Birdseed milk is a vegetable drink prepared with water and a seed, birdseed, and is considered a substitute for cow’s milk. This seed is a cheap cereal used to feed parakeets and other birds, and can be purchased in health food stores and supermarkets, in the form of birdseed seed for human consumption.
This plant-based milk can be used to prepare fruit smoothies, pancakes or even drink hot with cinnamon. It is also recommended for preparing shakes in diets to gain muscle mass, due to its large amount of protein, the content of which is higher than that of other vegetable milks, with the exception of soy milk.
What is it for
Consuming birdseed milk provides several health benefits, such as:
- Reduces blood pressureas it exerts an anti-inflammatory effect and contains antioxidants, mainly prolamins;
- Promotes the increase in muscle massdue to its high concentration of proteins;
- Reduces cholesterolas it is rich in antioxidants and linoleic acid, which interact in fat metabolism;
- Could help prevent anxiety and depressionas it is rich in tryptophan, an essential compound in the formation of serotonin, known as the “pleasure hormone”;
- It is suitable for consumption by vegetarians and vegansas it is a vegetable drink, providing proteins and B vitamins;
- Helps regulate sugarbeing an excellent alternative for diabetics;
- Promotes weight lossas it is low in calories and contains enzymes that stimulate the burning of body fat, as long as it is included in a healthy diet;
- Improves memory and learning, as it contains glutamic acid, an amino acid found in abundance in the brain. Some scientific studies prove that changes in the metabolism of this amino acid and in brain regulation can lead to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
Furthermore, the enzymes in birdseed seeds also improve the function of the pancreas, relieving poor digestion and a swollen abdomen.
Furthermore, birdseed also does not contain gluten or lactose, so it can be used by people with celiac disease, allergic to cow’s milk proteins and lactose intolerant. Birdseed milk should not be consumed by people with phenylketonuria, as it contains high levels of phenylalanine, an amino acid that causes toxicity in these people.
Birdseed milk nutritional information
*Sal.
Birdseed milk should not be consumed by people with phenylketonuria due to its high content of the amino acid phenylalanine.
How to prepare birdseed milk at home
You can find birdseed milk for human consumption in powder or ready-to-drink form in stores specializing in natural products, but the recipe is very easy to make at home. Its flavor is light and very similar to cereal drinks, such as oat and rice milk, for example.
Ingredients
- 1 liter of water;
- 5 tablespoons of birdseed.
Preparation mode
After washing the seeds well in a sieve under running water, it is important to soak the seeds and water in a glass container overnight. To finish, grind in a blender and strain with a very fine strainer or a voile-type fabric, like a curtain.
In addition to swapping cow’s milk for birdseed milk, check out other healthy swaps you can adopt in this quick and fun video with nutritionist Tatiana Zanin:
Bibliography
- VALVER Mary Elene; ORONA-TAMAYO Domancar et al. Antioxidant and Antihypertensive Potential of Protein Fractions from Flour and Milk Substitutes from Canary Seeds (Phalaris canariensis L.). Plant Foods for Human Nutrition. 72. 1; 20-25, 2017
- MASON Emily; L’HOCINE Lamia et al. Hairless Canaryseed: A Novel Cereal with Health Promoting Potential. Nutrients. 10. 9; 1-16, 2018
