We know milk does a body good, but ... hemp milk?

Last month, Dr. Oz picked hemp milk as his favorite milk alternative. But can hemp milk -- which calls to mind a certain drug -- be good for you?

We asked Willow Jarosh and Stephanie Clarke, contributing editors at SELF and co-founders of C&J Nutrition, why you should try it.

1. You will NOT get high

Hemp food products -- like hemp seeds, hemp protein and hemp milk -- come from the Cannibus sativa plant, Jarosh and Clarke say. It's the same plant that marijuana comes from, but when you eat hemp, you're not getting the "drug" part of the plant, otherwise known as THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). Hemp producers use plants with less than 0.3 percent THC (many guarantee their plants have 0 percent THC). To make milk, h emp seeds are blended with water and then the mixture is filtered.

In other words, you're not going to be getting stoned on milk!

2. It tastes great

Hemp milk (also called hemp beverage) has a creamy consistency that tends to be a bit thicker than skim milk and other milk alternatives. It's got a slightly nutty flavor (similar to almond milk).

3. It's good for you

Hemp seeds are rich in the plant-based omega-3 fatty acid ALA, and several hemp milk companies add additional hemp oil into their hemp beverages -- so drinkers get the omega-3 benefits. Research shows that getting enough omega-3 fatty acids each day can help keep cholesterol and blood pressure in check. Though the type of omega-3 found in hemp isn't as easily used by the body as the kind found in fish, studies show that it can still provide benefits.

In addition, if you have milk allergies, lactose intolerance or soy allergies, hemp beverage can be a great alternative -- as long as you look for a brand that is fortified with calcium/vitamin D and are not depending on it as a major source of protein in your diet. A 1 cup serving of hemp beverage contains around 2 grams of protein (compared to 7 grams per cup in soy milk and nearly 9 grams per cup in nonfat cow's milk).

Watching your waistline? Be sure to stick with the original or unsweetened versions. Vanilla and chocolate hemp milk often have more sugar added, boosting calories to more than a cup of low-fat or skim milk (aim for around 100 calories or less per cup).

Unsweetened hemp milk also has more fat than other milk alternatives (hemp: 5-6g/cup; soy: 4g/cup; almond: 3g/cup), so plan your daily intake accordingly.

Have you ever tried hemp milk?

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