New Study Suggests Drinking Non-Dairy Milk Linked to Shorter Kids

Children who drink non-dairy milk, such as almond, soy or rice milks may be a little shorter than children who drink cow's milk according to a new study.

CNN reports that a concerning new study out of Canada found that kids who drink non-cow milks are associated with being shorter. Researchers studied over 5,000 healthy children between 2 and 6-years-old for several years.

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The researchers asked what kind of milk they consumed and how much. The results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that there was a difference of a few millimeters in height for every extra cup of non-dairy milk consumed.

"It's not like if you're not consuming cow's milk, you're a little shorter," the study's lead author and Toronto pediatrician Jonathon Maguire said. "It's more like if you are consuming non-cow's milk, with each cup that child consumes, that child on average appears to be a little bit smaller, a little shorter."

The height difference between dairy and non-dairy milk drinking children was somewhat significant. "For example, a 3-year-old child consuming three cups of non-cow's milk relative to cow's milk was on average 1.5 centimeters shorter," Maguire said.

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