heated and not produce any free radicals. Such fats are butter, coconut oil, sesame oil.

When using a low flame, or baking-- monounsaturated cold- pressed, organic, extra virgin olive oil is a good choice. Olive oil will go rancid and create free radicals at high temperatures (or with a high flame). A good general rule of thumb: if you’re cooking with more than a medium flame on the stove-top: DON’T use virgin olive oil. Use organic coconut or sesame oil, butter or ghee instead. Since this is about vegan diet, butter and ghee are out!

For high temperature baking, you can use light olive oil.

High Heat/Frying/Browning

• Coconut oil
• Palm Oil

Medium Heat/Light Sauteing

• Olive Oil
• Sesame Seed Oil
• Hazelnut Nut Oil
• Pistachio Nut Oil

Low Heat/Baking

• Pumpkin Oil
• Sunflower Oil

No Heat

• Flax Seed Oil
• Hemp Seed Oil

Also, avoid cooking with any of the commercial vegetable oils: cotton seed oil, soy oil, corn oil, canola oil, hemp oil and grapeseed oil; all margarines, spreads and partially hydrogenated vegetable shortenings. They're over processed, offer us no nutrition and all the processing adds toxic chemicals which are just not good for anyone.

Here is some reading about oils

http://www.suite101.com/content/2010-guide-to-healthy-cooking-oils-best-cooking-oils-a231305

Vegan Nutrition: Milk nutrition Facts

Cow Milk (Organic Valley Whole Milk) for comparison.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup (240ml) Servings Per Container 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories 150 Calories from Fat 70
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8g	12%
Saturated Fat 5g	25%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 30mg	10%
Sodium 120mg	5%
Potassium 360mg	10%
Total Carbohydrate 12g	4%
Dietary Fiber 0g	0%
Sugars 11g
Protein 8g
Vitamin A 4% • Vitamin C 0% Calcium 30% • Iron 0%
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Cow Milk: 1% low fat Organic Valley Milk:

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup (240ml) Servings Per Container 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories 110 Calories from Fat 25
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 2.5g	4%
Saturated Fat 1.5g	8%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 15mg	5%
Sodium 125mg	5%
Potassium 380mg	11%
Total Carbohydrate 13g	4%
Dietary Fiber 0g
Sugars 12g
Protein 8g
Vitamin A 10% • Vitamin C 2% Calcium 30% • Vitamin D 25%
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Below are some of the alternatives to dairy milk and their nutrition facts. The values are for supermarket versions of the milks. If home made, the sodium and sugar content is far below the supermarket versions.

Rice Milk: How to make your own Rice Milk.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup (245.0 g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 120 Calories from Fat 18

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 2.0g 3%

Saturated Fat 0.1g 1%

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3g

Monounsaturated Fat 1.3g

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 86mg 4%

Total Carbohydrates 24.8g 8%

Protein 0.4g

Vitamin A 0% • Vitamin C 2% Calcium 2% • Iron 1%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Almond Milk: How to Make your own Almond Milk

Read about the nutritional benefits of almonds here http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=20

Almonds are high in monounsaturated fats, the same type of health-promoting fats as are found in olive oil, which have been associated with reduced risk of heart disease.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 serving ( g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 60 Calories from Fat 23

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 2.5g 4%

Saturated Fat 0.0g 0%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 140mg 6%

Total Carbohydrates 8.0g 3%

Sugars 6.0g

Protein 1.0g

Vitamin A 10% • Vitamin C 0% Calcium 0% • Iron 0%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Soy Milk: How to make Soy milk

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup (240.0 g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 100 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 4.0g 6%

Saturated Fat 0.5g 3%

Polyunsaturated Fat 2.4g

Monounsaturated Fat 0.9g

Sodium 120mg 5%

Total Carbohydrates 8.0g 3%

Dietary Fiber 1.0g 4%

Sugars 6.0g

Protein 7.0g

Vitamin A 10% • Vitamin C 0% Calcium 30% • Iron 6%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

See more extended nutritional details

Hemp Milk: How to make hemp milk

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 serving ( g)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 140 Calories from Fat 45

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 5.0g 8%

Saturated Fat 0.5g 3%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 130mg 5%

Total Carbohydrates 20.0g 7%

Dietary Fiber 1.0g 4%

Sugars 14.0g

Protein 4.0g

Vitamin A 10% • Vitamin C 0% Calcium 50% • Iron 6%

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Oat Milk: how to make Oat Milk

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 cup (240ml)
Amount Per Serving
Calories from Fat 20 Calories 130
% Daily Values*
Total Fat 2.5g		4%
	Saturated Fat 0g	0%
	Polyunsaturated Fat 0g
	Monounsaturated Fat 0g
	Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg		0%
Sodium 110mg		5%
Potassium 120mg
Total Carbohydrate 24g		8%
	Dietary Fiber 2g	8%
	Sugars 19g
	Other Carbohydrate 0g
Protein 4g
Vitamin A 10% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 36% Iron 10%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie

Cashew Milk: How to make Cashew Milk

Cashews contain no cholesterol (like cow’s milk) and are a good source of magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, copper, and iron. Read more about health benefits of Cashews here http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=98

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Amount per Serving

Calories 79

Calories from Fat 57.6

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 6.4g

9%

Saturated Fat 0g

0%

Cholesterol 0mg

0%

Sodium 62mg

2%

Total Carbohydrate 4.5g

1%

Dietary Fiber 0.4g

1%

Sugars 0g

Protein 2.1g

4%

Est. Percent of Calories from:

Fat

68.6%

Carbs

21.4%

Protein

10%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs.

Soy Milk is the highest in protein, but there are too many controversies around Soy.

Hemp Milk is a Good Source of Omega-3 Fats: Hemp milk is a relative new-comer on the alterna-milk scene. Its big claim to fame is that it is an excellent source of omega-3 fats. A single serving of hemp milk provides an entire day’s recommended intake of omega-3 fats. That’s about four times as much as you’d get in soy milk and six times as much as you’d get from cow’s milk. It’s not terribly high in protein, however.

Almond Milk is Lower in Calories: If you’re counting calories, almond milk tends to be quite a bit lower in calories and sugar than most of the other non-dairy milks. It also contains monounsaturated fats, which are the same heart-healthy fats found in olive oil. Almond milk is fairly low in protein.

Oat Milk Provides Fiber: Oat milk offers fiber as well as a moderate amount of protein, about 4 grams per serving. However, it is on the higher end in terms of sugar and calories.

Rice Milk is Non-Allergenic: Rice milk is one you’re least likely to be allergic to. However, it’s the lowest in protein and tends to be higher in sugar and calories.

http://nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com/which-non-dairy-milk-is-best.aspx

Cashew Milk is more like whole milk with the creamy high fat and moderate amount of protein, but unlike whole milk, it is all heart healthy fat.

Eventually, all dairy alternatives give you sufficient nutrition without all that extra saturated fat, bad cholestrol, antibiotics and carcinogenic hormones! Depending on the non dairy milk chosen, the diet can be adjusted to add a little extra calcium or protein if needed. Check out the Vegan nutrition series to get an idea about if additional calcium or protein is even needed and which fruits and vegetables help.

http://offspaces.blogspot.com/2011/05/vegan-nutrition-calcium.html and

http://offspaces.blogspot.com/2011/05/vegan-nutrition-protein.html

My earlier post about whats in dairy milk..http://offspaces.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-milk-or-not_28.html

The nutrition charts were reproduced from either the milk company's website or caloriecount.about.com . I am not a nutritionist, these are facts and statistics from articles by nutritionists, doctors, usda nutrition charts.