Has Anyone Gone Dairy Free?

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SlimLins
SlimLins Posts: 4
in Health and Weight Loss
I am contemplating doing this for health and ethical reasons, but have not yet followed through. I was wondering if anyone who has gone dairy free has any experiences to share, has it helped you lose weight, and was it easy to eliminate dairy out of your diet?

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  • stuffinmuffin
    stuffinmuffin Posts: 985 Member
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    I eat very low dairy as I'm quite badly lactose intolerant (had an actual allergy to cow's milk as a child). So I didn't eat dairy as a fat person so not sure how it might help your weight loss. I do eat lactofree products and I think dairy is fine so long as you measure portions. x
  • SPBROOKS68
    SPBROOKS68 Posts: 561 Member
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    I can't I love Cheese, Greek Yogurt, Milk, Cottage Cheese so I just can't seem to give this stuff up and stay FULL. Not lactose intolerant Thank GOODness.
  • lizzybethclaire
    lizzybethclaire Posts: 849 Member
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    Yes, and it sucked. I hated the dairy free cheese. Switching to almond milk was good. I actually felt better, but I think that is because I discovered I am somewhat lactose intolerant. I can eat a moderate amount of cheese and products with milk, but too much milk really hurts my stomach.
  • simplyeater
    simplyeater Posts: 270 Member
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    It's been three months since I went dairy free and I never felt better! All of my sinus issues have vanished, the inflammation in my shoulder has gone away and I just feel good!! It has been really easy for me since there are so many great non-dairy cooking blogs out there. Try it and see how it works for you. What do you have to lose? (well maybe some weight...another great side effect I've experienced!)
  • LoriInnerStrength
    LoriInnerStrength Posts: 12 Member
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    I've been dairy free for about two years and it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. I lost inches in my belly and the decrease in inflammation to my body (dairy is highly inflammatory) meant the end of my chronic tendonitis. I'm a personal trainer and I always recommend to my clients that they give up dairy...anyone who has given it up has had amazing results. Highly recommend!

    Books for research:
    Go Dairy Free
    The Kind Diet
    Forks Over Knives
  • vicki81868
    vicki81868 Posts: 262 Member
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    I have cut out dairy, with the exception of eggs, during my weightloss journey. How much of my success can I contribute to that? I have no idea. But what I'm doing is working, so I'm going with it. Not sure if/when I'll reintroduce it. I have "cheated" a couple times with ice cream and have found it upsets my stomach now. Kinda convenient. =p
  • ceannesjourney
    ceannesjourney Posts: 250
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    I am lactose intolerant and have removed dairy about 95%from my diet. I still get cravings and when I do it's because I realize I'm low on calcium so just make sureto eat more calcium-rich foods. I use almond milk, sometimes soy milk, veggie cheese slices and shredded "cheese". I also gave up sugar at the same time...April, 2011... I wish you the best with it.
  • MessyLittlePanda
    MessyLittlePanda Posts: 213 Member
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    I don't eat much of it due to gastro problems (from coeliac disease). Can tolerate small amounts but any significant amount makes me bloated. I find I can tolerate natural yoghurt, hard cheeses and butter better than milk, cream, cream cheeses or milk chocolate.

    I used to eat quite a bit of cheese and chocolate, pre coeliac, and I think it has helped me lose weight that I now limit those things, but I think it is portion control that has been the key. If I fancy a bit of cheese I have a small amount of Edam or Gouda which are low lactose therefore less irritating, or a bit of reduced fat mature cheddar. If I want a bit of chocolate I have good quality plain chocolate which is dairy free rather than a whole load of mass produced rubbish chocolate - it's richer, therefore I eat less of it. I now use almond milk or rice milk for cereal, smoothies etc but I will occasionally have a cup of tea with a bit of milk in.

    If you're worried about the ethics maybe try organic/free range dairy produce and have it in small amounts?
  • vsetter
    vsetter Posts: 558 Member
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    I had to while I was nursing my first born. He was allergic to dairy and soy. It was tough to do because it is EVERYWHERE. It did help me lose weight. I lost quite a bit quickly. BUT --- when I was able to go back to it, I gained it ALL back and MORE!

    Dairy is a part of my diet now, but I am selective in my dairy. I eat it in moderation and try to make sure that what I eat is organic or at least hormone-free. (I do realize the debate on this, but do this for personal health reasons).
  • Enigmatica
    Enigmatica Posts: 879 Member
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    Cowmilk triggers migraines for me even in small amounts, regardless of whether it's milk, cheese, yogurt, or even dried milk products. My body is super sensitive to both the lactose and the casein in cowmilk. Once I figured that out I was happy to eliminate it from my diet entirely. I'm happy with almond milk. Not a big fan of vegan "cheeses". But *sheep milk* products do not cause problems for me so I sometimes indulge in a sheepsmilk yogurt and have heard that sheep milk cheese is pretty good too. Goat milk is another alternative but while it doesn't trigger the health problems for me it tastes like... goat... lol.
  • rumpusparable
    rumpusparable Posts: 160
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    Been dairy free for about 6 years. It took a lot of tries before it stuck, milk products are in SO many things and dairy has a slightly addictive quality (I can't remember off the top of my head what about it causes it, but I remember reading up on it and understanding why it was so hard for me to get rid of it).

    Like others in this thread it made me feel a ton better. I always had bad mucus problems - hacking up gobs of it in the morning, chronically stuffy nosed - and those went away. I felt less lethargic. It's been a total plus for me.

    A new and quite good mock-cheese is out now called Daiya Cheese. The shreds are good for when you want melted cheese like in sauces and pizza and such. The wedges are good for eating on crackers or with fruit or however you at chunks of cheese before.

    Lots of soy, almond, hemp and other milks out there. I like Pacific Select Low Fat Soymilk best. Silk brand is too thick for me. Almond milk is good on cereal, imo.
  • peachyxoxoxo
    peachyxoxoxo Posts: 1,178 Member
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    I am a vegan for ethical reasons. I havent lost weight since I stopped eating dairy, but my skin has cleared up a lot. I like drinking almond milk as a substitute. And coconut milk yogurt is really good.
  • MFPBrandy
    MFPBrandy Posts: 564 Member
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    I did it temporarily, while breastfeeding before my baby's GI tract matured enough to handle cow's-milk proteins. It's tricky; dairy is hidden in all sorts of things. And there's no real substitute for cheese, which I love. Dairy-free proceessed foods can get pretty expensive, but if you're doing the "clean-eating" thing, that shouldn't be much of a problem. I didn't lose any weight while doing it (that I remember -- a lot of that time period is one big sleep-deprived blur now!), but I wasn't trying, either. Other than missing cheese and getting annoyed at all the sneaky ways milk appears in food, it was fine. The good news is that with people being so much more allergy-conscious (or afraid of litigation), lots of packages now have the "contains dairy or nuts" note by the ingredients list, so you don't have to examine that closely. And there are tons of dairy-free recipes all over the web, so if you are so inclined, you can figure out how to make your own dairy-free bread, etc.
  • MFPBrandy
    MFPBrandy Posts: 564 Member
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    . I'm a personal trainer and I always recommend to my clients that they give up dairy...anyone who has given it up has had amazing results. Highly recommend!

    I didn't notice a difference in how I felt at all. NOTHING compared to how much better upping my protein intake (largely through dairy) has improved my energy levels.

    *edit* not looking to start a dairy/non-dairy argument; just thinking sweeping statements like "anyone who has given it up has had amazing results" are inaccurate at best. However, beenfit of the doubt and all that, it's quite possible that by "anyone," the poster is referring to her clients. But since apparently "delete" isn't an option, I am editing.
  • concavity
    concavity Posts: 143 Member
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    I've been trying to give up dairy but like a previous poster said, it is in everything. I occasionally have something with it ie. Nilla wafers, bread when I'm at a friends house, ice cream or the occasional piece of cheese, I can't handle straight milk anymore and have switched to almond milk.
  • momtokgo
    momtokgo Posts: 446 Member
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    I cut out all dairy about two months ago because it was a major IBS trigger. My skin cleared up and the dizziness we'd been trying to figure out for years went away.

    For me it was easy to give up, it was mainly cheese and chocolate. My kids already had to eat dairy free so I had a good idea what I could and could not eat.
  • Flab2fitfi
    Flab2fitfi Posts: 1,349 Member
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    I'm dairy free - not through choice. I also have coeliac disease and as I've got older I've become more and more intolerant to other foods including dairy and soya. I use rice milk and almond milk quite a bit.
  • vacherin
    vacherin Posts: 192
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    I can cope with live yogurt but not really anything else. Small amounts of cheese are ok (e.g. a sprinking of parmesan on top of spag bol), but any meal which contains large amounts (e.g. macaroni cheese) makes my skin itch like crazy and gives me spots and flatulence. I know, nice! Why not try cutting out everything apart from yogurt and see how things go? If symptoms don't clear up, then maybe try cutting out the yogurt as well.

    (A word of advice - steer clear of vegan cheeses! They are so foul that it's better to have none at all!)
  • ZiezieO
    ZiezieO Posts: 228 Member
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    Meh, if it's just for trying to lose weight then I'd say you should look at EVERYthing you're consuming... not just the dairy. I cut back because where as I thought I needed to chug a gallon to get calcium I needed, it was actually very high in calories and carbs that I could find in other foods.

    I would change from factory farm dairy to a free range/grass fed dairy source. Many allergies clear up from just that adjustment since cows aren't meant to be fed all that sod and corn-it's not good for them or us really.

    I noticed my cholesterol and bp all drastically lower by cutting back and looking at what the animal (that I'm eating) is eating. Corn vs grass. Free range vs injection fed.

    I'm surely not trying to be an animal rights pusher right now... I'm just saying there are other options that have seen healthy results if you do have a tough time. I've seen just as many overweight people who don't eat dairy as I have seen that do.

    Good luck!
  • SlimLins
    SlimLins Posts: 4
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    Thank you EVERYONE who has posted, I appreciate the insight very much!

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