Eating Lactose Free...

[wareagle]

Hey guys...well my doc. suggested that I try eliminating dairy from my diet for awhile to see if it will help..he was also supportive of my going gluten free..so I guess I'll be more vigilant with that. I know some of you have stopped consuming dairy and so I was wondering...how do you avoid it?

I know to stop with the milk and cheese...I can sub. with soy milk....but what about everything else. Are there other products like cheese that are typically dairy based that have substitutes on the market? I've already found some great things like cookies on my quest for gluten free products that are also dairy free but must admitt I'm not having as much luck finding other "dairy free" things. I know that I will have to supplement my calcium..going to use tums.

Any advise much appriecitated!

Oh..for those of you wondering why my doc. is suggesting this: it is to help with GI issues and I also seem to be having some mild histamine reactions that have been going on for several yrs. now and I haven't been able to figure out what's causing them.

[futurehope]

I tried milk-free for a while. I used the rice milk. I don't think I do that well with soy. They do have soy cheeses that are like american and provolone.

I would think milk-free is easier than gluten free. I think you've done the difficult part already by going gluten free.

My opinion is that milk does tend to make my irritiable bowel more irritable, but I found it increasing difficult to get my 1500 mg of calcium/day without the milk, so I've gone back to eating partially skim string cheese.

That'a about it for me.

Let us know how your experiment goes.

[Tanzanite]

If it's just lactose you're intolerant too, have you tried using lactase pills? Solves the problem!

[DancingLight]

Hey WE,

Now here's a topic I might be able to help with!

I am dairy free and gluten free (as well as mostly soy free).

I can help you find particular products if you need (if you have particular ones you want to ask about like cookies, breads, margarine, soups, etc. let me know that too).

I do want to know if you are just going lactose-free or DAIRY-free, meaning you are avoiding casein and whey also--all milk proteins.

I find it hard to find 'goodies' that are both dairy and gluten free and the diet is quite a bit of work (I think). My mom does a lot of cooking! The problem is that most people with celiac can eat dairy, so many of the gluten-free foods have a lot of dairy in them. (like in breads, cookies, etc)

If you can tolerate soy though, that opens up a lot of possibilities. Soy doesn't work for me. It's okay in little amounts, but not to drink soy milk, etc. I know people really like the soy frozen stuff that's like ice cream, whereas I eat Rice Dream or Rice Cream--no comparison to real ice cream. I also drink rice milk. Also, with soy cheese you can do a lot.

Anyways, eliminating dairy could be a good idea--as my ANS doc believes that up to 30% of patients with POTS are allergic to dairy. I eliminate it completely (as in even in my meds if at all possible) but others find they don't have to be this strict.

Ask away...and I'll try to be of help!

Em

[JaneEyre9]

Hello,

I have been eating lactose free for about 13 years. The past 7 years have been very strict because my intolerance got worse after my chemical exposures. I've experimented with a lot of dairy substitutes, and I've found the ones that i think are the best quality.

I enjoy these substitutions:

Milk == Lactaid milk

Cheese == Soya Kaas cheese (cheddar and mozzarella) [this brand is the best for melting and flavor, but can mold easily if it's not kept dry-- wax paper and ziploc bag]

Yogurt == Stonyfield Farm O'Soy (soy yogurt).

Ice Cream == Tofutti ice cream or ice cream sandwiches// also Breyer's Lactose Free Vanilla!! Yum!

Butter == Mother's Margarine (comes in sticks-- melts well for cooking) // Smart Balance also makes a lactose free tub margarine that's passable

Frozen Pizza == Amy's Soy Cheese Pizza

Egg Nog == Silk Egg Nog

Cream Cheese == Toffuti Cream Cheese

These are my favorite products and they can be used to make almost any dish as well as if it were made with the real thing. The only things i've had trouble substituting are buttermilk and condensed or evaporated milk. One time, i tried to make a pumpkin pie, and the lady at the health store suggested substituting tofu for evaporated milk. I got the semi-firm kind and tried to mash it up, but it ended up floating around in little chunks. My parents thought i'd made a pecan pie by the appearance of the thing! Though, everyone admitted if they closed their eyes, it tasted delicious! Hope this helps. A lactose free diet is really wonderful and a lot healthier than a diet with dairy.

PM me if you have any questions

Kristen

[jenwclark]

Coconut milk can be another good substitute, especially in deserts. I made a key lime pie a few years ago with coconut milk in place of the condensed milk, and a little corn starch to thicken it. The crust was crumbled up gluten-free ginger cookies.

[wareagle]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions guys!!!

My mom's doing some grochery shopping today so we'll see what she can find in our local stores. I have a feeling we're going to have to take a trip to the health food store to find some of these products but it helps to have some brand names to check out. I haven't started yet...still a bit reluctant...it's HARD to give up so much but I really need to be more strict so that I can see if gluten and dairy are factors in my overall health. I don't know what it is about this time of year but I just want to eat and eat!! Mom's says I'm preparing for hibernation.

Love to you all!

[Tessa]

I am on a Gluten and dairy free diet since August 2005. It is difficult to start when you have no idea of the content of products, but I agree, the Gluten free diet is more complicated to follow and as you are already on a GF diet you will not find it very difficult to avoid milk products.

I always refused drinking milk and was, in fact, happy when they said I had to stop it... I changed it for SOY.

Look for lactose free products. There are plenty.

Take care,

Tessa

P.S.:

A dairy-free diet contains no milk, cheese, butter, cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, ice cream, whey, casein, or foods that contain any of these ingredients.

Links of interest:

http://www.pccnaturalmarkets.com/health/Di...y_Free_Diet.htm

http://www.godairyfree.org/