Which type of milk is best for you? - Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham
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0:07 - 0:09If you go to the store in search of milk,
-
0:09 - 0:12there are a dizzying number
of products to choose from. -
0:12 - 0:16There’s dairy milk,
but also plant-based products. -
0:16 - 0:19To turn a plant into something
resembling milk, -
0:19 - 0:24it must be either soaked, drained,
rinsed, and milled into a thick paste, -
0:24 - 0:27or dried, and milled into flour.
-
0:27 - 0:31The plant paste or flour is then
fortified with vitamins and minerals, -
0:31 - 0:34flavoured, and diluted with water.
-
0:34 - 0:36The result is a barrage of options
-
0:36 - 0:40that share many of the qualities
of animal milk. -
0:40 - 0:43So which milk is actually best for you?
-
0:43 - 0:46Let’s dive into some of the most
popular milks: -
0:46 - 0:50dairy, almond, soy, or oat?
-
0:50 - 0:56A 250 ml glass of cow’s milk contains
8 grams of protein, -
0:56 - 1:0012 grams of carbohydrates,
and 2 to 8 grams of fat -
1:00 - 1:04depending on if it’s skim,
reduced fat, or whole. -
1:04 - 1:09That’s approximately 15%
the daily protein an average adult needs, -
1:09 - 1:14roughly 10% the carbohydrates
and 2 to 15% the fat. -
1:14 - 1:19Most plant-based milks have
less carbohydrates than dairy milk. -
1:19 - 1:24They also have less fat, but more
of what’s often called “good fats.” -
1:24 - 1:30Meanwhile, the healthy nutrients
vitamin D and calcium found in dairy milk -
1:30 - 1:34don’t occur naturally
in most plant-based milks. -
1:34 - 1:37Looking more closely
at our plant-based milks, -
1:37 - 1:41both almond and oat are low
in protein compared to dairy. -
1:41 - 1:45But while almond milk has the least
nutrients of the four, -
1:45 - 1:51oat milk is full of beta-glucans,
a healthy type of fibre. -
1:51 - 1:55It also has a lot of carbohydrates
compared to other plant milks— -
1:55 - 1:57sometimes as much as dairy milk.
-
1:57 - 2:02Soy milk, meanwhile,
has as much protein as cow’s milk -
2:02 - 2:05and is also a great source
of potassium. -
2:05 - 2:08Soybeans contain isoflavone,
-
2:08 - 2:11which people used to think
might trigger hormonal imbalances -
2:11 - 2:13by mimicking the function of estrogen.
-
2:13 - 2:18But ultimately, soy milk contains
very small amounts of isoflavones, -
2:18 - 2:22which have a much weaker effect
on our bodies than estrogen. -
2:22 - 2:25Depending on individual circumstances,
-
2:25 - 2:28one of these milks may be
the clear winner: -
2:28 - 2:32if you’re lactose intolerant,
then the plant-based milks pull ahead, -
2:32 - 2:35while if you’re allergic to nuts,
almond milk is out. -
2:35 - 2:39For people who don’t have access
to a wide and varied diet, -
2:39 - 2:43dairy milk can be the most efficient
way to get these nutrients. -
2:43 - 2:47But all else being equal,
any one of these four milks -
2:47 - 2:50is nutritious enough to be part
of a balanced diet. -
2:50 - 2:53That’s why for many people,
the milk that’s best for you -
2:53 - 2:56is actually the milk
that’s best for the planet. -
2:56 - 3:02So which uses the fewest resources
and produces the least pollution? -
3:02 - 3:07It takes almost 4 square kilometers
to produce just one glass of cow’s milk, -
3:07 - 3:12land use that drives deforestation
and habitat destruction. -
3:12 - 3:17Most of that is land the cows live on,
and some is used to grow their feed. -
3:17 - 3:20Many cows eat soy beans and oats.
-
3:20 - 3:24It takes much less land to grow
the oats or soybeans for milk -
3:24 - 3:26than it does to feed a dairy cow—
-
3:26 - 3:29only about a quarter square kilometer
per glass. -
3:29 - 3:32Almond milk has similar land use.
-
3:32 - 3:35But where that land is also matters—
-
3:35 - 3:39soybean farms are a major driver
of deforestation, -
3:39 - 3:42while oat and almond farms aren’t.
-
3:42 - 3:46Making milk uses water
every step of the way, -
3:46 - 3:50but it’s the farming stage
where big differences emerge. -
3:50 - 3:56Dairy milk uses the most water—
about 120 liters per glass, -
3:56 - 3:59mostly to water cows
and grow their food. -
3:59 - 4:04Almonds take second place, at more
than 70 liters of water per glass. -
4:04 - 4:07Most of that water is used to grow
almond trees, -
4:07 - 4:11which take years of watering before
they start producing almonds. -
4:11 - 4:14The trees must be watered consistently,
or they die, -
4:14 - 4:18while many other crops can be
left fallow and still produce later. -
4:18 - 4:23All told, soy and oats require less
water to grow: -
4:23 - 4:26only about 5 to 10 liters
per glass of milk. -
4:26 - 4:30Milk production generates some
greenhouse gas emissions— -
4:30 - 4:36about 0.1 to 0.2 kilograms per glass
for the plant-based milks. -
4:36 - 4:40But for dairy milk, the cows themselves
also produce emissions -
4:40 - 4:45by burping and farting out large
quantities of the gas methane. -
4:45 - 4:47Overall, each glass of dairy milk
-
4:47 - 4:52contributes over half a kilogram
of greenhouse gas emissions. -
4:52 - 4:55So while depending on your dietary
needs, -
4:55 - 4:59any one of these milks may be a good
fit, in terms of the health of our planet -
4:59 - 5:02there’s a strong case for choosing
plant-based milks, -
5:02 - 5:05particularly oat or soy milk.
- Title:
- Which type of milk is best for you? - Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham
- Speaker:
- Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham
- Description:
-
View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/which-type-of-milk-is-best-for-you-jonathan-j-o-sullivan-grace-e-cunningham
If you go to the store in search of milk, there are a dizzying number of products to choose from. There's dairy milk, but also plant-based products such as almond, soy, and oat milks. So which milk is actually best for you? And which uses the fewest resources and produces the least pollution? Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham dive into some of the most popular milks to find out.
Lesson by Jonathan J. O'Sullivan and Grace E. Cunningham, directed by Anton Bogaty.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 05:05
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