Cockroach Milk- The Newest Superfood?

Maybe there is a breakthrough for those always looking for new ways to get protein. Cockroach milk!

Yes, you read that right—cockroach milk. There’s no typo.

The thought of any food or drink that has to do with a creeping, crawling insect sends the appetite running in the opposite direction, and maybe you with it as well.

So, where did all this fascination with cockroach milk come from? What does it mean for the world of nutrition? Can you drink it, and should you? I’m here to answer your questions about this new superfood with as little gagging.

What Is Cockroach Milk?

Well, for starters, cockroach milk isn’t milk. It’s a yellow-colored fluid that female Pacific beetles (or the scientific name, diploptera punctata) produce for their offspring. Once this liquid is inside the offspring’s stomach, it solidifies into a crystal form and provides the baby cockroach with all the necessary nutrients for its growth.

All the hype about this new superfood began in 2016 when an international team of researchers published an article about the incredible qualities of cockroach milk in the Journal of the International Union of Crystallography. And it indeed does have excellent attributes! (1)

For example, one single crystal contains more than three times the energy of the same amount of your regular dairy milk. And not only are the crystals a highly concentrated form of proteins and nutrients, but the nutrients have a controlled release, allowing a constant supply of complete nutrients to consumers as needed. (2, 3)

Although it may not sound like the most delicious drink, it has interested many scientists and consumers. The demand for dairy-free alternatives is growing day by day, and with the added nutritional benefits that cockroach milk offers, this may be worth considering!

Unfortunately, it is unlikely that this incredible resource will be readily available anytime soon. Cockroaches can’t be “milked” in the traditional way. They produce such tiny amounts of cockroach milk that it becomes quite a physical and economic challenge to gather enough to sell commercially. So, for now, we are left in suspense, waiting to see if cockroach milk will ever make it to the table.

Other Bug-Based Foods

However exotic it may seem, bug-based foods aren’t a new concept. There are about 1,900 edible insects globally, one of the most nutritious being the black soldier fly. People from many different countries and cultures have been putting insects on the menu for centuries, and researchers are finding that insects are showing real promise as a nutritional resource. Some companies are even learning to harness this healthy resource in products such as protein bars and ice creams. (4)

My Personal RX on Chasing the Right Kind of Nutrition Trends

Every few years, a new “superfood” captures headlines and the imagination—chia seeds, açaí, spirulina, activated charcoal, and now, apparently, cockroach milk. Patients ask me about these things constantly, usually with a mix of curiosity and skepticism. What I try to remind them is that novelty isn’t the same as nutrition, and the most powerful foods for your body are rarely the ones getting viral attention. The exciting research behind concentrated protein sources is real, but it doesn’t change the everyday truth that consistent, balanced nutrition beats any single trending ingredient, no matter how dramatic its origin story.

That said, curiosity about how we fuel our bodies is a good instinct. It’s what leads people toward better choices over time. Rather than waiting for cockroach milk to hit grocery shelves, here are the habits and foods worth leaning into right now if you’re serious about giving your body concentrated, high-quality nutrition.

1. Build Meals Around Whole Protein Sources: Eggs, wild-caught fish, poultry, grass-fed meat, legumes, Greek yogurt, and quality cheese all deliver complete protein with the co-factors your body needs to use it well. Prioritizing protein at every meal keeps you full, supports muscle maintenance, and stabilizes blood sugar.
2. Explore Plant-Based Milks Thoughtfully: If you’re moving away from dairy, look for options with short ingredient lists and no added sugars. Unsweetened almond, oat, coconut, and soy milks all have their place. Just check the label, since many commercial versions are heavily processed or fortified in ways that vary widely in quality.
3. Concentrate Your Nutrition with Super Greens: Getting the full spectrum of plant nutrients from food alone is genuinely hard, especially on busy days. Super Greens is a powdered supplement that delivers the benefits of full-spectrum superfoods in a single scoop. An easy, non-trendy way to boost your intake of the phytonutrients, antioxidants, and micronutrients your body actually needs to thrive.
4. Diversify Your Protein Sources: Rotating between animal and plant proteins gives you a broader amino acid profile and different micronutrient benefits. Lentils, chickpeas, tempeh, hemp seeds, and quinoa are excellent additions to a mostly whole-food eating pattern.
5. Cook More Meals from Scratch: Reading about superfoods matters far less than what you actually put on your plate every day. The Healthy Gut Cookbook is my practical guide to building meals around real, gut-supportive ingredients—so the concentrated nutrition you’re seeking comes from consistent daily cooking rather than the next trending powder.
6. Be Skeptical of “Miracle” Marketing: If a food is being sold on the strength of a single dramatic claim (more protein than X, higher antioxidants than Y, extracted from something exotic) look past the headline. Ask what the evidence actually says, what the serving size is, and whether the benefit holds up outside a laboratory setting.
7. Prioritize Food Diversity Over Food Perfection: Chasing the single most nutrient-dense food misses the bigger picture. Your body thrives on variety: different colors, different plants, different proteins, different cooking methods. 30+ different plant foods per week is a more useful goal than any one superfood.
8. Support Gut Absorption: Even the most nutrient-dense food only benefits you if your gut can actually process it. Fiber-rich meals, fermented foods, adequate hydration, and mindful eating all improve how efficiently your body extracts and uses nutrition from whatever you eat.
9. Don’t Discount Traditional Foods: Long before “superfood” became a marketing term, cultures around the world were quietly building diets around foods that scientific research has since validated—olive oil, wild fish, dark leafy greens, fermented vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, and spices. These stood the test of time for a reason.
10. Stay Curious, Stay Grounded: It’s fine to explore new foods, ingredients, and even eventually novel proteins if they become widely available and well-studied. Just don’t let the excitement of what’s new pull your attention away from the everyday habits that quietly do the most heavy lifting for your long-term health.

Conclusion

Although we have, for the most part, chosen to keep insects out of the American diet, the concept has started to pique our interest. And who knows? Maybe cockroach milk will make it on your menu and into your glass sooner than you think.

But in the meantime, while waiting in suspense, we still have several other non-dairy milk alternatives to turn to for our nutritional needs.

Resources:

1. http://journals.iucr.org/m/issues/2016/04/00/jt5013/
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Structure/pdb/4NYQ
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4937783/
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5701250/