A year and two months ago, I was considering trying dairy free after some facebook friends and I talked about the benefits of it and a church member (and physician’s assistant) mentions I might need to try it. So I poll my facebook friends. Here is the result. Although I'm not willing to say that every single person HAS to go dairy free, it's a pretty strong argument that there are people that gain big benefits from going dairy free.
January 29, 2012
Me: If you are dairy free or limit your intake of dairy, please tell me how long you have been doing it, why and what results you have had. I'm very reluctant to give up my dairy but I am going to try it as a last resort after being sick since Thanksgiving. If it helps, I'll try to make it permanent.
Justin: my advice is this just make sure you're still
getting all you're daily calcium and vitamin d ( this vitamin is used by your
body to absorb said calcium) and good luck on the no more dairy thing, also try
soy milk that is very healthy.
Me: Thanks Jut.
That's a good point. I've been planning to start taking vitamin D3, I should
add calcium to that.
Courtney: I switched to soymilk 5 years ago when I became a
vegetarian. That helped the milk replacement. As for cheese, there are some
yummy cheese substitutes on the market. Daiya brand is good for meals. toffuti
American vegan slices are good for grilled cheese sandwiches! I still use those
to date. I like vegenaise instead of regular mayo, and I use tofutti sour cream
as a garnish for things. I like to make my own variations of all of these
products as well, but my advice would be to be as open minded as you can. It
really helps even when you are trying out new recipes...
Me: Jut, I just
googled and found this. So I'll start from here making sure I get enough
calcium.
http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/dairyfreebasics/tp/CalciumFoods.htm
Good ideas, Courtney. Do you feel a difference,
health wise, not eating dairy?
Sandra: The semester I was scheduled to sing my senior
recital, I decided to cut way way way back on dairy. I still had some cheese,
but not much. For sure I didn't have any ice cream, milk, sour cream, cottage cheese,
etc. I was SUPER diligent about drinking boocus of water, and exercising almost
daily, too. During the semester, I didn't really notice that much difference. I
mean, I didn't get sick for those two or three months, but it's not like I was
bounding around with extra energy or anything. Then, the night after my
recital, I was like, "YESSS! I'm gonna have me some ICE CREAM!" So I
did, and within two days, I had a nose/throat infection that quickly turned to
bronchitis. I can't help but think it was the dairy.
Jessica: We are dairy free because two of my kids are
allergic. We do use eggs, but I guess that's not technically dairy. I have
found it’s much easier to eliminate milk products than eggs. We do occasionally
order pizza, I just fix an alternative or order a small one for Owen. Owen
doesn't have bowel issues anymore and his rashes and eczema are pretty much
gone.
Katy: I have been avoiding dairy for about a year, I can't
remember for sure, but I may have started in November or December 2010. I don't
say dairy free because I still eat things with "hidden dairy" like
bread. I have not been bothered by my seasonal allergies and I have lost about
six pounds (pre-pregnancy weight) but the weight loss could also be attributed
to the breastfeeding. I have gotten sick twice during this time, once with a
stomach bug, and once with a cold. But I also figure my immune system is weaker
cause I don't always get as much sleep as I would like. I have also avoided
refined sugar.
Tips for getting vitamins and minerals: nutritional yeast,
flax seed or meal, sunshine, iron containing foods with or near citrus (helps
your body absorb it better), cook with an iron skillet, handful of nuts a day,
beans/legumes, and fill your plate with colorful food choices.
Crystal: We haven't gone dairy free because I am like you I
love my dairy but because of jack and his allergies we try to watch his dairy
intake. I have him drinking and using almond milk in his cereal. It is
fantastic, creamy and comes in 3 flavors. I also cook with is but use the plain
or vanilla depending on what you are doing. Can't tell the difference. Good
luck! You can do it. Remember it is always tough the first week or so but will
get easier.
Michael: Roberta has
a number of recipes that are dairy free on her web-site: www.veggie-licious.com
(site no longer active) Many of them are very tasty, and can help you reduce
the dairy intake. Making small changes in your refrigerator can help a great
deal. We only use Soy Milk for cereal etc. at our house. I'm not dairy free,
but drinking dairy milk, eating ice-cream etc. is a rarity for me.
Courtney: Yeah! I feel way better and I don't feel bogged
down after eating. My digestive tract is very healthy-feeling, too! Dairy is so
full of fat. When I replaced those things with healthy nuts and seeds, the fat
is a healthy fat and I feel much lighter!
Leanne: I like almond milk better than soy milk and it has a
lot of calcium. Also green veggies have calcium in them. I make a lot of my
smoothies with spinach in them for the calcium boost.
Katy: I like that link you posted Holly, I especially want
to try the creamy broccoli salad!
Me: Thanks everybody! This stuff is really helpful and
encouraging. I keep wanting to quit before I start, but I know I need to try SOMETHING.
Even if dairy isn't a problem for me, it won't hurt me to
try this. I know cutting back on dairy, especially cheese, will be healthy for
me. And if I find I don't have allergies or I don't notice a difference, I can
always add some things, like yogurt, back in.
Troy: b4 i converted 2 soy milk, my nose would run a lot
while i was eating . . . switching solved that completely. plus, the list of
health benefits from soybeans and related soy products is staggering. also,
much lower fat intake. here's something 2 remember: soymilk may taste a bit
strange at 1st, but it's all about what you're used to . . . after a couple of
months of soymilk, almondmilk or other, actual milk will taste strange and,
actually, kinda disgusting.
Brenna: About 10 years ago, I dropped my cholesterol 100
points by going egg/dairy free. I felt great, less headaches, asthma and
allergies improved during the 5 years I did it. Then life happened and I went
back to old habits, headaches and asthma/allergies worsened and now my
cholesterol is high again. I've been dairy free for about a month and will be
rechecking labs soon...to be continued...
Natalie: Ah! And I'm much less sensitive/cry-ie when I'm off
dairy. Dairy affects Drew the same way too, also wheat and soy for him. Dairy
can give acne too. And lots of extra goobers.
Me: Wow. So much
antidotal evidence here. You guys are certainly convincing me that it's worth
trying!!
DaiyaD
Daiya
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