Oat milk’s health halo is rapidly disappearing.
People are ditching it and experts are recommending against it for its lack of nutritional value and highly processed ingredients.
Last week, dietitians raised concerns to DailyMail.com about the presence of emulsifiers in plant based milks which some research links to cancer.
Now, they’re raising concern about another chemical linked to tumor growth.
One study has shown that some popular oat milk brands contain a weed killer called glyphosate, which has been linked to certain blood cancers.
The World Health Organization has classified the chemical – used to keep weeds off of crops – as ‘probably carcinogenic to humans’.
US health authorities disagree, and as a result, 250 million pounds of it are sprayed on American crops each year.
Oat milk is a popular milk-substitute made by soaking oat in water and straining it. Some avoid drinking it because its low in protein compared to other options, may cause blood sugar spikes or contains additives like emulsifiers
Steph Robinson, an influencer based in Los Angeles , California, has more than 107,000 followers on TikTok, ranked oat milk at the bottom of her list of milk options, for claims that it causes spikes in blood sugar
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According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG) 250 million pounds of the product are sprayed on American fields each year.
Sometimes, this ends up in the final product.
A 2023 EWG study found glyphosate in all 14 non-organic oat products they tested – though the levels had decreased sharply since 2018.
In 2023, Environmental Health News conducted a series of tests, and found ‘traces’ of glyphosate in Silk and MALK brand oat milk.
Courtney Swan, a nutritionist, food activist and influencer told Newsweek that for this reason, and others, she chooses not to consume oat milk, and actively tells people not to purchase it. She said: ‘I have never been a fan of drinking it.’
She isn’t alone, other creators have been abandoning plant based milks for dairy milk, citing concerns about pesticides, additives like emulsifiers and the lack of nutrients that can balance blood sugar.
Los Angeles influencer Steph Robinson went viral last year for sharing her true opinions on oat milk – saying it causes spikes in blood sugar which can lead to an unhealthy metabolism.
At the same time, celebrities like Gweynth Paltrow are making dairy fashionable again, claiming that it’s a more nutritious addition to a morning coffee.
The markets seem to mirror these online trends.
Almond milk sales in 2024 decreased by 8.5 percent from the previous year and oat milk sales decreased 1.25 percent over the same period, according to a report from SPINS, a company which tracks shopping data in America.
The report found that all plant-based milk sales decreased by 5.2 percent over the past year, though that still generated $2.8billion in sales for the industry.
In 2015, WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classified glyphosate as ‘probably carcinogenic to humans’ in 2015 – mainly based on studies performed in animals.
This led to proposed bans on the herbicide throughout the EU.
After reviewing data bout the herbicide in 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency said: ‘there are no risks of concern to human health when glyphosate is used in accordance with its current label.
As well as farmers working with the pesticide, people may be exposed to the weedkiller by eating contaminated food or drinking water
EPA also found that glyphosate is unlikely to be a human carcinogen.’ Still, research into the health effects is ongoing in the US.
A 2023 study performed by the National Cancer Institute measured the levels of oxidative stress – a marker of cellular aging and mutations that may eventually lead to cancer – in farmers exposed to glyphosate.
The farmers who had been exposed to glyphosate had ‘elevated levels’ of oxidative stress compared to average people.
The product most well-known for containing glyphosate is Monsanto’s Roundup.
Their parent company, Bayer, has steadfastly denied that the chemical is linked to health problems.
Still Bayer , Bayver has been forced to settle thousands of RoundUp lawsuits, with plaintiffs claiming that the company failed to disclose warnings about its product.
Bayer previously told DM.com in a statement: ‘The increased oxidative stress found in the study could have been caused by any number of non-glyphosate-related factors or a combination of them, and the study does not support the conclusion that glyphosate is the cause.’
Jessica Cording, a registered dietitian and author, previously told DailyMail.com that she’s less concerned about chemicals in oat milk, and more concerned about the affect it can have on blood sugar.
Cording explained: ‘In my own practice, I do tend to steer my clients away from oat milk if they can tolerate dairy and/or other plant milks.’
Oat milk tends to have lower amounts of protein and higher amounts of carbohydrates, or sugars, than dairy milk or nut milk. An average cup of oat milk contains about 4 grams of protein, compared to 8 grams in dairy, soy or pea milk.
When the body breaks down carbohydrates, it causes a blood sugar spike, which makes your body need to release insulin. Eating foods with other nutrients that can balance the sugars, helping them be taken up more slowly, may make insulin spikes less steep.
Gwenyth Paltrow, who is well known for her wellness takes, said she adds a spike of regular milk to her coffee, and isn’t a fan of plant based milks
Over time, having consistent blood sugar spikes can make it hard to manage one’s weight and may make them more likely to develop lifestyle diseases, like diabetes, down the line.
In addition to blood sugar concerns, Cording said that oat milk is a highly processed food, and that she counsels her clients to avoid eating these kinds of products regularly.
Oat milk is usually considered highly processed because of the added ingredients it contains.
These include emulsifiers – products added to keep liquid products from separating. Preliminary research from the University of Miami has linked emulsifiers to colon cancer, after animal studies showed a link between the products and gut inflammation.
Chronic inflammation can increase the risk for cancer by damaging DNA. This, they suggested, could put the body at greater risk for developing colorectal cancers.
Emulsifiers have also been shown to change the makeup of the bacteria that protect the gut, which University of Miami Gastroenterologist Dr Maria Abreu, suggests may increase colorectal cancer risk.
Considering this data, Cording said: ‘I think it’s appropriate to be concerned, but I also think we need to keep exploring.’
