The findings come from the first large study to compare levels of these four minerals in eight different plant-based milk substitutes, carried out by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA).
Alternative milks are often naturally lower in calcium and iodine, but may be fortified with these nutrients, and producers in the US are required to state their concentration on packaging. But levels of some other minerals, including magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and selenium, aren't required to be on the label and yet milk and other dairy products are usually a major source of them in the US diet, notes the USFDA.