Goat milk: allergen alternative

Better Nutrition, June, 2004

Three percent of children have a food allergy, and cow milk is among the most common trigger foods for kids, along with peanuts and eggs. So one answer to the allergy dilemma may be goat milk.

Milk from goats contains only trace amounts of alpha s1-casein, the major cow milk protein to which some people are allergic.

The taste is similar as are the proportions of protein, fat and iron. Some proponents claim goat milk is easier to digest. And those who are lactose-intolerant may be able to handle goat milk because it contains substantially less lactose than milk from cows.

And if that's not enough, goat milk is also more abundant in calcium --important for building healthy bones--than cow milk.

Children often eventually outgrow milk and egg allergies, although peanut allergies tend to be lifelong. Despite another American milk myth---that milk is synonymous with cow milk--more people worldwide drink milk from goats than from any other animal.