Cow Milk substitutes

[mum22boyz]

Hi! My son has his skin allergy test a few weeks ago and, as suspected, he is allergic to Cow Milk, Egg & Peanuts (also to Cat Fur and Dust-mite).

His doctor recommended Soy Milk as a substitute, which I bought.
He doesn't like it very much but we had a chat about his allergies and, being a quite understanding 5 year-old, he accepted the new milk and we both agreed we would take it slowly until he got used to it.

HOWEVER, now an acquaintance of mine has mentioned that Soy Milk is actually not good as it can mess up hormones and that it also contains high levels of pesticides and such.
She recommended Rice Milk instead.

So last night I sat down and actually did my research, and found out that Soy Milk intake is indeed quite controversial.
But so is Rice Milk, which is high in carbohydrates and very low in Proteins.

Almond Milk looks like a very healthy alternative. However, as my boy is also allergic to Peanuts, I'm worried if he'll take it well.

So I'd like to hear your thoughts as much as possible, please, as he's only 5 years old and needs his milk!

[Sarahg]

Hi,
both my boys are on Rice Milk. Our paed years ago said if they eat meat they will get enough protein and calcium to satisfy. A nutritionist we once saw said you only need a protein serving the size of your palm at each meal.
However you can buy rice milk with added protein in the form of chickpeas. It is only available in the UHT/long life section. We interchange this occaisionally with normal ricemilk - especially when camping. Kids need large doses of carbs - it's the energy they need to keep going - eg why teenage boys can eat a loaf of bread!

We don't have soy as one of my boys is also allergic to the protein in that - apparently fairly common and it goes hand in hand with CMPI. I have also found that I can only have one type of soy milk as others react with me, one doctor told me it could be the way the soy has been processed.

A counter argument for the positive benefits of soy is analysis of Japanese/Asian food culture, where cows milk is unavailable. Historically these cultures had very little incidence of cancer or associated problems with ingesting large amounts of soy. Bear in mind the fact that Australia has fairly tight food laws - ANZFA - that limit amounts of pesticides that can be used in food production. If your worried about pesticides - you should see the amount of pesticides that goes into a silo for grain storage - it then gets turned into your bread and pasta!

We have lately started using cows milk in some cooking - mainly cakes and biscuits, so far we have had little to no reaction. Apparently cooking it can change the protein structure. One of my girlfriends suggested this as she can use real eggs in baking - even though one of her boys is allergic to egg.

Good luck,
sorry about my dry tone - too many uni essays!!!:wave:

[shinebrite]

If your prepared to you could try making sesame seed milk or there is oat milk. I'm living evidence soy milk is bad for you as it stunted my growth I was on soy from birth! I'm totally against soy and make my own almond milk. I use coconut milk in my cooking as it's so creamy! Adds another level of texture really!