Drink up and lather on goat's milk: learn how a product widely consumed in ancient Greece and Rome is helping today's lactose intolerant and health conscious alike "get milk".(INSIDE & OUT: PERSONAL CARE)

Legend has it that Cleopatra bathed in it to keep her skin silky smooth. Pharaohs had goat's milk and cheese placed in their burial chambers for the afterlife. Today, the slightly sweet, sometimes lightly salted flavor of goat's milk is enjoyed worldwide. And now, with the increased appearance of lactose intolerance and soy allergies, Americans are turning to goat's milk as an alternative form of calcium--and a tasty accompaniment to their morning cereal.

Good News for the Lactose Intolerant

Like cow's milk, goat's milk is high in calcium and protein. However, the molecular globules that make up cow's milk are much larger than those found in goat's milk. "Cow's milk is meant to increase the weight of a calf by 1,000 pounds in one year," says Dale Figtree, PhD, a nutritional health practitioner in Santa Barbara, CA. The smaller globules in goat's milk are similar in size to the molecules found in human milk, making them easier for the human body to tolerate and digest--good news for the 1 in 10 people allergic to cow's milk. Figtree says it's a good alternative to soymilk, pointing to studies that suggest that soy in large quantities can contribute to the slowing of thyroid function and interfere with digestive enzymes.

The Goat Advantage

Perks to goat's milk go beyond a lactose-intolerant person's ability to enjoy a frothy glass of milk with cookies. One serving of goat's milk has 13 percent more calcium--the nutrient essential in bone strength, colon cancer protection migraine prevention and linked to boosting the body's fat-burning abilities--than cow's milk. It also beats out cow's milk with 25 percent more vitamin B6, 47 percent more vitamin A, 134 percent more potassium and three times more niacin.

Perhaps goat's milk's greatest impact in the United States has been on infants. For babies allergic to cow's milk, pediatricians often instruct parents to use goat's-milk-based formula as an alternative. Figtree even recommends goat products for babies not allergic because "Cow's milk can create excess mucus in the upper respiratory track, whereas goat's milk is less problematic due to its different [molecular] makeup."

While Figtree advocates goat products for most, she does warn people with high cholesterol that, like ...