Almond Milk vs. Soy Milk

There's this big debate on which is better for you: Almond Milk or Soy.  In my Wellness Club, Almond Milk is the better choice according to our licensed nutritionists.  However, I didn't really understand why that was until recently.

I was at a friends house for dinner one night.  Their diet consists of very clean eating because the wife had gone through some major health issues and found out that she is allergic to gluten and her body has a difficult time processing certain foods.  It was a very educational night as I stood watching the husband cook dinner for his family and his guests.  All the while, I asked him questions about why he made the choices he made about their diet.  A lot of it was through trial and error and quite a bit of research.  They even go as far as preparing their own dressings and marinades and storing food in glass instead of plastic.

I brought up the Almond Milk vs. Soy question.  He said that the reason why soy was not good for you is because it contains estrogen and can really muck up a woman's menstrual cycle not to mention increase the risk of breast cancer.  I had not heard this before, so I did some research and this is what I found:

Soy can act like estrogen

Soy foods (such as tofu, tempeh, edamame, miso, many veggie burgers, and other products made with soy flour) contain isoflavones, which are chemically similar to estrogens. Two major types, genistein and daidzein, can act like estrogen in the body, although at a very small fraction of the potency of circulating free estrogen in women.  

Soy doesn't necessarily "contain" estrogen, but contain chemicals that are "similar to" and "act like" estrogen.  Regardless of these details, I have personally decided on using almond milk instead of soy based on the fact that soy does contain chemicals that could potentially be harmful to my body.  It's your choice, but I encourage you to do your due diligence and research it for yourself instead of following the "soy is better" herd blindly.

I recently got a smoothy at Jamba Juice and asked for a protein boost.  They asked me if I wanted soy or whey - so they give you the choice which is nice.  The debate rages on between Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts.  You be the judge, but judge wisely.  Your comments are welcome!