Dairy Free for Beginners

Dairy allergy here, This is a pretty easy one now days. I use a lot of coconut milk, little almond, for smoothies. I don't like soy milk. Mayonnaise is not dairy free. You need to google other terms for milk, they have several and it can make it difficult to read labels. I use a dairy free olive oil butter. Kroger has a good selection of dairy free ice cream that's really really good. They also carry dairy free yogurt, I haven't tried it. I can drink goat milk so I use it some for cooking, however sometimes it stinks like a goat! Every batch is different. Goat cheese for cheese cravings. Frozen coffee rich is dairy free creamer, It's good in cereal.

I've been dairy free for a few months now. I use almond milk and hazelnut milk (which makes the best hot chocolate in the world!). Also dairy-free cheese. If you can't find many dairy-free cheese near you then there are loads of recipes online to make your own and it's not as hard as you think. If you're in the UK then Sainsbury's new range of dairy-free cheese is really good.

ellefox70 wrote: »

I'm dairy free due to intolerances. 4 years in and has honestly changed my life

I wrote a lot more than this (wifi playing up!) Just to say that I experienced some horrible side effects when I first gave it up (full body rash and headaches for around 2 weeks) so might be worth trying to phase out rather than going cold turkey like I did. But totally worth it. There r lots of good vegan blogs u can take ideas from and adapt to dairy free and eating out is easier now due to new food labelling guidance (in the U.K. at least). Good luck with it x

It could be that you lack the digestive enzymes to digest the casein the common dairy reaction, or the lactose which is less so. It is also possible that you react to bovine dairy and not all dairy. Goat milk is closer to human natural milk there are several sites which give in-depth reasons for this but basically the fat molecules are finer in goat and the lactose is less. Because the structure of goat dairy is more like what we were first given many issues can resolve. There are other milks, sheep and more.

There is another alternative these days that is to find the appropriate digestive enzymes because when you eliminate all dairy, you also eliminate a very good food because it is designed for offspring and provides all the nutrition needed. I my experience many none dairy replacement products may add calcium and possibly some vitamins, none add iodine which is essential for cell health along with selenium. The daily amount recommended is 150 microns which is equivalent to half a teaspoon per year but this nutrient is vital especially for women. Iodine and other minerals are found in dark green veg (apx 4 micron per 100 g veg) as well as fish but achieving the appropriate levels is difficult especially when keeping to a calorific restriction.

It is always best to have yourself checked out for allergies/intolerances because there can be some underlying cause. I have to confess the NHS testing system failed me twice on the milk thing, achieving a positive conclusion using international labs. There can be a problem with some medications dairy can be added as a filler/binder. I was put onto a pill form levothyroxine and told that my additional symptoms were not possible and to take the stuff anyway. I had to give it up, taking this thing which was making me more ill was not right for me. Even when I had the private allergy tests done my NHS practice was not permitted to use this information, the system did not recognise the better tests!

Hope you find the best resolution for you, that is all that matters, stay healthy. Best of Luck.

My daughter is allergic to dairy. Her favorite snack is the kids zbars. She likes the chocolate chip the best. Many products are dairy free but you would only know if you read the labels (like certain brands of chocolate cake or brownie mix).

The Naked range of bars and energy bites are nice for snacking. Not sure what their calorie content is as I haven't had any since I started to try and drop some weight, but suspect it is quite high. Also I'm fine with dark chocolate, as long as it is over 70% cocoa and a little bit goes a long way!

Not all the oreo range is dairy free but most are. Also a lot of biscuits are dairy free, just check labels.

tgoetschius wrote: »

Thank you all so much for your suggestions! I've already been drinking almond milk for about a year now and love it! I think my most difficult challenge is finding more processed food that doesn't contain some type of dairy in them as I am an avid snacker. Any snack suggestions that I can take to classes with me?

For dairy free snacks, I'd have:
Cut apple, Celery, Carrot, Cucumber, bell peppers, any fruit, etc with hummus to dip into.
Salami, olives, pickles, boiled eggs, avocado/guacamole
Shredded chicken/tuna/eggs and homemade/dairy free mayo on crackers or lettuce leaf wrap.
Nuts, seeds, berries with tahini
If you're allowed grains, then there's a huge selection of crackers and breads you can add to the above too.
I even used to eat grapes and sliced ham together at one point, but I stay away from meats that are too processed now.

Goat milk. Interestingly, allergic reactions to moo juice are usually caused by a protein that doesn't exist in the milk of the devil beast. If it's lactose though, yeah, stick to something like nut milks. I'm more partial to cashew and coconut than almond, and I utterly despise soy milk.

It's super easy, there are alternatives for everything you would normally eat, it's only harder when you eat fast food

If you search for accidentally vegan foods you will find that a lot of snacks you may already eat are dairy free. Use vegan blogs and websites for inspiration, you can tweak to add back in anything you don't exclude.

VeronicaA76 wrote: »

I am allergic to the casien a1 protien. It sucks! I'll be honest. It's hard. First thing you do, is cook at home and diligently read labels!!! A lot of food is made with dairy products.

Reading labels is absolutely key, a lot of things you wouldn't think are made with dairy products, are.

Next, avoid most carb heavy restaurant foods. Such as bread, potatoes, rice, pasta. Yep. While they might start dairy free, most restaurants add butter to them before they ever hit your table.

The safest snack food is going to be Vegan (not vegetarian), as it is all animal product free, including dairy - which is the sneaky one.

On the plus side, no longer eating cheese is a good way to cut a lot of calories from your nutrition plan. Makes it easier to hit your calorie goals.

Hope this helps.

It really is unfortunate that people with that specific allergy live in the west. There are several breeds of cattle (and goats and sheep) whose milk doesn't contain that specific protein. They just don't produce enough milk to be profitable enough to justify mass production.