Are you a coffee drinker? It's an acquired taste I just never picked up. My coffee maker sat on the top shelf of my closet for years and years on the off chance that someone might stay over and want coffee. Finally, this summer I dusted the machine off and gave it away on Freecycle. If you're more of a coffee drinker than I am, you might appreciate these coffee suggestions from HealthCastle.

Cream or creamers can have anywhere from 40-90 calories. In addition, some contain saturated fat and/or trans fat. Try these alternatives:

• Use skim milk in your coffee -- two tablespoons only adds 10 calories.
• For a creamier alternative, try fat-free evaporated milk.
  
• Soy creamer is a vegetarian alternative; for less fat and calories try soy milk.

If you like the taste, opt for black coffee.

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Are you a fan of cow's milk but prefer the lower-fat and healthier skim milk rather than whole milk? Instead of using equipment to make skim milk, scientists say they are breeding cows to produce skimmed milk naturally. That's right -- straight from the udder.

The scientist team has found a cow which naturally produces lower levels of saturated fat in her milk -- and they plan on using her to breed that characteristic into other cows to produce "natural" cow's milk.

If you are one to like the taste of whole milk but who does not like all the saturated fat content, natural skim milk may be your answer, if it's ever commercialized.

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A recent study finds that drinking skim milk after working out is twice as effective as soy milk in building muscle mass.

Not only that, but those of you looking to gain muscle mass may be wasting your money on all those dietary supplements. In fact, Dr. Stuart M. Phillips, the study's author, told Reuters: "I have done these calculations and figure that ounce for ounce milk is 20-30 times less expensive than most supplemental protein sources available."

Most supplements provide you with "fast," or quickly digested proteins, which certainly promote muscle formation. However, the supplements don't contain "slow" proteins, which work to prevent muscle breakdown. Cow's milk has both.

It should be noted that these claims are speculations, based on tests conducted after one workout. While I'd like to see more investigation, in the meantime, I might test this out myself. A little muscle mass on my scrawny frame certainly wouldn't hurt, and there's no way you'd catch me buying all those pricey supplements.

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