Ashley Juengling and her roommate go through a gallon of milk a week.
"I've never drank so much milk before," said the interdisciplinary studies in social science and international studies junior. "I honestly think it's because I don't want to drink water, for some variety."
Juengling stood in front of a milk refrigerator at Meijer in Okemos on Wednesday, deciding which milk to purchase. She said she alternates between skim milk, which is what she grew up drinking, and soy milk.
"We were going for skim, but I do buy soy milk. I like them both — it depends on my mood," she said.
Whether you choose your type of milk based on mood, fat content or the way it was produced, here is a guide to the differences between your milk options.
Organic versus regular
One of the reasons people choose organic milk is because they don't want milk from cows that were given any artificial hormones, said Diane Fischer, a registered dietitian at Lansing's Sparrow Hospital.
But hormones occur naturally in cows, Fischer said. In fact, the more hormones a cow has, the more milk it will naturally produce.
"If you're a cow that a dairy farmer likes, you're naturally going to have high hormones anyway," she said.
Regular milk and organic milk contain the same ingredients, Fischer said, because the hormones do not transfer into the milk. Going the organic route, however, is still a good choice if you want food that was produced without artificial help.
"A lot of people who are interested in organic food might feel like it's a more humane way to farm," Fischer said. "The nutritional value of the food is the same, but that doesn't mean it isn't a good choice."
Soy
The more accurate term for soy milk would be soybean juice, Fischer said. It doesn't come from an animal, and it doesn't have many of the elements that are in milk.
Soybean milk is lower in protein and riboflavin, and it doesn't have any calcium, Fischer said. There are, however, soy milk products that have these nutrients added.
"Anyone who wants to drink soy milk (instead of regular milk) should look to see if it's fortified or see if you can get those things elsewhere because it's not an even exchange," she said.
Soy milk is ideal for people who are lactose intolerant, allergic to milk or just like the taste better, she said.
Whole versus skim
Okemos resident Mauricio Corona, 26, said he drinks a half-gallon of whole milk and whole chocolate milk every week.
"It's the real milk for me — any other is like water," he said. "I've always drank this much milk, and I never broke a bone."
Aside from taste, the only difference among whole milk, 2 percent milk, 1 percent milk, 1/2 percent milk and skim milk is the amount of fat and calories, Fischer said.
"A glass of skim is just as much of a nutrition powerhouse as a glass of whole milk, just not as much calories and fat," Fischer said.
Get calcium somehow
Even flavored milk, which contains added sugar, is worth buying, if that is the only milk you can stand drinking, because milk is the easiest way to get the adequate amount of calcium your body needs, Fischer said.
"You see a lot of high school and college students who are skipping out on milk," Fischer said.
While it is true that an 8 ounce glass of 1 percent milk has 100 calories and a Sprite has 90 calories, Fischer said the benefits of drinking milk far outweigh any drawbacks. Milk has calcium, protein, phosphorous, vitamin A, vitamin B-12, magnesium and potassium.
"If you have a diet pop, it's nothing — just some bubbles," she said.
Fischer said bones stop growing at age 30 and, from then on, calcium deteriorates.
"If you start with a stronger bone, it's going to take more time to break down," Fischer said. "So if you want a long, productive life without having to be hunched over, you gotta think now."
