No cheese for 10 days??!!

[Festy]

Long story short - I just started seeing an acupuncturist who suggested I cut out dairy products for 10 days. No milk, no cheese, yogurt is ok. I have no medical problem and am not lactose intolerant. In fact, I luurrrve milk. And cheese. Especially cheese. They are my friends! She suggested it for a variety of reasons, only half of which I absorbed because I was too focused on the needles she was pricking me with! At the end of 10 days I try a glass of milk and see how I feel.

So I could use some encouragement and also some suggestions on milk substitutes, especially for my beloved morning bowl of cereal. She said rice and almond milk are ok, but not soy. (This may be because we are TTC).

I know this is one of those good problems and am so grateful that I can come to PS and b*tch about silly things! I am staring at 9.5 long days, people! And it''s not just the milk I''ll be giving up...how could I possibly eat a PB&J sandwich without a tall frosty glass of milk? And don''t get me started on chocolate...

TIA!

 

[Bia]

For cereal, definitely ALMOND MILK. I love it! It doesn't have a bad aftertaste at all and it's got a sweet finish, even the unsweetened. Blue_Diamond makes the best one I've tried (don't like Pacific Natual Foods brand) - I know they sell it at Traders.
eta: Almond Milk will taste really good with your PB&Js, or with your cookies...cake...whatever. It really has taken milks place in my household - except when I need it for coffee/cooking.

I was going to try to cut out dairy for a bit too, but I haven't had the willpower...I love my cheese!!!!!!!!

Let us know how it goes

 

[Haven]

Oh Festy, you have my condolences.

I''m a big cheesehead, too.

 

[radiantquest]

I will support you as best as I can, but OMG! I don''t know if I will still be supportive when you are mean to us because you fiesty from lack of cheese and chocolate! lol. I probably couldn''t do it. So you are supposed to try it again after and see how you feel? Is this kind of a dairy-detox? Please tell me what some of these benefits are.

 

[Mandarine]

Festy...no advice either...just also my condolences...

I heard I will need to be cutting out dairy too when breastfeeding as it makes babies colicky

I have tried to cut dairy in the past, but have failed miserably after a few days. I eat cheese every day...and LOVE my cereal too!. I tried the almond milk, but it''s just too rich for me.

 

[cara]

i like rice dream OK, but mainly for cereal not drinking tall frosty glasses... (as bia said, almond milk is sweet and i prefer unsweet milk.)

my mother took my brother to an acupuncturist for his digestive issues (a known side effect of the massive steroids he was taking for an infection), who said the treatments would be ruined if he was in physical proximity to leather products in the several hours after treatment... so he had to stay in the car whilst we moved all the shoes from the closet near the door... and if he messed up and *walked* near a belt or other leather item, he needed to come back in for another treatment....

this is when i started calling this acupuncturist a quack doctor (ducks!) Not saying they all are but this particular prohibition still makes no sense to me: is it the leather particles wafting through the air? is it some strange action-at-a-distance property of the leather like magnetism? is it the soul of the dead cow having its revenge on your guts?

maybe i shouldn't be too hard on the lady, she did eventually give him enzyme supplements, which helped a lot and there was even a biologically plausible reason why they helped (steroids were messing with his natural ones.)

good luck with the no cheese - i grew up without it (another quasi-rational health thing from my mother) but now i'm not sure i could give it up again! my sis woln't start eating dairy for her waistline, even though she admits there is probably no other health reason. i can state my opinion that non-dairy cheese substitutes are not worth your time. they weren't even good when i didn't know what the real stuff tasted like.

mandarine, i wouldn't cry too much over the no dairy *yet*. Maybe your boys will react and maybe they woln't - you'll just have to figure out what works when the time comes.

 

[Octavia]

Aww, Festy, that''s torturous! I think I''d go through physical withdrawal symptoms if I had to give up cheese. Although, when my mom was pregnant with me, she developed a cheese allergy and couldn''t eat it for over 20 years. Cream cheese and cottage cheese were about the only types she could eat without getting violent migraines. Lucky for her, it finally subsided and she can eat moderate amounts now. All I can say is, she really must love me to have kept me around after that...

 

[shimmer]

Well, I have been vegan for a few years so maybe I can help

I agree with the almond milk. As far as cheese, I do not recommend the dairy-free kinds

(I think they are soy-based anyway). If you are into the cheese flavour, and not too grossed out by this, you can add nutritional yeast to any dish.


Also, you don''t have to quit chocolate! I believe Oreo''s are dairy-free as well as some semi-sweet chocolate chips (in Canada the PC brand). I would melt them and dip fruit in them, then refrigerate for about 30 min b/c I like it to harden a bit. You can even make ch chip cookies (even double ch chip)!

 

[lili]

Festy--
Just curious, why no dairy and soy milk?

 

[dragonfly411]

almond milk is a fantastic substitute for milk, I love it.

They make rice yogurt I believe.


As to cheese.... well.... um. Yeeeeeaaaahhh.

They do make vegan cheese and vegan chocolate, so you might look at local health food stores.... but I mean.. CHEESE


I''ll support you though I promise. Try doing salads, sandwiches with more veggies and hummus. Drink the almond milk with your pbj, or water. You might try switching up breakkie. Eggs Sammies are good, or toast with peanut butter and grapefruit juice on the side. Fruit is also awesome in the morning.

 

[Festy]

Thank you Haven, Mandarine, Octavia for the condolences! Maybe the first day will be the hardest...so far, with the exception of breakfast, it's been ok. I had a huge bowl of ice cream last night as a send-off for myself.

Bia - thanks for the almond milk recommendation. I will probably go for unsweetened. Hopefully they sell it in small containers since I'm hoping this is a temporary situation!

Radiant - ha, no kidding.

Mandarine - gosh, I didn't realize that was a given about breastfeeding moms and dairy. I sure hope it's not the case for you and the boys!

Cara - holy crap, that's hysterical. Believe me, I am the most concrete person there is and never thought I'd go to an acupuncturist! Overall, it was a positive experience and I felt great when I left. The reason she suggested cutting out dairy was to test whether I have an allergy I don't know about that is causing my Hashimoto's disease, which I do know about. (An auto-immune disease that makes your body attack your thyroid). She also suggested cutting out wheat after the milk embargo. (That's a whole different ball of wax and an experiment I am less willing to try). I figure cutting out dairy for 10 days won't kill me - unless it does!

Shimmer - thanks for the suggestions! I only mentioned chocolate because it is physically impossible for me to eat it (or c.c. cookies, or cake, etc.) without milk!

ETA: Dragon fly- those are some great suggestions for breakfast. I think tomorrow will be poached eggs on toast. I won't even try finding a substitute for cheese. It is the perfect food!

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/16/2009 2:31:16 PM
Author: Mandarine
Festy...no advice either...just also my condolences...

I heard I will need to be cutting out dairy too when breastfeeding as it makes babies colicky

I have tried to cut dairy in the past, but have failed miserably after a few days. I eat cheese every day...and LOVE my cereal too!. I tried the almond milk, but it''s just too rich for me.

Old wives tale

... very very few babies have an intolerace to milk protein, the only part of the cows milk that is passed through to the baby in the milk. I researched this because DH is very very dairy intolerant and cannot touch the stuff. Nevertheless, I eat a lot of dairy and BF full time still at 6mo and no issues with colic at all.

There is no known cause of so-called colic, a catch all term that refers to fussy and gassy baby. Most newborns go through a phase of fussy and gassinessas they learn to digest food for the first time! Sometimes overfeeding is the cause, but it is rare that it is something mom eats. Usually it is just a developmental phase unfortunately

 

[Dreamer_D]

Festy I have no words of wisdom since DH drinks soy milk as his dairy substitute. He can't touch milk or any milk products at all! He only stopped when we started dating, it all began with an "experiment" for 10 days too

He discovered that he had better digestion, clearer skin, less allergies, and no longer snored when he stopped! Maybe you will find benefits you didn't imagine? Or else you will simply love dairy even more

ETA how long have you known about your hashimotos? My firend just found out she has it...

 

[Pandora II]

Festy, just to warn you, if you come off all dairy products in this way and you do have an allergy or intolerance, you may well find that you feel really terrible for a few days - like flu without the temperature, ie joints hurt, headaches, generally feeling crappy etc.

Sadly the things we like the most are often the ones we should be avoiding... I have a wheat intolerance (discovered by doing a full-on 9 month long elimination diet) and I LOVED bread - now I can have it once a week.

Anyway if you do feel awful, just know that it does stop and you then feel better than you have in years!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

The problem is that you have to cut ALL dairy out if you have an allergy to it. Including yogurt. The only time I would say cut everything out except yogurt is lactose intolerance. This really isn't making since.

Milk protein intolerance is rare, and seen mostly in kids under two, but those kids seem to find me, so I deal with it a lot. If I have to do a diet elimination (in my case it is for a breast feeding mother because that is where the cows milk is coming from) I have to send her to nutrition because dairy is hidden in so many things. I would do the trial for at least a month.

For all these allergies, there is testing. In an adult, I would never do a "trial of wheat elimination." That is a big deal and a huge change in lifestyle. I would do a blood test celiac disease (the autoimmune disorder that causes wheat intolerance) first and than deal with that if it is positive.

I am a fan of acupuncture, but there is a disconnect with what she is concerned about and how she is investigating. Just my humble opinion.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

It''s only 10 days. You can do it! Find another thing to focus on, like taking a walk or whatever. Now that you''re prohibited from having dairy, you''re going to obsess. And, as Pandora said, you will find you crave foods you''re allergic to and will suffer a "withdrawal" period after discontinuing them.

Out of curiosity what is the "variety of reasons" the acupuncturist suggested taking dairy out of your diet if you do not have medical problems associate w/dairy? My dr. had me tested for milk/dairy allergies only because of specific health problems (constant afternoon headaches) and that is why I took many foods out of my diet.

 

[Festy]

Firecracker - I appreciate your chiming in. I admit it doesn''t make sense to me either and I can''t fully explain her reasoning because she was talking SO much I just wasn''t able to absorb it all. Here''s the part that''s hard to explain to an MD with a straight face: she thought my small intestine seemed unhappy. Go ahead, laugh, I just did. She was poking and prodding a lot and said she felt...what, inflammation? Something? I don''t know. Mind you, I didn''t complain of symptoms, but did say that I have the "usual" occasional gas and occasional acidy feeling. Nothing that affects my life or makes me unhappy. Don''t we all get gassy for goodness sake? Anyway, I think the small intestine suspicions also played into her recommendations.

Pandora - thanks for the warnings re: withdrawal. So far I''m super grumpy but feel just fine.

MC - funny, I also get afternoon headaches, but I attribute them (accurately, I think) to eye strain.

Dreamer - I was diagnosed with Hashimoto''s 10 years ago. They tested due to a family history of thyroid problems, not because I was having symptoms.

Lalala, one day down, 9 to go. I''m already thinking I might shorten this experiment by a few days.

 

[LitigatorChick]

Congratulations!!! I personally believe (a belief many people will not share, I''m sure) that dairy is not good for humans. A good summary (and funny one at that) is in "Skinny B*tch".

I have never been a milk drinker and just use almond milk if cooking pancakes or something that calls for milk. I have cut out yogurt. My only occasional weekness if cheese - maybe one a week I have some. I agree on skipping the "vegan cheese" - it sucks. Nutritiounal yeast adds a cheesiness if you need it. But I figure cheese is like candy - a special occasion naughty treat, not an everyday.

I think you will feel a lot better cutting out dairy. I know a lady who had lupus, cut out dairy (and eventually went raw vegan), and completely eliminated her lupus!!!!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 9/17/2009 9:59:38 AM
Author: Festy
MC - funny, I also get afternoon headaches, but I attribute them (accurately, I think) to eye strain.

Fiesty - sorry you get those afternoon headaches too. They suck. What''s really lame is mine went away for over a year and now they are back! Grrr. . .I take ibprophen every day (about 600 mg) and also have pain killers (Ultram) for when I do not want to think about my head. I thought at first the pain killers were giving me "rebound heaches," but even when I don''t take them, I still get the afternoon pounding. Bleh. I''m taking a ridiculously small amount of 1/8th of a pill. They started about two months ago - I attributed them to my kids being loud - lol - but even with them back in school, I''m still having problems.

If your small intestine "seemed unhappy," can you be tested for Celiac? If you do get tested, be sure to keep eating your usual amount of wheat up until the test or it''ll be inaccurate.

Hope all works out well for you.

 

[cellososweet]

You have my sympathies and my support. I''m a vegetarian, so I know about cutting things out of my diet (and now that I''m pregnant, it''s worse. Do you know how hard it is to have your body try to convince you that a pulled pork sandwich is the way to go for lunch? Uh, I think not. I''d keel over and die from a stomach ache)

For breakfast, there are really great non-dairy options. Poached eggs on toast, toast with peanut butter, bagels with peanut butter, even things like egg sandwiches with tomato, etc.

My guess for her telling you to cut dairy is she might have sensed inflammation and thought that perhaps you were lactose intolerant. A lot of people are, to a degree, and don''t have the horrible symptoms. But, they feel better going dairy-free.

I agree with the "don''t touch the cheese substitute" theory. Ask your acupuncturist if she''s asking you to eliminate dairy because she thinks you''re lactose intolerant. If that''s the only reason, you''ll be happy to know that cheddar cheese is lactose free!

Ok, I wasn''t much help because I''m all over the place, but good luck and good luck TTC!!!! ((hug))

 

[Burk]

I did the elimination diet Firecracker talked about when I was BFing DD because she had some stomach issues. Turns out she was intolerant to the milk protein, along with corn.

So, I''ll be right back there with you when I hit the end of this pregnancy. The Dr. has recommended I cut out the dairy and corn at 36 wk. preggo and continue with it while BFing. I''ll be able to eventually add some foods back in (she recommends slowly at 4 wks) to see if this baby has the same issues, but it''ll probably be a good 8 weeks without before I''m able to start adding back in to see if the baby tolerates. So, I feel ya!!

 

[Festy]

LC, thanks!

MC, I''m so sorry the headaches are back. I''ve dealt with them my whole life so I can relate. Have you tried a little caffeine? You probably have...

Cello, I think you got it right. I suspect that she suspects I may be slightly l.i. It''s so funny. Now, instead of looking for pregnancy symptoms I''m looking for an absence of milk-related symptoms! (I don''t think I''ve farted all day!)

Oh, and THANK YOU for telling me about cheddar! That makes me feel so much better even though I''ll still abstain for the next 8.5 days but who''s counting.

Burk, first congratulations! I don''t think I was lurking on the PG thread when you announced. I hope you can really live it up until the 36th week!

 

[Festy]

Make that 2 days.

I caved.

In the absence of any perceived problem I just didn''t have the will power to keep it up. And I didn''t have a good answer to the question, "Why am I doing this again?"

Shrugs and happily eats cheese.

Thanks again for all the advice and support!

 

[Mara]

i did a detox like a few years ago and i think i cut out dairy for 5 days. soy milk and almond milk were the subs. it was not so bad but a little odd. i didn''t seem to notice any diff in how i felt tho.

i love cheese but i think i could be ok for 10 days without it, ok maybe 5?

mandarine...re: almond milk, they have unsweetened, that might be better? honestly i don''t notice a big diff between the almond and soy and regular when it''s in cereal but i have to make sure i only pick up the unsweetened. interestingly enough almond has like no protein and soy has a ton.

2 days is not bad. Yay!

 

[Novel]

Oooh, I''ve been there. I''m jealous that you quit.

 

[TooPatient]

Why do you need to give up chocolate?

The best chocoate out there is non-dairy. Usually 70% and above. Just read the labels.

I LOVE SCHARFENBERGER. The 70% is non-dairy and is SO GOOD.