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atomic sagebrush
March 11th, 2011, 03:59 PM
Which milk is best for swaying? It may not be what you think! Let's take a quick look at the various incarnations of milk and milk substitutes and see what they really contain nutritionally.

As a reminder or if you're a newbie - the best, most scientific evidence we have seems to indicate that a high nutrient, high calorie, high protein, high fat, high sodium diet seems to sway blue and a low nutrient, low calorie, low protein, low fat, low sodium diet seems to sway pink. There is also some good evidence to indicate that low blood glucose levels to sway pink while medium blood glucose levels seem to sway blue.

Traditionally, high calcium and magnesium intake has been linked to more girls while high sodium and potassium intake has been linked to more boys. And foods that acidify the body are believed to sway pink while foods that make the body more alkaline are believed to sway blue. So the best milk for swaying a particular gender should reflect ALL of those needs overall.

DAIRY - Dairy milk is a traditional part of the girl sway because of its high calcium levels, but there are some problems with dairy that make it pink-unfriendly. It's very high in protein and fat, and has a LOT of sodium and potassium. In fact, it's mighty tough to get enough calcium through dairy beverages without exceeding your recommended sodium and potassium levels. And MANY people cannot even digest milk (please read http://genderdreaming.com/forum/showthread.php?609-the-calcium-conundrum-CONTROVERSIAL for more info).

Dairy also has tons of calories, fat, protein, it may elevate your blood glucose levels, and full fat milks are loaded with cholesterol, which is the building block of testosterone. It does tend to be acidic in your body.

:C: WHOLE MILK - Per cup - 146 calories, 8 grams protein, 8 grams of fat, 25 mg of cholesterol

Calcium 276mg Magnesium 24.4mg Potassium 349mg Sodium 97.6mg (so in order to get roughly 25 mg of magnesium, you're ingesting 350 mg potassium and almost 100 mg of sodium in ONE CUP.)

Zinc 1.0mg Vit. A - 250 IU Vit. D - 98 IU (Zinc is known to sway blue when men take it, and Vit A and Vit. D probably sway blue in men and women, by raising testosterone.)

On balance, I think that whole milk is better for :ttcboy:

:C:2% MILK - Per cup, 122 calories, 8 grams protein, 5 grams fat, 20 mg cholesterol.

Calcium 286mg Magnesium 26.8mg Potassium 366mg Sodium 100mg

Zinc 1 mg Vit A 461 IU Vit D 105 IU

On balance, I think 2% milk is better for :ttcboy:

:C:SKIM MILK - per cup, 91 calories, a little less than 1 gram fat, 9 grams protein, 5 mg cholesterol

Calcium 316 mg Magnesium 36 mg Potassium 420 sodium 130 mg

Zinc 1 mg Vit. A 500 IU Vit D 98 IU (BUT...without fat, the Vit. A and Vit D will probably not be as well absorbed.)

One other downside of skim - it may make your blood sugar rise more than whole or 2% will.

One unknown about skim vs. whole milk - whole milk seems to BOOST fertility while skim milk seems to reduce it. Pretty much everything that boosts fertility seems to sway blue and pretty much everything that reduces it seems to sway pink.

On balance, I think skim milk is better for :ttcgirl:

:C:CREAM AND HALF AND HALF -

Both have more fat, calories, and cholesterol than whole milk, BUT you use them in such small amounts that I think in moderation (as in no more than once a day for pink swayers or twice for blue swayers) you can use them to perk up EITHER sway. They do have some nutrients but again, you use so little of them that it's almost irrelevant. I think they're overall better for :ttcboy: because of the calories and fat and when used sparingly, they have very little calcium.

For a blue sway you may wish to use a little cream in your mashed potatoes or in a gravy for meat or to liven up soups. Or, you may choose instead to use some half and half in your green tea.

For a pink sway, you could make a sugarfree Italian soda with a tablespoon of cream, or put some on strawberries with aspartame as a dessert.

:C:NONDAIRY CREAMER - 10 calories per teaspoon with a half-gram of fat. No protein, sodium, cholesterol, or nutrients of any sort.

Nondairy creamer is traditionally used in a blue sway as a milk replacement. And that's ok if you want to use it now and then in your tea. But some people really go overboard with the nondairy creamer and start putting it into pasta sauces and stuff like that and I think that is a bad idea for two reasons.

Firstly because it is taking the place of more nutritious things that you could be eating instead (remember, the best science indicates that high fat, high protein, high calorie, high nutrient diet leads to more boys being conceived.) So every time you choose nondairy creamer over a more nutrient-rich food, it is an opportunity wasted to send a signal to your body that times are good and a boy pregnancy would be desirable.

Secondly, nondairy creamers are PACKED full of chemicals. Evidence indicates that chemicals in pesticides and food additives may build up in the human body and affect hormones, leading to more girls being conceived. So it is best to avoid chemical additives as much as possible when swaying blue and probably when trying to get pregnant all together.

On balance, ok in moderation for :ttcgirl: or :ttcboy: but is probably not the best idea for anyone trying to get pregnant.

atomic sagebrush
March 11th, 2011, 04:01 PM
Disclaimer - a lot of these products vary slightly in nutrition between brands and formulation. I tried to find the most commonly available brand but just know you will need to double and triple check these numbers to make sure that you're getting the best product for your needs.

UPDATE (2017): I feel we have been seeing a disproportionate number of sway opposites in women drinking lots of milk replacers (almond in particular). I urge you to skip milk replacers totally for blue sways

:C: SOYMILKS - in about 1 cup of soy milk, there are 131 calories, 7-8 grams protein, 4 grams fat, and no cholesterol. (more calories than skim but less than the other dairy milks have. Less fat than whole or 2% milk, and no cholesterol; however it may be fortified wiht and/or naturally contain, depending on how it was processed, essential fatty acids, which sway blue. Slightly less protein but this varies by brand.)

Calcium 60 mg magnesium 60 mg sodium 124 mg potassium 287 mg (so MORE magnesium and LESS sodium and potassium than cow's milk!)

Zinc - .3 mg Vit. A - 7 IU Vit D - 0- 119 IU (the amount of Vit. D varies between brands. Most do have added Vit. D and others don't.)

The Great Soy Debate - Soy has ingredients called "phytoestrogens" that some believe sway blue because they act like estrogen in the body, and some believe that estrogen sways blue; therefore, these people believe that soy sways blue. However, this may have been debunked. From the Silk Soymilk website "Myth: Soy contains estrogen. Reality: Soy does not contain the hormone estrogen. It does, however, contain isoflavones, also known as phytoestrogens or "plant estrogens." While the chemical structure of isoflavones is similar to estrogen, the two function very differently in the body."

Very differently?? The chemical structure of isoflavones is so similar to estrogen, it may actually have the effect of keeping estrogen from being used (in effect, lowering estrogen) by competing for the available estrogen receptor sites.

Regardless of what the Silk website claims, soy isoflavones CLEARLY do SOMETHING to affect fertility because women can use concentrated soy isoflavones as a natural form of Clomid. It is unknown exactly how soy works and whether just drinking soy milk is enough to affect anything or if you have to be taking medicinal quantities. Some scientific evidence has indicated that soy may reduce overall fertility and lower testosterone and sperm count Clinical and biological activity of soy protein powder supplementation in healthy male volunteers. - PubMed - NCBI (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17416779) http://www.foodnavigator.com/Science-Nutrition/Study-links-low-sperm-with-high-soy-consumption (Silk Soymilk also has a bit debunking this, but the disclaimer is that it says "no HUMAN studies have shown this...to me, that's not really totally reassuring.)

Soy contains some other ingredients like phytic acid (blocks mineral absorption) and other phytochemicals genistein and daidzein that may affect fertility in a negative way. As we known, pretty much everything that reduces fertility, seems to sway pink. In fact as I said above, one of these phytochemicals, genistein, due to its similarity to estrogen, competes with estrogen for estrogen receptors and may actually reduce the effects of estrogen!

Traditional swaying lore claims that soy sways strongly blue not only because of the phytoestrogens because it is alkalinizing and increases EWCM but I don't believe the data supports that claim (because it lowers testosterone, competes with estrogen reduces fertility/sperm count and is lower in sodium/potassium than cow's milk).

Soy milk is slightly acid.

On balance, I think soy milk is better for :ttcgirl: especially for DH.

WARNING - One study found a link between dietary intake of soy during pregnancy and birth defects in the genitalia of baby boys. Endocrine disruptors and hypospadias: role of genistein and the fungicide vinclozolin. - PubMed - NCBI (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17905137?ordinalpos=841&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum)

:C:RICE MILK - Calories 120 Fat 2.5g Cholesterol 0mg Protein 1 g

Calcium 240 mg Sodium 80mg Potassium - 0 (although there is a kind of Heart-Wise Rice Dream that DOES have a small amount of potassium and plant sterols that may help lower cholesterol) I could not find any info on magnesium, but that doesn't mean that it's not in there - brown rice, from which rice milk is made, has a lot of magnesium.

Vitamin A 10% Vitamin D 25% (sorry I couldn't find the actual numbers for this one!) and I also couldn't find out how much Zinc it has. There is some zinc in brown rice.

Also, rice milk is said to be slightly acidifying.

On balance, I think rice milk is better for :ttcgirl:. There are also brands of unfortified rice milk available without calcium in them that might be desirable for :ttcboy: BUT I still advise against them due to large amounts of vegetable oils that may sway blue. Check the labels, if it has calcium, it's probably more girl friendly. Still, even unfortified rice milk is low in fat and protein and there are better options available for blue swayers.

:C:ALMOND MILK - in 1 cup - Calories 40 Total Fat 4 g Protein 1 g Cholesterol 0 mg And the fats are "good" fats.

Sodium 180 mg Potassium 190 mg Calcium 285 mg Again, I couldn't find info on how much magnesium is in almond milk, but almonds are a rich source of magnesium so I assume it has some.

Vitamin A 10% Vit. D 25% (sorry) and I couldn't find any info on zinc, but again, nuts being a rich source of zinc makes me think that almond milk is rich in zinc as well. Plus, an added benefit is that 1 cup had 50% of your day's RDA for Vitamin E, and ingesting Vit. A, D and E together with healthy fats is a GREAT way to boost your testosterone.

Note - My son and I did not care for the taste of almond milk (we are both lactose intolerant). We both preferred the flavor of Silk Soymilk and Rice Dream ricemilk over the almond milk, although the chocolate was a lot better than the vanilla.

I saw almonds listed as alkaline and almond milk listed as acidic. It's a toss up.

ON balance, I think almond milk is better for :ttcboy: UPDATE 2017 - due to the high amount of vegetable oils, and the fact that I've seen lots of opposites in people who were drinking lots of almond milk, my endorsement is a lot shakier on almond milk. I'd skip it if I were you, unless you really, really believe in minerals for swaying)

atomic sagebrush
March 12th, 2011, 01:23 PM
:C: OAT MILK - Calories 130 Total Fat 2.5g Cholesterol 0mg Protein 4g

Sodium 110mg Potassium 120mg Calcium 36% Oats are a rich source of magnesium but no numbers available.

Vitamin A 10% Vitamin D 25% Oats have zinc, but ~may~ absorb and remove zinc from your digestive tract. Take your zinc supplements at a different time of day than you drink oat milk.

Oats are full of soluble fiber and ~may~ absorb fat soluble vitamins from the digestive tract. For this reason, blue swayers should take your supplements, particularly A,D, and E and your fish/flax/evening primrose oil, at a different time of day than when you drink oat milk.

Oats are a rich source of phytochemicals called avenocasides that have been shown to raise testosterone. Foods That Stimulate Testosterone Production (with Pictures) | eHow (http://www.ehow.com/about_5367326_foods-stimulate-testosterone-production.html)

Oats are acidic according to some lists and then alkaline on some others.

On balance, I think oatmilk is better for :ttcboy: UPDATE: again, due to high levels of vegetable fats I no longer think milk replacers are ever best for TTC a boy. But I haven't seen the number of opposites with oat milk that I have with almond.

:C:Coconut milk - (I'm not talking about the coconut milk that comes in cans and is used for cooking, this is a soy milk-style beverage sold under the brand name Pure Coconut) In one cup - 80 calories 5 grams of fat (all saturated) Protein - 1 g No Cholesterol.

Calcium 45% Sodium 30 g Potassium 40 g (this is really the lowest in terms of sodium and potassium). Again, magnesium is unknown but coconut does have magnesium itself so it is likely in the milk.

Vit A 10% Vit D 25% Zinc - could not find a number but coconut does have zinc.

Coconut is alkalinizing and raises testosterone due to the high levels of saturated fat. It is a good choice to drink when taking fat soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and essential fatty acids like fish oil, flax, evening primrose because the fat content will aid absorption.

On balance, I think coconut is better for :ttcboy: UPDATE - Coconut milk does have some vegetable fat added to it and I feel much more wary about it now than I once did

:C:Hazelnut milk - per cup - 120 calories 3.5g fat 2 g protein and no cholesterol.

Calcium 30% Magnesium (not listed) Potassium 60 mg Sodium 120 mg

Vit A 10% Vit D 25% Zinc - hazelnuts do have some zinc so it is probably present in the milk.

I couldn't find whether hazelnuts are acid or alkaline. They are believed to raise testosterone due to their good fats.

On balance, I can see hazelnut milk fitting into a :ttcgirl: or :ttcboy: sway. It is very low in potassium, fat, sodium, and protein while having calcium so it could help sway pink. On the other hand it does have some sodium and good fats so could help sway blue. Update: I'd go easy on it for blue due to added veg oil

:C: Hemp Milk - in one cup, 140 calories 5 g fat 3 g protein, and no cholesterol. Hemp is said to be an almost perfect source of fatty acids.

Calcium 50% Magnesium 25% Potassium 170 mg Sodium 130 mg

Vit A 10% Vit D 30% and is a good source of zinc.

Hemp is slightly acidic and is believed to raise testosterone due to the quality of its fatty acids.

On balance, hemp milk seems that it could fit in in either a :ttcgirl: or :ttcboy: sway. It's lower in protein, potassium, and sodium than cow's milk while being very high in calcium, and it is acidic. On the other hand, it has a lot of good fats and boy-friendly nutrients and probably raises testosterone. Update: Again, due to large amounts of added vegetable fats I am not so convinced on this any more for boys.

atomic sagebrush
March 12th, 2011, 01:51 PM
Buyer's guide - Here are some commonly available brands of these milks. Some can be ordered online or found in bulk...I get Rice Dreams in a 12 pack at Costco for much less than I can get it in my local supermarket.

http://silksoymilk.com/products (make a variety of very high quality soy milks and almond milk)

http://www.silkpurecoconut.com/ (coconut milk made by Silk)

http://www.tastethedream.com/products/rice_dream.php (Rice Dreams brand, most famous for rice milk, but also make soy, almond, and hemp milk)

http://www.pacificfoods.com/our-foods/nut-grain-beverages (almond, rice, hemp, hazelnut, and oat milks)

http://www.pacificfoods.com/our-foods/soy-beverages (soy)

http://www.8thcontinent.com/products/ (soy)

http://www.bluediamond.com/index.cfm?navid=33 (almond)

http://www.livingharvest.com/ (hemp)

You also may find some store brand soy milks available. I tried the Safeway brand of soymilk a couple times and it was not real tasty unfortunately.

Recipes - It IS possible to make some of these milks at home if you're so inclined. The advantage would be that you could NOT fortify them with vitamins, so if you were swaying blue and you were avoiding calcium, you could conceivably whip up some lower-calcium almond milk, or a pink swayer could make their own rice milk without essential fatty acids and Vitamin D added.

You can even buy your own machine to make these at home if you are that kind of gal (or guy)!
http://www.soymilkquick.com/index.php (this site also has a lot of recipes)

Soy Milk Recipes:

http://www.ellenskitchen.com/faqs/tofumilk.html
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/423560
http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com/page/page/638376.htm
http://www.soya.be/how-to-make-soy-milk.php

Rice Milk Recipes:

http://www.food.com/recipe/d-i-y-rice-milk-51109 (very basic)
http://onlysometimesclever.wordpress.com/2007/06/08/healthy-creamy-yummy-rice-milk-recipe/ (quite a good and thorough recipe)
http://www.veganreader.com/2009/05/17/how-to-make-rice-milk-and-stop-supporting-rice-dream/ (you have to scroll through a preachy post to get to this recipe!)
http://www.nomilk.com/ricemilk.txt

Almond/Hazelnut Milk Recipes (you make them roughly the same way)
http://www.living-foods.com/recipes/almondmilk.html
http://www.paleofood.com/nmilks.htm
http://drbenkim.com/recipesalmondmilk.html
http://www.elanaspantry.com/got-milk/

Oat Milk Recipes
http://www.godairyfree.org/Dairy-Substitutes/Milk-Subs-Low-fat-Nonfat/Oat-Milk.html
http://iskra.tripod.com/nomilk/altmilk.htm (actually also has recipes for other kinds of milk as well)
http://www.living-foods.com/articles/milksubstitute.html
http://ashy-macbean.com/drinks/walnut-oat-milk.htm (this one has oats AND walnuts for maximum boy-friendliness LOL)

Hemp Milk and other -

I didn't really like the quality of the hemp milk recipes other than the one on this link so I will skip those (they were overly complicated and required special equipment). In addition to hemp, you can make a similar milk out of a variety of things using this recipe, like other kinds of nuts, seeds, sprouts, grains, etc.

http://kristensraw.blogspot.com/2009/05/how-to-make-raw-vegan-milk.html

mkarntz1980
March 15th, 2011, 01:08 PM
Thats interesting....my son has a hypospadia...its mild, I didnt drink any soy milk. Im still wondering how he got his....my other 2 boys are fine

atomic sagebrush
March 15th, 2011, 01:21 PM
Genetics play a huge role in all these things as might the chemicals in plastics.

One of my sons has spina bifida and none of the others do.

mkarntz1980
March 16th, 2011, 02:19 PM
yeah his dr said its genetic

LolaInLove
March 17th, 2011, 01:17 PM
FWIW, I have a friend (granted, she was 38) who was a vegan and only drank soymilk, and her son was born with not only hypospadia but also some sort of webbed skin underneath his penis that made it hook under.....I felt so bad for the poor kid. He did have several corrective surgeries after the age of 2, but he would have never been able to have sex if not (thank goodness he was born in the age of modern medicine!). Not to freak anyone out about it, but I do remember her having soymilk every day.

LolaInLove
March 17th, 2011, 01:18 PM
Oh, and on IG, they tell boy swayers to only have rice milk, remember?

atomic sagebrush
March 18th, 2011, 11:24 AM
Oh, and on IG, they tell boy swayers to only have rice milk, remember?

Oh, I know. But a lot of people were drinking soy milk as a part of a blue sway (even though it wasn't the official recommendation) because they didn't like or couldn't find the rice milk.

LolaInLove
March 18th, 2011, 01:06 PM
Oh, I know. But a lot of people were drinking soy milk as a part of a blue sway (even though it wasn't the official recommendation) because they didn't like or couldn't find the rice milk.

All I have to say is that I was never satiated with IG's "rules" as they had very little explanation. I was always like BUT WHYYYY? I want to read some scientific evidence of WHY that is not allowed. Not that it was horrible or anything, just sayin.'

LolaInLove
March 18th, 2011, 01:07 PM
To be honest, the best thing I ever read that did satisfy my longing for scientific backup on IG were your old TW posts!

ELP
March 18th, 2011, 02:00 PM
Yep, agreed with your above 2 posts Lola:agree: I always need to know the why's about things or I just don't stick to it. And the TW blog made alot of sense, its nice to see all the ideas in there expanded on.

atomic sagebrush
March 18th, 2011, 02:18 PM
Thanks!! That is my goal, to have everything explained within an inch of its life, but unfortunately it is SO HARD with these little boysen-berries running around! I'm trying and I hope to have more info on a daily basis but some weeks I obviously fall a bit short on that!

TTC5
March 19th, 2011, 04:52 PM
Thanks Atomic!!!
I am having almond milk now as I am as bit wary of soy now!

atomic sagebrush
March 20th, 2011, 10:50 AM
Interesting threads about milk -

http://genderdreaming.com/forum/showthread.php?1895-Raw-Milk-Versus-Pasteurized-Store-Milk-for-Sodium-and-Potassium-Content

LolaInLove
March 21st, 2011, 11:33 AM
Atomic, you write enough that I'd think this was your job. Don't sweat it, you are SUCH AN AMAZING HELP, you are for sure our new swaying guru. LOL!

95

atomic sagebrush
March 22nd, 2011, 02:31 PM
Oh, thank you so much, that means the world to me! My goal was a new essay every day and now I find I"m lucky if I get one done a week! :/

iluvmyman
March 29th, 2011, 02:26 AM
I've read that Soy Milk in general isn't good for you regardless if you are ttc and even for causing birth defects. Off the top of my head here is a link if you like Dr. Mercola. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/09/18/soy-can-damage-your-health.aspx
I've had 2 girls and 2 boys and have always drank a lot of 2% or whole milk (whole milk w/ the 2 boys now that I think about it). I feel strongly about ttc a boy and am nervous to start the full fat dairy. I thought IG said no dairy and that's what I was going off of. If this means I can go back to whole milk and maybe even a Starbucks frappacino that would be great. :) Are you sure it's OK?

atomic sagebrush
March 29th, 2011, 10:45 AM
Am I SURE? No. And I don't think the people who support the French Diet are sure either. But if I were swaying blue I would have no fears or worries about full fat dairy and I would eat it all the time. IG does say no dairy but there are many reasons why I think that swaying doesn't really work the way that the traditional sway claims.

If it makes you scared to do it, then don't. You can still have a great sway without the full fat dairy, just substitute in almond, oat, or coconut milk in place of the regular milk. You can have a great sway while still staying in the mineral recommendations of the French Diet!!:agree:

iluvmyman
March 29th, 2011, 02:06 PM
Thanks!

atomic sagebrush
February 27th, 2017, 01:33 PM
I feel like I've been seeing a lot of opposites in blue swayers drinking milk replacers. Since animal studies have shown that higher intake of vegetable fats vs. animal fats seem to = more girls conceived, I wonder if the milk replacers may be actually harming people's sways by providing a lot of carbiness + a lot of vegetable oil. I think we need to move towards eliminating milk replacers and if you don't want to do dairy, please drink tea, juice, and water instead.

Nonerz
August 19th, 2017, 03:31 PM
Hi Atomic, I am trying to sway blue and plan to eat a bowl of cereal regularly (among many other things). In terms of milk, since the alternatives are tending to sway pink, I am trying to find something else to put in my cereal. Does Lactaid milk have the same results with swaying pink as the alternatives?

MiaMelb
August 19th, 2017, 10:10 PM
Hi Atomic, I am trying to sway blue and plan to eat a bowl of cereal regularly (among many other things). In terms of milk, since the alternatives are tending to sway pink, I am trying to find something else to put in my cereal. Does Lactaid milk have the same results with swaying pink as the alternatives?

Full fat milk or yoghurt are both good for blue.

atomic sagebrush
August 20th, 2017, 11:40 AM
Hi Atomic, I am trying to sway blue and plan to eat a bowl of cereal regularly (among many other things). In terms of milk, since the alternatives are tending to sway pink, I am trying to find something else to put in my cereal. Does Lactaid milk have the same results with swaying pink as the alternatives?

The amount of milk replacer in one bowl here and there will not sway pink (we don't think). The people who were getting opposites were drinking quite a bit of almond milk (it was mostly almond milk, but i"m not sure if that means it is really almond milk, or just because that is what is most common - the real issue I believe for swaying is that high amount of vegetable based fats, and that is in all milk replacers)

I'm assuming you're lactose intolerant?

Lactaid is ok, but try to find the whole milk version if at all possible (I too am LI and could not find the whole milk kind anywhere). If you can't, I'd try doing the Lactaid medicine (that helps you digest milk) and using regular whole milk.

baby_deku_scrub
June 13th, 2020, 10:01 AM
I'm curious what your current thoughts are on this? I'm swaying girl and usually use either almond or oat milk in my coffee (so about 150-200mL per day), occasionally soy.
I otherwise eat dairy, I just don't like the taste of milk in coffee :p
Would you recommend any one of those over the other at this point?

atomic sagebrush
June 13th, 2020, 01:31 PM
Small amounts of milk replacers are ok, it's the people who were drinking it by the carton thinking it was helping their sway who seemed to have issues.