As a parallel segment to Vegetarian Journal’s Nutrition Hotline feature, The VRG Blog will run a regular Nutrition Blog-line feature. In this installment Julia Driggers, Clinical Dietitian, answers a question about milk alternatives. If you would like to submit a nutrition question, you can email it to heatherg@vrg.org.

Question:

Hello Julia,

Of the milk alternatives, which do you think is best? I get soy protein from tofu and such, and I’m not sure how much soy I should be eating in a day. Plus, I’ve heard that most companies are adding a lot of sugar to their soymilks. I like almond milk a lot, but I don’t know much about it except that it’s made with water and very little almond. I’ve also heard that rice milk is pretty much just carbohydrates. Just trying to make an educated decision now that I have found all 3 of these kinds of milks in my grocery store. Thanks!
Erin

Answer:

Dear Erin,

Good question. It’s a great thing that we have a growing number of milk alternatives, but as a result it can be tough to know how to choose between them!

The most important factor that you should consider is the nutritional benefits that each offers, and how this complements the other elements of your daily diet.

Out of all the milk alternatives, fortified soy milk provides the most protein, vitamin D, vitamin B12, calcium, iron, and omega-3s. Two cups of fortified soy milk a day will ensure that you are receiving a good amount of these essential vitamins and minerals for a vegan or vegetarian diet.

Unfortunately, almond milk and rice milk do not provide nearly as much protein as soy milk (soy milk: 7 gram protein/cup, almond milk: 1 gram protein/cup, rice milk: 0.42 grams protein/cup) nor do they have equivalent amounts of other vitamins and minerals. A comparative example:

You’ll want to consider the nutritional content of the other foods you are eating and supplements you are taking so that you can incorporate the appropriate amount of milk alternatives into your diet. If you only use a cup or so of soy milk a day, you will be obtaining about 30% of vitamin D and calcium, so be sure to get additional amounts of these and other nutrients from other food or supplement sources.

Most brands of alternative milks are sweetened with sugars. Regular soy milk typically has 6 grams of sugar/cup, original almond milk typically has 7 grams of sugar/cup, while rice milk typically has 10 grams of sugar/cup. Of course, to put this in perspective, 1 cup of cow’s milk has 12 grams of naturally occurring lactose sugar. If you are concerned about added sugar, make sure to watch out for some flavored milk alternatives like vanilla and chocolate products which tend to add additional sugar. Alternatives with lower sugars will likely be indicated with words like “plain,” “unsweetened,” and “no sugar added,” but you should read the labels as well.

If you drink a lot of milk alternatives daily, I would recommend switching it up: keep a couple of options on hand (easy because most of them are shelf stable!) and use soy milk in your cereal, for instance, but add almond milk to your coffee.

Wow, I’m thirsty. Now I’m in the mood for some vanilla soy milk! Or maybe even some chocolate almond iced cocoa…

Your body loves you.

Always,

Julia

P.S. Some additional links related to this topic that might be of interest:

http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2003issue3/vj2003issue3hotline.htm
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2008issue1/vj2008issue1updateguide.htm
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj98jan/981milk.htm

VRG fans and Yugioh enthusiasts, SRS and Shaman made VRG its own Yugioh card!

Credit for providing the framework for the design goes to yugiohcardmaker.net.

Click the image to see a larger version.

The description on the card reads: “When this card is equipped to a beast-type monster that monster is protected from all attacks, spells, traps, and effects.”

Are you an artist with a vegetarian message? Want your work displayed on the blog/VRG’s website? Email heatherg@vrg.org

Somehow the summer is already coming to a close, and our office certainly feels emptier without two of our wonderful summer interns, Kristen Lambert and Rachael Prokop.

Below, Kristen and Rachael share their VRG summer internship experiences.

**If you would like to apply for a VRG internship in Baltimore or to do a long distance internship, please send a resume, writing sample, and cover letter detailing your interests, skills, goals, and vegetarian knowledge to The Vegetarian Resource Group, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203, or e-mail to vrg@vrg.org. Most internships are not paid. If you are looking for a paid internship, please indicate your financial need.**

VRG also offers two $5,000 college scholarships

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Kristen Lambert, recipient of the Eleanor Wolff Scholarship

When I first boarded the plane traveling from Salt Lake City to Baltimore my stomach was upset with a mixture of anxiety and excitement. Earlier that year I was offered an internship with The Vegetarian Resource Group, which I happily accepted, and I was now beginning my multi-month journey.

Previously in my life I had never traveled further East from Utah than Colorado, especially not alone, so this was a big step in the direction of personal independence.

The plane ride, compared to a Greyhound bus ride, was over in no time, and before I knew it I was at the Baltimore airport being greeted by Jeannie McStay and Charles Stahler of the VRG. The car ride to what would be deemed ‘home’ for the next two and a half months was filled with fun and interesting facts about Baltimore’s history. Since starting my internship, one thing has remained constant the entire time; People I have met since being here always seem to go out of their way to make me feel comfortable and accepted. If it were not for my colleagues at the VRG, who I now consider friends, I would have slipped into a self-pitying black hole of loneliness.

My first week working entitled a tour of the office (I did not expect the extensive library), an introduction to a few of the people responsible for a smooth running organization, and a crash course on what happens behind the scenes of the VRG which includes what I would then be responsible for.

Major projects for my internship:

• Write a FAQ for the upcoming teen section of the VRG website. I had some trouble with this. The question I originally chose to answer was very broad and did not apply to personal experience I had. After consulting with Reed Mangels and Charles, I decided to go a different direction. Here is the question I answered:
  

  “There is a small local restaurant that offers vegetarian options that no one knows about. What can I do to let people know?”

• Write a Vegetarian Action piece that will be featured in an issue of the Vegetarian Journal. I chose someone close to home to write about; Kelly Green is the founder of the vegan bakery ‘Cakewalk’ in Salt Lake City, Utah. She was extremely helpful to me during our interview, and even provided some samples (vegan cupcakes, and vegan twinkies called ‘dillos’) that my family was more than happy to devour. It is hard to describe the way I felt when Debra showed me the format my article would have and how it would look in the Journal. Proud? Yes.
• 2009 survey on Vegetarianism.

“Nothing is ever easy as it seems,” would be my choice phrase for describing this project. What I learned from this task is that organization can be my best friend, and math can be my worst. I was required to learn how to use a mail-merge program and make numerous phone calls regarding surveys. The importance of team work and keeping others informed also prevailed, although maybe not so much at first. I would not have not accomplished anything without the guidance of the computer master, a.k.a., John Cunningham.

• BEA

Attending The Book Expo America was a great way to experience New York for the first time. The first day I helped to carry supplies and set up our booth in preparation for the event the next day. Debra suggested that we see the city while we still had energy and were up for the walk, which meant before the expo began. So that night I toured New York with my native guide (Debra), and the tour even included a restaurant stop in Chinatown for, you guessed it, Chinese food! The next few days would be filled with manning our booth, networking, and collecting books. I was introduced to an array of people that were in some way affiliated with the VRG, and I handed out issues of The Vegetarian Journal to passers by. Occasionally I would talk to someone interested in the VRG and refer them back to Charles or Debra. It seemed like

Welcome to The VRG Blog!

The Vegetarian Resource Group’s mission – which is written into our name – has always been to serve as a reliable, research-based resource for information regarding vegetarianism and a multitude of interrelated issues such as health, nutrition, ecology, ethics and world hunger. We hope that this blog will be another helpful resource to this end.

Please come and visit us often! We are constantly generating a wealth of information. Expect to see exclusively online articles, ingredient updates, answers to nutrition FAQs from our nutritionists, vegan recipes, restaurant information, book and other product reviews, and much more.

Questions regarding the blog can be mailed to heatherg@vrg.org.