Student's health could benefit from soymilk

April 12, 2006 in Nutrition Topics in the News

Student's health could benefit from soymilk
A recent study published in the Journal of American Dietetic Association, found that when students were offered soymilk as a choice as part of their daily lunch, almost a quarter of children chose the calcium-rich, nondairy beverage over milk.

While many African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Native Americans are lactose intolerant, researchers found offering soymilk sharply increases the average calcium consumption per gram of saturated fat consumed from calcium-rich beverages. These findings suggest that students� health could benefit from the inclusion of soymilk in school lunch lines.

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in the United States, currently offers no alternative to dairy milk without a note from a doctor or parent and will not change that practice until soymilk is deemed acceptable to children.

Enriched soymilk has no lactose and little or no saturated fat, but it has as much calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin D as dairy milk.

All research on this web site is the property of Leslie Beck Nutrition Consulting Inc. and is protected by copyright. Keep in mind that research on these matters continues daily and is subject to change. The information presented is not intended as a substitute for medical treatment. It is intended to provide ongoing support of your healthy lifestyle practices.