Dairy (lactose) Free diet

researcher

I seem to have developed a really bad sensitivity to eating dairy - (believe me you don't want details over breakfast). I've tried excluding it from my diet entirely, which is VERY difficult. Not only do I love cheese as an ingredient in cooking, but there is so much whey or milk powders hidden away, even in bread. I have to travel for work sometimes and therefore eat out, and love food, so hate what this is doing to me and want to find some answers.

Anyhow, I've found these things help:

Lactose free milk - I can have the occasional bowl of porridge again, but I don't push it and I have it rarely.
Roobios Tea and Green tea - totally drinkable without milk.
Swedish Soya Ice cream - so good and I didn't know it was dairy free when a friend first gave it to me before I developed this condition.
Acidophilus - (just started) - seems to easy the wind and has made a difference in other departments too.
Sour Dough bread - seems to be made dairy free.

I hate soya milk - although made into custard it's edible!

I'd be very grateful for advice on any aspect of this. It's been going on for more than 9 months now, my GP hasn't suggested anything I didn't know, but there must be so much collective knowledge on this board.

Thanks

Murtle

I am dairy intolerant, I react to cows milk very quickly (within 30mins)

But I can digest small amounts of goats milk/cheese, sheeps cheese and proper buffalo mozarella. Try small amounts of these and see how you get on.

There is dairy free cheese you can get that is suitable for cooking, I'm not fond of it on bread or anything, but melted on food is ok.

Milk - you get used to soya milk honestly! I like the Alpro range. They do yummy yoghurts as well.

Try pitta bread. I haven't eaten ice cream in years.

Dark chocoloate doesn't usually contain milk, I use this to make cookies as I'm not a great lover of dark chocolate.

When eating out just ask them to for recommendations for menu items without milk - advising that cheese is made from milk...as is butter....you'd be surprised....

But Italian - go for tomato based sauces
Chinese - most food is fine
Indian - ask for no Ghee to be used in your dish
Thai - great, they usuaully use coconut milk/cream not dairy milk.

I'll keep thinking, but it does become a way of life

I believe in the States you can buy lactase. Being the enzyme that is used to break down lactose. I also understand in the States many products are sold with this added to help people digest the food. I have seen milk in the chiller section in Sainsburys that has this added so maybe it's the start of a whole new line of food over here!!

Give me a shout if you have specific questions and I'll try and answer them!!

carolt

Rice milk is quite nice too - from suprmarkets and health food shops - if you don't like soya. You can get it with added calcium too, and it's very gentle on the digestive tract.

Dobie

Try googling vegan. You'll find loads of links for vegan recipies that are extremely tasty. I'm vegan & have them as my main meal, my DH enjoys them too but as a side dish with his meat or fish. The vegan society website also gives lists of ingredients in prepared food that you wouldn't think was dairy but in fact it's derived from milk.

I make my own bread using a BM & the normal recipie but leaving out the milk powder. Continental breads like ciabatta & french bread don't normally contain milk either. The 'Pure' dairy free marg is available in supermarkets & is surprisingly good.

mirry

hi, me my husband and my son are lactose intollerant,
we find the cheapest and nice soya milk is the tesco 60p calcium enriched .

You can buy a lactose enzime tablet from health shops which are really good, it enables you to eat anything containing lactose.
usually cheese and yogurt are ok to eat ......my son attends southampton hospital for his allergys (professor warners acute allergy clinic) the professor told us milk and cheese doesnt have much milk sugar in them and so can usually be tollerated, try it and see ?

purpleimp

Hi researcher,

Earlier on in the year my doctor suspected I had endometriosis, and I bought an e-book about diet alterations, which included cutting out dairy ( and soya products due to the hormones used while making these foods) when at all possible, it's a long read, some of it sounds great, some sounds awful, and I never got round to using any of the recipes, but if you like I can email it to you? there might be something useful to you in it.HTH.xxx

Cat72

Hi
I sympathise with you I have been intolerant of dairy products for about two years now and it is hard.Everywhere wants to put cheese on food !
The good news is with intolerance you can gradual introduce small dairy products after a while.
Eating out is very difficult , your best bet is Indian food when dinning out as they are more vegan friendily. I was told that if you eat excessive amounts of cheese etc your body builds up an intolerance to them, making you sick and as I had a mostly cheese diet before I believe this is what hapend to me. Their is alternatives like almond milk,cashew milk and coconut milk etc and a lot more products available,with soya spread and yogurts etc. I personally dont like the cheese alternatives and dont like soya milk on its won but its ok in recipes. I loved mayonaise and you can also get dairy free mayonaise available from health food shops and even tesco.
I love Babara cousins recipe books , especailly this one it is a real help, she also just does one for dairy free meat eaters.You will feel after a while much more healthier in general and your skin should also improve ( good bonus ).

linzibean

I also have suspected endometriosis (if i EVER get a referral to hospital I might be able to get a confirmed diagnosis!! but I digress....) and avoid dairy products. I would recommend coconut milk for things like curries, and even for cakes. Rice milk is quite nice, though I have got used to drinking milkless tea now (and caffeine free too!). Holland and Barrett, and other health food shops, do lots of dairy free products now, and some supermarkets stock dairy free next to their organic lines. Good luck!

Bossyboots

I use lactase enzyme which I buy from Holland and Barrett and it is brilliant. At the moment I seem to be okay but after a few weeks of having dairy products it all kicks off again. When that happens I cut out as much dairy as I possibly can and I only drink soya milk now anyway so it is not too bad. When I think I might come in contact with dairy food is something is out of my control (eating out for example, when I am bad, even a trace of dairy product sets me off very quickly) or if I don't want to make a fuss then I use the tablets until things settle again.

Murtle

I have looked for these tablets everywhere, and asked in H&B to no avail....next week will see a new lease of life if I can find them!!!

Mayonaise often doesn't have milk (or products) in it. Check each label, I found that variations of a brand would/wouldn't contain milk. ie the low cal/fat ones often did whilst the normal ones didn't!!!

Bossyboots

Murtle wrote:

I have looked for these tablets everywhere, and asked in H&B to no avail....next week will see a new lease of life if I can find them!!!

Mayonaise often doesn't have milk (or products) in it. Check each label, I found that variations of a brand would/wouldn't contain milk. ie the low cal/fat ones often did whilst the normal ones didn't!!!

I hope this link works for you. Let me know if it doesn't.

This is what you are looking for http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product.asp?xs=6B1204CA2F4D4D20A5D57C1035F08054&PID=518&np=1&cpid=500