Some people consider almond milk a good cow’s milk alternative. Unfortunately in case of nutritional values that’s not true. In this article I’ll mention some of the most important differences in nutritional values between cow’s milk and almond milk. If you are eager to know those differences this article will definitely help you.

Proteins
A large amount of proteins is a great benefit offered by dairy products. A typical 8 ounce (244g) serving of whole milk provides you with about 8 grams of proteins. When it comes to beverages – that’s a lot of proteins! Unfortunately, in most cases both store bought and homemade almond milk don’t contain a lot a proteins. The typical serving of almond milk provides about 1 gram of proteins, which is over 85% less than cow’s milk. The proteins amount is a huge difference.

Vitamins
Cow’s milk is known to posses a lot of vitamins and minerals. Amongst them we can find vitamins A, D, B12 or riboflavin and minerals like calcium, phosphorus or potassium to name just the major ones. Unfortunately most of them cannot be found in almond milk. Instead, almond milk offers naturally a huge amount of vitamin E. Also, most store bought almond milks are enriched with calcium and vitamin D. This means that there is no calcium in almond milk made by you at home, unless you add it artificially. The rest of the vitamins and minerals are either absent or in very low amounts.

Diseases, conditions and beliefs
Here’s the area where almond milk has its advantage over the cow’s milk. Unlike cow’s milk, almond milk is suitable for people suffering from lactose intolerance because it doesn’t contain any lactose (take note, that you can find a lactose free dairy milk in almost any supermarket). Because milk made with the usage of almonds doesn’t contain any dairy it’s also suitable for people refraining themselves from consuming dairy. Almond milk is a plant-based product therefore it’s an adequate product for both vegans and vegetarians abstaining themselves from dairies. There is probably only one condition that excludes one from consuming almond milk – it’s the nut allergy.

Wrap up
Almond milk is a yummy milk alternative (you should definitely try almond milk in coffee). Unfortunately it lacks a lot of nutrients that are provided with cow’s milk. If you’re looking for a cow’s milk alternative of equal nutritional value, it’s hard to find one. Soy milk is a milk alternative that provides a lot of nutrients that are also contained in cow’s milk, but as we all know – there is a lot of controversy around soy these days. Because of that you should look for a replacement between other mammals milks, like sheeps or goats one.