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Soy v Almond milk

6K views 48 replies 26 participants last post by  @rno 
#1 ·
Today I was speaking with a new vegan who said it's better to use almond milk than soy milk. We didn't get a chance to get into why. Any opinions on this?
 
#3 ·
I wonder if they were against soy? I've yet to heard anything negative about soy that isn't linked to the meat dairy industry, but there are veg'ns who believe it.
Soy has a good bit more protein, but other than that I believe most other vitamins and calcium are fortified in both commercially, so that differs

I like vanilla almond sometimes in chai tea, chocolate almond in cold coffee and as treat
I have a soy milk maker so I just buy almond on occassion.

I tried cashew milk and think I'd prefer that for a creamy neutral if using for a custardy dessert (which I am thinking about -trifle!)

Of course I like canned coconut milk on hand for curry

Check the nutrition on both and don't forget most cartons contain carageneen. I think some people think they're sensitive when it may be the carageneen - a seaweed extract for creaminess
 
#6 ·
Perhaps they believe soy products in general aren't good for you? Both almond and soy milk come in unflavored and unsweetened varieties, both are fortified with calcium, etc. Soy milk has more protein than almond milk. I generally buy almond milk because I prefer the taste and texture, and for some reason my local King Soopers doesn't carry the generic-brand unsweetened soy milk.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Here is a study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, regarding the effects of soy consumption on women's menstrual cycles: http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/60/3/333.abstract http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/60/3/333.full.pdf+html

This study concludes soy foods can cause changes to your menstrual cycle, but that these changes may be beneficial, and are certainly not harmful.

To quote from the study: "In summary, our observations clearly indicate how dietary
modifications can lead to significant changes in the regulation of the menstrual cycle. Such changes may be beneficial with regard to risk factors for breast cancer and suggest that a diet rich in dietary estrogens may be protective against breast cancer."
 
#11 · (Edited)
The Adventist Health Study 2 found that very high soy consumption was correlated with changes in female fertility.

Here's a direct link to the abstract of the Adventist Health Study 2's findings on soy consumption and childbearing: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24741329

Quoting the Adventist Health Study 2:

"In women with high (≥40 mg/day) isoflavone intake (12% of this group of women), the adjusted lifetime probability of giving birth to a live child was reduced by approximately 3% (95% CI: 0, 7) compared to women with low (<10 mg/day) intake. No relationships were found between the isoflavone intake and parity or age at first delivery in parous women. A similar inverse relationship (P=0.03) was found between the isoflavone intake and the risk of nulligravidity with a 13% (95% CI: 2, 26) higher risk of never have been pregnant in women with high (≥40 mg/day) isoflavone intake. These relationships were found mainly in women who reported problems becoming pregnant."

So, in this study, women who consumed more than 40 mg/day of isoflavones were 3% less-likely to ever give birth to a live child, and 13% less-likely to ever give birth.

But wait though - how much isoflavones are actually found in the soy foods that we love? Here's the USDA's published data for the isoflavone content of dozens of foods, per 100 grams (3-1/2 ounces): http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/80400525/Data/isoflav/Isoflav_R2.pdf .

Soy hot dog: 1.00 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (PDF page 26)
Morningstar meatless chicken patties: 4.40 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (PDF page 21)
Soy burger: 6.39 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 32)
Soy drink (soymilk): 7.85 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 25)
Soy cheese: 25.72 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 25)
Tofu: 13 - 35 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (depending on type)(pages 31-32)
Tofu, salted and fermented: 41.85 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 32)
Soy yogurt: 33.17 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 27)
Tempeh: 60.61 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 30)
Soy protein drink: 81.65 mg isoflavones per 100 grams (page 26)

You can eat certain soy products every day, and never come NEAR the 40 mg/day intake of isoflavones that the Adventist Health Study suggested caution towards.
 
#12 ·
I cook more with soy milk, and almond milk is good for pouring onto cereal. And cashew milk makes good cheesecake and ice cream. Coconut milk is a great base for curried lentil soup, and is also a good base for ice cream. Once you've worked out your own taste preferences, just think about which plant milk is the right tool for the job at hand.
 
#14 ·
I think different things work for different people :) but I will say two things.

1 is that I tried almond milk once long ago in coffee and it curdled and made me gag. Soymilk is thick and luscious and I loved it.
But since then they've brought out better milks and (in Australia) there's one in particular aimed at baristas and it tastes neutral, creams up better than soy and is bloody ace and stocked in almost all cafes these days. I think it depends on your milk :) .
I try to drink organic milk in my coffee these days (almond milk is very low in calories so I've temporary swapped) but am constantly tempted by delicious almondmilk...

2 is that I never felt soy was impacting me negatively. My skin cleared up when I first started drinking it etc. and my cycles didn't alter but I did notice that it triggered my strange headaches that I thought were coffee-related. Nope. Soy. Soy in the GF bread I was buying was doing it too. Once I cut it out I realised it WAS impacting me (not because soy is bad but because I think it depends on where your hormones are at. I found I was low in progesterone until I became lacto-ovo rather than vegan and eggs really helped but so did lowering soy intake) and my cycles went from 60 or 70 days to 40 instantly and most excitingly my decades of restless leg syndrome (which I had NO idea was related to dopamine and estrogen impairment. Which also trigger migraines...) vanished literally overnight!
I love soy but I avoid it now and have never slept better! My cycles are still finding themselves but sleep alone is worth it for me!

Good luck making YOUR choice. Don't listen too much to media or other people, I reckon. I get really confused by seeing other people do things I can't do and them being fine and I retry things that I KNOW don't work for me. Or I cut out things because other people do. Well, I used to. We're all different :) !
 
#15 ·
Depends on what they consider "better"...some people are irrationally anti-soy, even if they don't have some health reason. So there's that.

Otherwise I'm guessing it's due to taste. I honestly prefer soy milk, as long as it's non-GMO.

Almonds are also a water waster, and I live in barely getting out of a drought California, so again prefer soy there as well.
 
#18 ·
Once you've worked out your own taste preferences, just think about which plant milk is the right tool for the job at hand.
Exactly!

What works for me:

Almond milk - sweetened, for drinking straight and pouring on stuff
Soy milk - baking (you can clabber it!), cooking, making soygurt, powdered for homemade "boxed" convenience foods
Soy creamer - making ice cream economically
Cashew milk/cream - making higher quality ice cream

also, I've made nutmilk out of most types of nuts I can buy bulk, usually for 'special projects' - the only one really worth mentioning is pecan milk for ice cream. Although I should also mention peanut milk = no good.
 
#21 ·
I definitely think everyone should try different plant milks because they all taste so different. I love flax, cashew and oat milks the best and absolutely hate the taste of hemp and soy milk but I wouldn't know that if I hadn't tried them. Almond milk is OK to me but I want to try hazelnut milk. I also make banana milk.
 
#22 ·
I did not like soy milk at all. I've tried both vanilla and chocolate and I've tried different brands and I just was not a fan. I love coconut milk, especially So Delicious. I didn't mind almond milk either. I still have to try other kinds, but I'll definitely take almond over soy milk any day.
 
#23 ·
*takes a deep breath*

I was actually about to do a master post on this for my blog, so I'll do a distilled version of it here:

Just like cream, half and half, 2%, whole, skim, etc can be used for different applications, nondairy milk is the same. There are a ton of different kinds of nondairy milk on the market (and even more differences when you make them yourself) so it can get confusing which kind to use. Here's my tldr for my kitchen.

Cashew cream and milk is a great substitute for heavy cream and half and half in recipes that use them. I don't necessarily drink it, but it's thick and creamy and great for cooking.
Home made soy milk is my go-to for drinking and in my cereal.
Hemp milk is AMAZING as a coffee or tea creamer, as well as a substitute for half and half or two percent in baking. It also makes amazing ice cream when blended with soy milk.
Almond milk is a little expensive to make, but works well for drinking and cereal as well. When talking about premade, Silk's almond milk is better than their soy milk (for drinking).
Flax milk is relatively new to the market but is really good for drinking and cooking gently, like for gravies and the like, but if you heat it up too much it gets an unpleasant taste.
Rice milk tends to be better when it's processed than when it's made in my experience. It's decent for drinking but has a bit of an aftertaste in my opinion so I don't use it much.

If you get a nondairy milk maker there are a ton more recipes for milks that you can try out, but these are the most common. Hope that helps.
 
#24 ·
Aliakai is spot on!
I haven't tried hemp milk yet, and now I know I'm looking forward to trying hemp!

I will suggest trying Silk Heart Healthy Omega DHA (if they still make it, havent' looked at Silk in some time) My son who likes dairy milk really likes that one.

I buy Aldi almond and soy sometimes (I have a soy milk machine)I think they're very good, the almond vanilla is a treat. They just had cashew for about one week and I really hope it comes back. Not to drink, but made amazing creamy, garlicy, noochy, pasta sauce
 
#25 ·
I'm not sure either is better than the other. Each has their own nutrients. Both contain good levels of calcium and protein, and are often enriched with B12 and vitamin D. It's cheaper to buy soy. Almonds have different omega 3 and 6 oils that soya doesn't have as much of. Almond tastes slightly less 'planty'. Why not try both?
 
#26 · (Edited)
Oh, please be careful, VeganKiwi. Soymilk has much more protein than almond milk (unless the almond milk has been protein-fortified). Please see protein comparison below:

 
#28 ·
I have soy and almond milk to hand at home. I prefer soy in my coffee and almond in my tea. I prefer almond in my porridge but soy on my cereal ... basically I'm picky.

I also prefer the unsweetened versions of these. The fiance prefers soy over almond (though he's an omnivore he's a fan of soy milk) - and will use that instead of cow's milk for his protein recovery shakes.
 
#29 ·
Ive heard too much soy can cause cancer but what doesnt anymore and i dont know if there was any proof to back it up, i never looked into it. I personally like soy milk better because almond milk tastes like im eating cocoa butter (the kind you rub on your skin) 😣

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk
 
#31 ·
Could you provide links to the soy/cancer risk? I've never seen any that wasn't linked directly or indirectly to the meat or dairy industry, as in Weston Price and others I can't think of now
What has been proven is the reduction in cancer growth from eating minimally processed soy products like soy milk, tofu and tempeh.
 
#37 ·
The American Cancer Society makes this statement regarding soy foods and cancer risk:

"In some animal studies, rats that were exposed to high doses of compounds found in soy called isoflavones showed an increased risk of breast cancer. This is thought to be because the isoflavones in soy can act like estrogen in the body, and increased estrogen has been linked to certain types of breast cancer. But rats process soy differently from people, and the same results have not been seen in people. In fact, in human studies, the estrogen effects of soy seem to either reduce breast cancer risk, or have no effect at all. This might be because the isoflavones can actually block the more potent natural estrogens in the blood.
So far, no reliable studies have pointed to any dangers from eating soy, and the health benefits appear to outweigh any potential risk. According to Marji McCullough, ScD, RD, strategic director of nutritional epidemiology for the American Cancer Society, soy foods are healthy and safe. But she advises against taking soy supplements - which contain much higher isoflavone concentrations than food - until more research is done."

Link: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/news/features/how-your-diet-may-affect-your-risk-of-breast-cancer
 
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