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Ok, this website community *IS amazing*

I just cannot thank you enough, I mean I post and get answers, wow, thanks Diane and the others!!!

Now I know I will start my 30 day challenge with the help of you guys!!! Like I said I read Robb's new book, and I am obsessed with details sorry, but you are helping thinking more simply.

So 100% coconut milk I,m sure is OK for 30 days. I'm just thinking of my 6 year old . I stopped with all soy products a few months ago, so we were running on Blue Diamond Almond Breeze, coconut milk was just a bit to intense for her and my wife. Anyhow, to make it short, thumbs up or down on this milk?

Thanks Guy

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Suggestion: try and drink water for 1-2 weeks or so only. I barely drink anything else (tea sometimes). See how you go with that ;) – Dirk-Jan Aug 26 2011 at 13:08

9 Answers

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Two thumbs down.

First ingredient is water, second ingredient is evaporated cane juice. Which basically is sugar that slightly less refined than table sugar. Plus there is a number of other not paleo ingredients like carageenan and what not. I'd say not paleo.

Personally, I'd rather take a few berries and blend them in with some coconut milk and water and drink that. At least it's all natural food. I'd take that over processed almonds mixed with sugar and water and more processed ingredients. The vanilla flavored one even has 'natural ingredients' which can be all kinds of things even including MSG. I actually find coconut milk to be rather intense myself, which is why I mix it with water and a few berries. Banana makes it even better. At least I know what I am drinking!

Or try drinking tea. I realize with a whole family, you will be trying to balance health with compliance. No matter how healthy something is, it's not healthy at all if family members refuse to consume it and then sneak off and get something super unhealthy elsewhere. So sometimes it's a matter of not just picking the healthiest but instead picking the healthiest that will still result in compliance. I think the almond breeze is still going to be better than the soy, but I'm not sure it would be better than something like say, organic goat milk.

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 What brand of coconut milk has evaporated cane juice as the second ingredient?! – JJ Sep 23 2010 at 3:08
I think she was referring to the almond milk as having evaporated cane juice as the second ingredient. – JB Sep 23 2010 at 4:28
I thought we were talking about the almond milk. – Eva Sep 23 2010 at 5:12
Thanks Eva, yes there was some mixed info here, Eva was referring abound this and other post on commercial almond milk... Eva I likeyour idea of adding some berries or bananas. I used to do this for summertime making shakes, I guess I can make it less 'shaky' and more a regurar drink..... And i think I have to wean out this ancestral tradition of drinking 'milk' of any kind, isn't it cultural after all!!!!! You guys make me think a lot, PaleoHack is an amazing community!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (sorry had to put this many) Drink Water Dang it! – Guy The Healthy Paleo Guy Sep 23 2010 at 9:18
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Brother, did you read my answer to your last post?

Does it have ingredients that you would normally buy and put into your food? If not, there's your answer. Can't remember the last time I bought or cooked with soy lecithin, myself....

In general, when someone asks "is X ok for my 30-day Paleo challenge?" the answer is

  1. No
  2. It doesn't matter -- do what you need to do to make it through the challenge

In short, you're probably good to go on the coconut milk unless you are extremely hardcore about purity and optimal health, which you clearly are not. (That's a good thing in my book.)

I buy coconut milk. It comes in a can that probably contains BPA. It contains sodium metabisulfite. I don't even know what that is.

Is it optimal? Maybe not. Do I care enough to seek out organically grown coconuts and make coconut milk myself? No. Do other people care enough? Apparently, yes.

I buy it because it's convenient, it has a lot of calories, and one of my current goals is weight loss. I'm willing to trade off the slightly-less-than-optimal-ness for the convenience, at the moment. Other people apparently choose to make their own coconut milk.

Stop asking whether "X is ok" and start asking whether it's worth it. I hope you don't take it the wrong way... I'm not trying to shut you down or make you feel bad or insult you. It's just, the sooner you STOP thinking whether "X is ok," the sooner you will start to really understand what this is all about, rather than (somewhat) blindly following rules that others set for you. Remember, people have different goals, different values, different lifestyles.

Also, you're fairly new to this game, so... if you really need to ask "is X ok?" (we've all been there at some point, so don't feel bad about it), use the search function before you ask. PaleoHacks has been around for a few months now and many people have already asked questions about coconut milk. =)

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Ok ok ok, I knew I had a spanking coming!!!! Ouch Yes Jae I read your other post and I like your take on it all....I felt I had it coming to me, but dared to post...you know the kid that JUST have to touch the burning stove, maybe that was me. Anyhow your point is well taken!!!!! And I am lucky to have found a coconut milk with just coconut milk inside it!!! Man, please don't spanck my monkey anymore!!! (unless I deserve it of course! LOL) Thanks again! – Guy The Healthy Paleo Guy Sep 23 2010 at 9:11
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 Not sure what spanking a monkey means in your part of the world, but seriously - I think your context is wrong. – Bob Bob Sep 23 2010 at 9:31
Well I've never used the expression before, I just like the sound of it, but oopps maybe it already has a fixed meaning? I think I meant that question was from my 'inner' paleontological monkey instinct, so don't mind me for reverting to a kind of primitive nonthinking ape.... so don't spank him, he's innocent! – Guy The Healthy Paleo Guy Sep 23 2010 at 11:38
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 Spanking the monkey is a euphemism for masturbation. – Bob Bob Sep 23 2010 at 11:55
I hereby solemnly promise never to spank your monkey, Guy. Please don't take it too hard -- I wasn't trying to criticize you, but I did want to point out that asking "is X ok/allowed/approved?" may be leading you down a less-than-optimal path. If you slightly changed it to "is X healthy?" that would be a lot better! – JJ Sep 23 2010 at 13:37
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If your family can't handle coconut milk, then make your own almond milk. Unlike coconut milk it is truly a breeze to make and avoids the crappy stuff in the current brand you are buying. Be careful in drinking a lot of it however as the fatty acid profile is not optimal and there really is nothing paleo about the almond product derivatives that seem to have gripped some aspects of the paleo/primal community. Coconut products including the milk have a long and traditional pedigree. Almond flour/milk etc. does not.

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Almond milk has certainly been a drink since the middle ages. Maybe not as long as coconut milk, but much more prevalent in Europe than coconut, whence at least my particular genetics hail from. – David Csonka Sep 23 2010 at 13:25
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 No doubt, but I had in mind a much longer pedigree than the middle ages. – Michael Sep 24 2010 at 20:45
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Honestly, I think that making homemade coconut milk is even easier than making almond milk...

Tropical Traditions has a great video (scroll down just a tad) for making your own coconut milk using just desiccated coconut and hot water.

I'm especially not a fan of that Almond Breeze stuff - I hate seeing those isolated vitamins, minerals etc sort of just haphazardly thrown in the ingredient mix... Homemade almond milk is pretty good though- soaking the almonds is pretty essential, but you have to use it up pretty quick; it doesn't take long to start tasting a little off.

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Yes, sadly my experience about the taste going Augghhaa – Guy The Healthy Paleo Guy Sep 23 2010 at 9:20
I've made coconut milk three times. Every time my blender got really warm and started smelling ever so faintly of burning plastic. I'm not sure how many more cups of coconut milk my blender has in her, but I've got the better part of a gallon pail of shredded coconut sitting in my cupboard waiting for me to decide whether I want to find out. – PortlandAllan Dec 13 2010 at 6:20
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I WANT PURE COCONUT MILD LIKE I GOT BEFORE.... BEFORE GAR GUM...

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Trader Joes has coconut milk that has no guar gum. It is light which means it has less fat but it's also cheaper. Guar gum is a deal breaker for me so it nice to have the option if I use coconut milk (I don't use it very often).

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I use organic creamed coconut...The only ingredient is organic coconut and you just heat it over the stove with water.... Good replacement for coconut milk....

http://www.amazon.com/Lets-Do-Organic-Creamed-Coconut/dp/B00113ZZ5U

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Can anyone tell me what guar gum is made from? why is it bad for you? In South Africa and I can't seem to find a brand of coconut milk without sugar and guar gum, either one or the other seems to be in all the brands here..

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Check out HeleneLohr's response to a similar question about guar gum here:

http://paleohacks.com/questions/4077/do-i-need-to-worry-about-the-guar-gum-in-my-coconut-milk/38227#38227

Also, Sisson, in one of his posts about coconut products, says, "I wouldn't worry too much about guar gum." http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-wonderful-world-of-coconut-products/#axzz2RIBRUZJG

So I guess it may be one of those ingredients you'll have to experiment with yourself, since it seems to affect people differently.

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