I'm lactose intolerant and like soy with my Starbucks lattes. It was listed as one of the Super Foods at one time, but now research is starting to slide the other direction with soy. From what I understand, it wasn't meant to be eaten in it's raw form as our body can't really digest it unless it's fermented...such as soy sauce or miso. There's a list of negative impacts it has on your body.

This is very new to me so I'm still doing some research on it. We're really focusing on the Super Foods and working to improve our overall health. Still wondering how to have my lattes.

I avoid all soy as much as I possibly can. I try to not even have chocolate that has soy lecithin in it (which certainly cuts down on my chocolate consumption!) I drink raw cow's milk, mostly as kefir I make at home (lactose intolerant folks can drink kefir however it doesn't solve the creamer in the coffee problem...). I go through a gallon of milk a week and since I started drinking only raw cow's milk my cholesterol levels have significantly improved.

I've made yogurt but never kefir. Is it a similar process? I'd love to make my own.

ETA - don't want to hijack the thread I limit my soy intake so no soy milk. It's also twice the calories of my favorite, almond milk. We actually have almond, coconut and hemp milk in the house right now. I like them for different things.

Kefir is much easier to make than yogurt and supposedly has more health benefits. It doesn't get as thick as yogurt but it makes great smoothies. You can also use it in place of buttermilk in recipes.

I'll start a kefir topic in in the whole foods section. Maybe other folks who drink or make kefir will chime in.

The Soy Milk taste sooooooooo good but it sounds like it's not good for you. I wish that I could find goat milk. I love milk but I have to find something that is healthy for me.

Why can't you drink cow's milk? I buy low-temp pasteurized non-homogenized milk. Only my son drinks it though, I mostly use it for cooking and making yogurt. I get goat's milk at a local farm sometimes too. I also like nut milks and will make them sometimes.

There have been several studies that suggest homogenization is what makes cow milk "bad." From what I understand, the process makes the fat globules stickier and smaller. Because of this they get into your blood stream and stick to your arteries.

As far as soy, I avoid non-fermented or non-sprouted soy. Raw or cooked (if not fermented or sprouted) soy is hard to digest and you don't really get any benefit from it.

In my opinion, cow's milk is not healthy for me and there is no taste to it. It's kinda yuck and bland. I did a lot of research and found that raw goat's milk is the best milk to drink. Although I do love the taste of soy milk, I know that's not healthy either.

I don't think soy milk is bad for you but processed soy has ended up in many products. I buy organic soy beans and make my own soy milk. I think it is good to have a variety of foods and I have no issue with eating soy as part of a varied diet.

I have really been enjoying my soy milk. YUMMY !!

I used to be a soy milk drinker until all the bad stuff started coming up on it. I switched to almond and coconut milks... but I sorta miss the soy milk since it has more protein. Then I sometimes think I should just switch back to cows milk, I still eat cheese sometimes so why not drink cows milk... although I am trying to limit all animal products so I don't know.

is soy still a big thing in Asian countries? I thought they drank soy milk there often and it was healthy.

Yup, soy milk and tofu are still big in asian countries. Korea apparently has tofu restaurants which sounds fascinating.

As I said, I personally have no problem with soy. If you take thyroid medication, you are supposed to have wait 4 hours before eating soy but you don't have to limit it. I wouldn't do soy protein powder personally but some people do.

I bought the Very Vanilla Soymilk and it was DELICIOUS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A lot of the anti-soy propaganda is based on no scientific evidence, or cherry picked information from a small number of studies with serious flaws or biases. As far as I can tell, the jury is still out on what the exact benefits or drawbacks of consuming soy are, more studies need to be done. It is important to evaluate your information sources and think critically about claims and where they come from before you start changing your actions (e.g. changing your diet) based on them.

I think it helps to put this in perspective and remember that soy is a bean. I find it hard to believe that a legume consumed by humans since time predating recorded history could be the evil health-wrecker that some make it out to be. Also, remember that all the foods we eat are full of chemical compounds that interact with our physiology, some helpful, some harmful and others neutral. Our bodies have adapted to make the most of the useful substances available in our foods and have mechanisms to defend against harmful ones. If there is good evidence that soy is really bad for humans I would be all for hearing about it, but I just haven't found any credible sources that claim that to be the case.

How about Almond milk or Coconut milk? Those are my go-to non dairy milks . GOOD stuff!