Anyone else Lactose Intolerant?

[whattothink]

Really it's so sad to worry about how much dairy might be in anything you eat. And Lactaid doesn't seem to do much to help me (hey at least I can use a little butter and a small slice of cheese with no problem). But I truly miss things like cheesecake, ice cream, whipped cream, and overly gooey cheesy foods.

[OpenClose]

Supposedly at least 60% of the population is lactose intolerant. Probably a much greater extent if you include more mild intolerances.

Not even human milk is fit for humans after weaning. Cow's milk is built for weaning cows. Lactose intolerance is the norm, and lactose tolerance is a genetic mutation selected for after the domestication of cows, from what I've read.

Many parts of the world have no dairy in their diets and suffer fewer bone fractures and other calcium-related problems.

The only reason I still consume dairy, despite being slightly lactose intolerant, is CHEESE. CHEESE is the only thing that trumps BACON as my favorite foods throne.

[DodgersGM]

I don't eat dairy at all, and haven't done so for a few years now. It's more by choice than anything else...just the thought of eating another mammal's milk grosses me out. I also don't think it's particularly healthy (kinda strange that humans are the only animals on the planet to consume milk after infancy).

You can make and buy really good vegan desserts. So Delicious makes insanely good coconut milk ice creams, and there's tons of really good recipes online for vegan cheese sauces. Seriously, they're really good.

[SandraSlip]

Couldn't agree more with you. :)

[DodgersGM]

@SandraSlip: are you vegan or just avoid dairy whenever possible?

[DodgersGM]

@QA: Check these out. You should be able to use the site to locate stores near you that carry their products. https://sodeliciousdairyfree.com/

[SandraSlip]

I've been a vegetarian for many years, increasingly avoiding dairy more and more over the years, until I eventually decided to go full vegan. How about you?

[whattothink]

Oh I eat a lot of their products when I can buy them. Horrendously expensive though. $7 for a pint of ice cream makes me cry especially since I will only eat half before it's completely frost bitten.

[harakiri]

...Does this mean you haven't experienced steak with Roquefort sauce? =O

[SandraSlip]

@harakiri: Well, since vegan means not consuming animals in any form, I guess the answer to your question should be obvious, haha.

[DodgersGM]

Yeah I eat vegan about 99.9% of the time. I haven't had dairy or eggs in years, and I eat grass-fed beef a couple times a year. Kinda getting over even that, though.

[whattothink]

OMG eggs are my life saver, along with avocados and hummus. Avocado and hummus are excellent cheese replacements for sandwiches or eggs. And a grilled avocado sammich is delicious

[DodgersGM]

Yeah I love avocado. Living in CA they're always available and they're relatively cheap. Agreed on the avocado sandwich--it's way better than mayo.

[whattothink]

I can generally get em for under a buck fifty each here. I eat avocado on either toast or a tortilla for breakfast almost every day.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

I'm not. You should try soy cheese then. Also you can try lactose free icecream. Just buy an icecream machine and make this one

minimalistbaker.com/green-tea-coconut-ice-cream/

[whattothink]

Have you eaten soy cheese. I love most soy products and it was nauseating. In fact I spit it out in my disposal and threw the expensive stuff away. I did find lactose free that is much better than nothing, but still no cream cheese on a bagel.
I only eat ice cream a few times a year and like coconut milk ice cream the best just so expensive.
But really think of how many things you can't eat. Trust me if you had to go through what I do you have to look at the ingredients on everything and it's not pretty. Lots of food can have hidden butter or cheese ( really I ordered fajitas so no cheese was used and you cover my side of guacamole in it). Yogurts is non existent. The dairy free stuff is even worse than the soy cheese. Trust me if you ever wanna get back at someone feed them some daiya cheese or sodelicious coconut milk yogurt. Both made me gag and I can stomach just about anything.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

Yes some brands are better than others. If not you could just substitute milk and cream with soy milk or almond milk. And I have an idea because I went Vegan.

[whattothink]

Mmmm coconut milk for cream. But I don't use much milk since I could never drink it before and I hate spending so much to only use a cup or two for the soy when I need a neutral flavor when I used to just buy a pint of regular milk back in the day.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

Just look up vegan recipes. Seriously

[whattothink]

I have I just am not ready or have time to do the crazy cashew based cream things. What I really want is some biscuits and gravy, I just know I don't need more than a cup of soy milk though and hate the thought of the rest spoiling from not being used.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

But i think you can buy a lot of those things already at specialty stores like trader joes and Earth fare

[whattothink]

I have yet to see anything at TJ's or Earth fare premade. The only thing I have seen at Earth fare is almond milk pudding, which I could make at home in 5 mins.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

That sucks

[whattothink]

Yeah vegan blogs turned me onto coconut milk since it's more milk like than almond or soy. But no prepared foods. And frozen food. Unless it's Amys or tofurkey might as well forget about it. I do rather like Tofurkeys pizza though.

[Hyped_up_on_coffee]

You just need to learn how to do better misenplace with food. It makes cooking take less time , more organized and easier

[harakiri]

I am not lactose intolerant... I ADORE dairy products.

My sympathies =[

[whattothink]

I used to. Sob.

[harakiri]

We should have a funeral for cheeses...

[whattothink]

Especially brie. I LOVE brie cheese.

[harakiri]

Me too... with apple slices...or in a turkey sandwich... SO GOOD!

[whattothink]

Or fondue no Melting pot or chocolate ganache (at least unless made by me). No lobster with drawn butter. No mac and cheese. Even Hamburger Helper is off limits.

[harakiri]

Oh my goodness...How do you live like that? =[ I totally take my lactose tolerance for granted...

[whattothink]

I cried for a good week. But then you look at it, remember what it will do, put it back on the shelf and cry on the inside. I also don't go to places that make me sad. Such as places with ice cream featured prominently or pizza places. I tried and it just depressed me too much. My friends don't really seem to understand either.

[whattothink]

I also have developed a rather deep passion for chinese, Japanese, and sushi. No dairy used in em!! I am free to eat.

[harakiri]

Well, I definitely understand... dairy products are just so amazing. And I love sushi so much =D Not a bad substitute at all!!

[whattothink]

Yeah I pick it up for dinner at least once a week.

[harakiri]

You're making me crave for it now =P

[HandsomeRaj]

The woman I love (now ex) was lactose intolerant. She wouldn't eat anything that has to do with diary. An occasional icecream say once in 2 months is all she would do. I got over diary being with her cause I didn't want to eat something she may crave for though she always seemed poised and well under control and that helped her for sure though diary is one of my hot favs. lol my black coffee started from there on ;)

It's all up in the mind - the craving :)

[Anonymous]

I hear ya! it's hard when you ate foods and all of a sudden they are taken away! I can also have small amounts of dairy but too much gets bad quick. I've found that at health food stores they have a lot more options of every day food that are dairy free. So you may wanna check it out. It is a little bit more expensive than normal but every once in a while (especially when cravings arise) it's a good thing that it's there.

[whattothink]

I have tried just about everything that earth fare carries. I prefer coconut milk based products, except for yogurt stay far far away. I just miss my favorite cheeses and pizza, and not asking how much dairy is in a product when out, or bringing my own food to gatherings.

[Opinion Owner]

I hear ya, it's a pain. even more so when I was in school. But when you get used to the things you can and can't have it gets easier to make choices when you are out and about.

[whattothink]

I suppose but it's really hard when everyone is eating pizza and brownie sundaes and I am eating a salad with vinaigrette.

[Opinion Owner]

Is once slice of pizza too much for you?

[whattothink]

Yup. I have found a small as in less than a half oz of regular cheese or less than a tbl of butter or a spoonful of ice cream/whipped cream is OK. Anything more and I hate life as I am stuck on a toilet in a cold sweat with a trashcan in my hands.

[Opinion Owner]

I hear ya! It's hard. But it's life, we learn to deal :)

[confugirl]

I'm not lactose intolerant, but I do care about what I put in my body and I've noticed it's pretty easy to avoid anything. If you make your meals yourself from scratch, them there is literally no way you will get lactose in your food.

[whattothink]

Yeah I would have to give up my entire social life as it is all meeting at restaurants or people's houses for food. But even just BUYING food is hard.

[confugirl]

I get that eating out is hard, but why would buying food be hard?

[whattothink]

Look at foods you buy and look at how many have hidden dairy in them. I guarantee you can look at something you think doesn't and the ingredients say Milk on the allergy disclaimer. Whey is used in a LOT of things as a stabilizer and it's something I can't consume much of.

[confugirl]

That's why I mentioned that you should make your meals from scratch. If you use only the basic ingredients like meat, vegetables, flour, sugar etc. then there's no way you will eat something with lactose.

[whattothink]

Except I spend a good 9 hours at work with an hour commute each day. Not uncommon if I have to run an errand or go to the gym to not get home till 9 or 10pm. At that point I just wanna eat something easy with no cleanup. Trust me it sounds good in theory but when you don't have the time you just don't have the time.

[whattothink]

Sorry that should have said close to an hour commute each way**

[confugirl]

Then there's not much you can do really.

[Camallunt]

I developed lactose intolerance few years ago, I loved milkshakes like love love loved milkshakes and it has been torture. I've slowly gotten used to having small amounts of milk and cream but it took slowly working up to.

[springocelot]

Sorta...drinking too much dairy makes me break out :(

My condolences. You should try goats milk version of the same products. I've read that a lot of lactose intolerant people react quite well to goats milk since it's more digestible.

[RedThread]

Yeah I'm lactose intolerant which kind of sucks. I still sneak some stuff now and then when I know I'll be home to use the bathroom.. lol

Lactaid milk is good for me.. it's the same as regular milk but without lactose.

[whattothink]

No lactaid just lessens the cramps a little still very very nauseous if I consume dairy.

[RedThread]

Oh you get nauseous from dairy? I don't feel nauseous from it I just get a super bad case of diarrhea.

[whattothink]

I had to leave work when a barista did not give me soy milk one day. Barely made it to the bathroom from my cubicle, had to lay there until the cramps subsided enough to drive home, where I think salmonella poisoning that I got once was more preferable.

[RedThread]

Damn you have it pretty seriously then.. That's rough.. It used to be like that for me when I was in grade school but it got less potent as I got older.

[whattothink]

Yeah I read that it either gets better or worse. Mine got worse.

[dwiller943]

Yes. It sucks that the only milk that I will drink is 2% (blue cap) milk. But even that causes me problems.

[sa230e]

I am. I avoided it for years and didn't miss it much but Lactaid works pretty decently for me.

[willshere]

I like lactaid. I'm not intolerant but milk makes me sick. I can eat cheese and yogurt still

[whattothink]

I used to only have problems with milk. But then cheese and yogurt made me feel as though I had the worst food poisoning of my life ( cold sweats, stomach cramps and a self induced colonic included).

[Anonymous]

I am slightly, if i have a little bit im okay but it still really gets to me

[kalrodkal]

I am. I hate the intolerance

[MasqueradeMassacreTM]

Yup :/ and it SUCKS

[whattothink]

Thank you. I hate the perky people that tell you you will learn to adjust and live. I am sure years down the road I will be ok. But it's only been a few months that once used to be in moderate quantities was OK and now is if over a 1/2 oz makes me want to kill myself.

[MasqueradeMassacreTM]

No problem :) I'm not here to be a dick lol :) We're all people!