Messages like this are great-BUT they don't mean that what your buying is a Whole unprocessed Food.On the path to healthier eating, I've changed what I eat for breakfast SO many times.
I went from cows milk to soy milk and then hemp milk in my cereal; I switched to smoothies I went to just having eggs and now I've been juicing daily in the morning for over a year.
When we're searching for health, it's learned in increments. We'll never stop learning (hopefully) and we never stop searching for the answers to health. That consciousness is a rare and beautiful thing- that many people won't ever have! So if your reading this, your searching and I'm happy to be apart of it- if only in a tiny way.
As far as what milks to choose, the bottom line is, the more natural, unprocessed the better. Since "natural" has become somewhat of an adulterated term itself, I'll explain.
Raw milk is truly natural and unprocessed. It comes from the cow, it's tested for bacteria, it's kept cold and that's it. Hemp, Almond, Soy are all processed from nuts and seeds, heated, and then made to be shelf stable. They should be drunk in moderation. Soy is particularly worrisome as it's often GMO and contains estrogenic components that can disrupt our hormones, glands (thyroid for example) and so on.
It's hard because you and I and everyone born after 1965, was taught (mostly with marketing) that cereal is what we should have for breakfast; this requires milk. Cereals are themselves very processed forms of wheat, corn, gluten free grains, etc.
The challenge is to move towards whole foods for most of your breakfasts. 5 days a week is a good target to shoot for. Fruit, Nuts, Whole Oats like Oatmeal, Green Drinks with Spirulina for example, Smoothies, and/or veggies if your juicing. For those that need more protein focus on spirulina (high protein greens powder), chia seed (high protein seed), fruit and nuts in the morning.
These are unprocessed whole foods and an instant dose of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, antioxidants, fiber, protein, natural sugars & everything you need to start the day.
On the weekends- have cereal with milk or pancakes! -and enjoy them! Those should be considered a treat- as they are. They do contains some nutrition- don't get me wrong. But they are often "mineral enriched", they are always processed in someway to make them shelf stable and if you think about it- those foods aren't alive at all.
I will never tell you "stop eating cereal", but it's something to consider that it's not the best thing to eat everyday. I will always encourage you to endulge and enjoy food. I love food! We must eat to live and not live to eat. Our health is about the good choices we make everyday, not occasional pancake breakfasts! If I was to pick a milk to have occasionally with my cereal it would probably be almond, hemp or coconut milk.
Making the shift away from cereals daily might be difficult but it will set up better habits for you and your the family and get them far better whole food nutrition to start the day.
If calcium is the concern, juicing is one of the BEST ways to absorb your calcium! Juicing provides a mineral profile that literally helps get the calcium into bones! - Check out this raw milk post for a list of calcium rich foods.