Why almond milk yogurt is better for you than dairy yogurt

By Jim Leffman via SWNS

It's good news for vegans - almond milk yogurt is better for you than dairy yogurt according to a new analysis.

In fact oat milk yogurt is also better than normal milk, though cow's milk beats cashew and coconut varieties.

Researchers found that almond milk yogurt packs an overall greater nutritional punch than the dairy-based equivalent.

The study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst compared 612 plant-based and dairy yoghurt and the almond milk variety came out on top.

Research assistant at the university, Astrid D’Andrea, said: "Plant-based yogurts overall have less total sugar, less sodium and more fibre than dairy, but they have less protein, calcium and potassium than dairy yogurt.

“But when looking at the overall nutrient density, comparing dairy yoghurt to plant-based yogurt, with the nutrients that we looked at, almond yogurt has a significantly higher nutrient density than dairy yogurt and all other plant-based yogurts.

"Plant-based diets are gaining popularity, especially in American culture, but just because it’s plant-based doesn’t mean it’s more nutritious.

“There has to be specific research that answers that question.”

Published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition titled "Food of the Future: Meat and Dairy Alternatives," the research looked at products launched over a five year period.

Driven by concerns over environmental sustainability and eating less animal-based food products, the plant-based yoghurt market is expected to explode from $1.6 billion in 2021 to $6.5 billion by 2030.

D’Andrea used the Nutrient Rich Foods (NRF) Index, which assigns scores based on the nutrient density of foods.

She said: “This allowed us to compare the nutritional density of the yoghurts based on nutrients to encourage such as protein, fibre, calcium, iron, potassium and vitamin D and nutrients to limit such as saturated fat, total sugar and salt."

Of the 612 yogurts analyzed, 159 were full-fat dairy, 303 were low- and nonfat dairy, 61 were coconut, 44 were almond, 30 were cashew and 15 were oat.

The researchers used the NRF Index to rank the yogurts from the highest to lowest nutrient density: almond, oat, low- and nonfat dairy, full-fat dairy, cashew and coconut.

She attributed the high scores of almond and oat yogurts to their low levels of total sugar, sodium and saturated fat.

The team says further research is warranted, based on their findings that suggest a way to maximize the nutrition and functional characteristics of yogurt by blending plant and dairy.