Anyone else not eating dairy?

I'd like to know too- our pediatrician is putting my daughter on an elimination diet and first up is dairy :grumble: She starts on Monday and I'm trying to figure out what to pack for her school lunches.

Daiya is definitely the best non-dairy cheese. It makes the most awesome grilled cheese!! It isn't like other soy cheeses (I think it's made from canola), it actually tastes the most like cheese. A bit like velveeta to be honest, but still better than anything else.
So Delicious is a really good brand too, I like everything I've tried of theirs. Especially the ice cream!
I wouldn't know about yogurt.

I am 100% gluten free and 90% dairy free (by that I mean, I don't check labels for dairy as I can tolerate that small amount, but I do not eat obvious dairy things). Very seldom will I sub either food group. The only dairy I ever sub is to use almond milk in place of milk and an occasional slice of bread (a loaf lasts me over 6 months in the freezer). It's just easier to skip it, the sub is just not as good, costs more and has more calories.

I found Daiya to be disgusting. Its inedible! I just don't eat dairy. I use So Delicous unsweetened Coconut milk when cooking and baking and just don't eat cheese. If I need a cheesy flavour I use nutritional yeast but for the most part I avoid recipes and meals that rely on cheese.

Lunch examples without cheese: hummus and veggies, pepperoni and crackers, chicken nuggets (pinty's are dairy free up in my area), sandwiches without cheese, etc.

Cutting dairy is daunting but its not impossible.

I'm allergic to dairy. I was allergic as a kid and then wasn't, and then it came back, so I had many years of eating dairy and then had to give it up again. I can handle small amounts in things like cookies and chocolate, but nothing much.

I use Daiya to make home-made pizzas but I don't love the taste and I find it sticks in my teeth, so i just use a small amount to sort of hold the toppings on the pizza. Pizza is pretty much the only place I really miss cheese.

I use Almond Breeze almond milk for cereal and smoothies. I don't find I need milk for much else, probably because I don't bake.

I LOVE Coconut Bliss "ice cream". Amazing. It's almost exactly like ice cream.

I haven't been able to find the So Delicious coconut yogurt, but I want to try it. I do miss yogurt, it was such a great breakfast food!

I use almond cheese once in a while. There's coconut yogurt but I haven't tried. I'm eating paleo which cuts out dairy and grains. We use almond milk too.

I'm a vegan, and the only soy yogurt I can stand is from WholeSoy & Co. Everything else is just ew.

I don't like vegan cheese replacements, and honestly, I don't think that you need them. It's easy to make yummy sandwiches without cheese (avocado is my favorite). If you like cheesy pizzas, I'd recommend the Roasted Vegetable Pizza from Amy's Kitchen. It's absolutely delicious and tastes cheesy, even though it's dairy-free.

Trader Joes has a coconut yogurt, it's sweet but it actually tastes delicious. High in fat I believe but if you really want yogurt and can't have it then it'll do. Also agree with the poster above, follow your heart and daiya have great cheese replacements that don't taste so fake when you incorporate into dishes. I actually prefer vegan pizza, but beware that they have a strong taste so you don't need to put a lot at all! Also, I made a mean Alfredo with simply cooked and processed cauliflower+unflavored unsweetened almond milk+spices+optional few tablespoons of nutritional yeast.

Is it a "dairy" or "lactose" thing?

I went dairy-free to avoid lactose for a while. But then I started eating Greek yogurt, because (supposedly) it has less lactose and the added pro(or is it "pre"?)biotics help with digestion. Supposedly. But I haven't had any real troubles with it. With fake cheese and stuff with a lot of lactose I do.

As for gluten, I'm also gluten-free; I have been for about two years in order to help all the digestion problems I had been having. A couple of times since starting, I've eaten gluten and soon after (and following day) I feel horrible and just...out of whack.It gets worse with each time, too.

As for dairy substitutes, again I use Greek yogurt (even for cooking, in place of butter/oil). But I don't really buy the soy/vegan substitutes because 1) they're gross & taste like plastic, 2) they're expensive. So why pay $5 for 6oz of something that's not enjoyable? lol! If it IS a lactose thing, and not just avoid-all-dairy, I've found several brands of sharp cheddar cheese (as well as...provolone, I believe) are naturally lactose free.

I also drink Almond milk that's been fortified and whatnot. I used to drink soy, but wasn't comfortable with injesting that much soy. So I buy the unsweetened, plain (or sometimes vanilla, if I feel like getting crazy haha!) almond milk. But make sure it has the added vitamins & minerals. You can also buy a type that's got added protein & fiber.

I also take Calcium supplements, about half the dosage because I'm already drinking Almond milk with calcium in it, to make sure I get enough. But make sure it has Magnesium or Vitamin D (some brands might even come with both, I'm not sure), because our bodies can't absorb nearly as much of the calcium without it.

ALSO (sorry!), Calcium supplements can cause constipation. There are typically two types of supplements, so you might have to play around with those, or switch up brands, if you start having issues. I've found that "CitraCal +D3 +Magnesium" has worked best for me, and I've tried almost every supplement out there. lol! Here's what the bottle looks like: http://pics1.ds-static.com/prodimg/202339/300.JPG

Best of luck!