More Dairy Debate

Similar to yesterday's post, Udder Confusion is a UK article from The Independent newspaper, "The Dairy Debate." [Archieved here.]

It also lists various pros and cons about dairy. And one section is especially important for those who want to stay away for the white stuff:

How to stay healthy without milk
There are plenty of non-dairy sources of calcium. The major ones are dark green leafy vegetables such as broccoli, kale, spring greens, cabbage, bok choy and watercress. Dried fruits, such as figs (250mg calcium per six figs) will also increase your calcium intake. Eat them alongside seeds and nuts, particularly almonds and brazils, sesame seeds and tahini (which contains a massive 680mg of calcium per 100g), and you'l definitely be covering your calcium RDA (800mg). Pulses, including soya beans, kidney beans, chick peas, baked beans, broad beans, lentils, peas and calcium-set tof (500mg calcium per 250g) are also good sources of calcium. Most nutritionists agree that pulses, tofu and regular servings of fish can amply make up the protein content in any dairy-free diet.

There's also an extensive range of dairy substitutes to choose from. Milk alternatives range from soya to oat and rice milk, and there's a range of non-dairy cheeses made from soya and tofu. Many margarines are dairy free. Good brands include Pure and Suma, which make soya and sunflower spreads, and Biona, which makes an organic olive spread. You can also find dairy-free yogurts and ice creams, and even chocolate, made from dairy substitutes such as soya and hemp.