I Don't Think I Can Tolerate Milk. Can't I Really Substitute It With Almond Milk?

[DevilHands]

I get stuffy nose and diarrhea when I drink too much milk. I have also tried raw and get the same reaction. I am getting frustrated with it and is close to giving up on it altogether.

I've heard that Almond milk isn't a good substitute because of its PUFA content. However the brand Almond Breeze listed only .5g of PUFA per serving.. that would mean about 2g of PUFA if I drink a liter of it. Which is pretty low isn't it?

Its pretty low in Phosphorus as well.

Wouldn't this be a good idea to substitute? I mean... there might be some ingredients there that are not Peat approve but if I am getting a horrible reaction from cow's milk but not with almond milk.

Wouldn't this be an awesome source of calcium?

 

[800mRepeats]

Huh? Almond "milk" is nothing like dairy milk other than being a milky-white liquid.
The calcium is not native to the almond "milk," it's added as calcium carbonate. The potassium is added as potassium citrate. The vitamins are added.
You can get all of these from other foods or in supplements - again, not the same as milk (because it'd be missing the other ingredients that work their synergetic magic all together in milk).

It'd be fine as a "whitener" for coffee; but don't mistake it for a nutritious food.
It'd also probably be okay-ish as a substitute for milk because you really like how it reminds you of milk. Otherise, it's just another beverage - and if you actually enjoy it for its own merits, have at it!

If milk doesn't agree with you, then don't drink milk.

MTA: for curious onlookers, unsweetened Almond Breeze ingredients are here Unsweetened Original - Almondmilk - Almond Breeze

 

[DevilHands]

Oh shucks.... I thought it was a natural source.

Darn it!! I don't know where else to get my calcium.

Eggshells are a pain in the **** to make and I don't even think I've made them well.

 

[raypeatclips]

Have you tried something like goat milk? Or cheese/goat cheese, or yoghurt as the dairy component of your diet?

 

[DevilHands]

Hi raypeatclips. Yes... I've tried goat milk as well.... not only is the taste off but I did get the same reaction. I don't know why... I did try it just once though.

I was eating cheese with milk. Haven't tried days with only just cheese though... so maybe I could try that....

 

[raypeatclips]

Hi raypeatclips. Yes... I've tried goat milk as well.... not only is the taste off but I did get the same reaction. I don't know why... I did try it just once though.

I was eating cheese with milk. Haven't tried days with only just cheese though... so maybe I could try that....

I notice you saying you get issues when you drink too much milk. At what point do the issues start, how much are you trying to drink?

 

[YourUniverse]

Have you tried lactase pills?

 

[Blossom]

I've been drinking lactose free milk for the last two years and doing well with it. Here's a link to a brand I like. You can also get it in skim or 2%.
Lactose-Free Whole Milk, Ultra Pasteurized, Half Gallon | Buy Organic Valley Near You
I just found out recently that you can buy lactase drops which work like the pills @jamies33 mentioned. It might be worth a try before you resign yourself to a dairy milk free life.

 

[Madato]

I get stuffy nose and diarrhea when I drink too much milk. I have also tried raw and get the same reaction. I am getting frustrated with it and is close to giving up on it altogether.

I've heard that Almond milk isn't a good substitute because of its PUFA content. However the brand Almond Breeze listed only .5g of PUFA per serving.. that would mean about 2g of PUFA if I drink a liter of it. Which is pretty low isn't it?

Its pretty low in Phosphorus as well.

Wouldn't this be a good idea to substitute? I mean... there might be some ingredients there that are not Peat approve but if I am getting a horrible reaction from cow's milk but not with almond milk.

Wouldn't this be an awesome source of calcium?

Try A2 milk from Jersey cows.

I’m highly allergic to regular A1 milk but no issue with A2

 

[YourUniverse]

Try A2 milk from Jersey cows.

I’m highly allergic to regular A1 milk but no issue with A2

He said he tried goat milk and it didnt help anything, all goats are A2

 

[DevilHands]

I notice you saying you get issues when you drink too much milk. At what point do the issues start, how much are you trying to drink?

Hi Raypeatclips, its usually a liter a day. I'll drink a cup with breakfast (2 eggs), a cup at lunch with a little bit of rice and pork ribs soup, a cup at dinner and a cup before I went to bed. Allthroughout the day, I'll be sipping a liter of orange juice or apple juice. My diarrhea will usually happen when I wake up in the morning. Currently switched to a brand called Devondale UHT milk, It doesnt happen all the time but it does happen MOST of the time.

Have you tried lactase pills?

I've been drinking lactose free milk for the last two years and doing well with it. Here's a link to a brand I like. You can also get it in skim or 2%.
Lactose-Free Whole Milk, Ultra Pasteurized, Half Gallon | Buy Organic Valley Near You
I just found out recently that you can buy lactase drops which work like the pills @jamies33 mentioned. It might be worth a try before you resign yourself to a dairy milk free life.

Nope, havent tried lactase pills. I found out that they are pretty expensive in my country though... is this something you have to take everyday for the rest of your life if you want to drink milk?

As for lactose-free milk. Didn't Ray Peat mention that he doesn't recommend lactose-free milk? There are lactose-free milk in my grocery store but havent tried them yet.

Try A2 milk from Jersey cows.

I’m highly allergic to regular A1 milk but no issue with A2

As for A2 milk, I've tried goat milk once. Still the same, I got diarrhea in the morning.

 

[Blossom]

This might be helpful

Here is another study showing there is no difference between lactose or hydrolysed lactose in
calcium absorption.


Reprod Nutr Dev. 1988;28(6A):1465-72.
Effect of lactose hydrolysis on calcium absorption during duodenal milk perfusion.
Birlouez-Aragon I1.
Author information

Abstract
A multi-lumen intubation system was used to study the absorption of calcium, glucose and galactose in 13 human subjects. The intubation was placed between the duodenum abdomen and proximal jejunum and the subjects were perfused with milk and lactase-supplemented milk. Lactose disappearance over a 20 cm length of intestine was used as the index of lactase activity. The subjects were assigned to one of two groups, lactase-normal and lactase-deficient. There was linear correlation between the absorption of calcium and lactose: lactase-deficient subjects absorbed less calcium than lactase-normal subjects. Perfusion with lactase-supplemented milk enhanced calcium absorption in lactase-deficient subjects but had no effect on that of normal lactase subjects. All subjects absorbed approximately the same percentage of perfused calcium (24%) when perfused with hydrolysed milk. These data indicate that the enhancement of calcium absorption is not a function of lactase per se, but of its hydrolytic products, glucose and galactose.

 

[DevilHands]

Thanks Blossom,

I'll give lactose free milk a try.

 

[John Frusciante]

2grams of PUFAs per liter, however, is definitely a problem, and most of the other fats are unsaturated too. Really almond milk is no good.

 

[tara]

Milk (and cheese etc) don't agree with me either. I occasionally have a small amount of almond 'milk' just because I want something 'milky' to go with something else. I don't think it serves the same food value as real milk though, and I never have as much as a litre in a day, though (or usually in a week - tends to go off before i finish the box).
I'm supplementing a little fine oyster shell powder daily most days.
Some veges also have a bit of calciun in them.

 

[mayweatherking]

I've been drinking lactose free milk for the last two years and doing well with it. Here's a link to a brand I like. You can also get it in skim or 2%.
Lactose-Free Whole Milk, Ultra Pasteurized, Half Gallon | Buy Organic Valley Near You
I just found out recently that you can buy lactase drops which work like the pills @jamies33 mentioned. It might be worth a try before you resign yourself to a dairy milk free life.

this brand is very bad for me fwiw

you need to try something with no added vitamins, that is a huge, huge thing with dairy intolerance, if you could have lactose free with no added vitamins, that would be best, but it doesn't exist at least from what i found, there's a brand at whole foods that is whole milk that has no added vitamins that comes in a glass jar, but it is expensive, like 32oz is 4.99 or 5.99, but it has lactose in it, so you have to go slow, it's called traderspoint creamery, might not be available all of the USA though, you could probably request it at the service desk or they can deliver it to you, or there might be another alternative brand

the other option is you should buy tillamook brand cheese, i buy the loafs, it is about 60 grams of protein in one thing of it, ive used the normal flavors like cheddar and whatnot, but i think it is the "peaty approved" brand with no added crap to it, and fun fact, cheese has most lactose taken out of it, so it is basically like lactose free milk with no added vitamins so it is a place to start, you can find this one at whole foods or other random supermarkets, but it is not everywhere, but it is mass produced so chances are you can find it:

Cheese - Tillamook

just saying, if you start eating those and reacting well to it, it doesnt mean you can cheat and now have any dairy you want, i think the negative reactions will stay until your metabolism comes back ,then you can probably "handle" more stuff, but just wanted to let you know most dairy you buy isnt tolerable when you have a poor metabolism due to random crap they add to it

 

[Birdie]

Couple of ideas from Ray Peat: ( I think he said somewhere to try 1/4 cup milk for a week or so, then slowly increase.)

When a group of lactase deficient people have been given some milk every day for a few weeks, they have adapted, for example with tests showing that much less hydrogen gas was produced from lactose by intestinal bacteria after they had adapted (Pribila, et al., 2000).

Bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine can be caused by hypothyroidism (Lauritano, et al., 2007), and the substances produced by these bacteria can damage the lining of the small intestine, causing the loss of lactase enzymes (Walshe, et al., 1990).

Another hormonal condition that probably contributes to lactase deficiency is progesterone deficiency, since a synthetic progestin has been found to increase the enzyme (Nagpaul, et al., 1990). The particular progestin they used lacks many of progesterone's effects, but it does protect against some kinds of stress, including high estrogen and cortisol. This suggests that stress, with its increased ratio of estrogen and cortisol to progesterone, might commonly cause the enzyme to decrease.


Milk in context: allergies, ecology, and some myths

 

[DevilHands]

Looks like my problems lies with lactose. I tried lactose free milk yesterday night, drank a cup. This morning my stool looks normal which is a good sign since I would usually have diarrhea if I drank milk close to bed time.

I noticed that when I drank lactose free milk, I didnt have that gassy feeling.

I am using Harvey Fresh Lactose Free milk which doesnt seem to have vitamins added. Ingredient listed only milk and lactase enzyme.

Problem is, Lactose free milk seems to be more expensive here in my country.

I was wondering if mixing 1/2 of milk and 1/2 of lactose free milk will be a good idea?

Will the lactase enzyme in lactose free milk break down the lactose in the ordinary milk?

 

[Blossom]

You could buy the lactase drops to add to your usual milk.

 

[DevilHands]

Lactase drops seems to be not feasible... it cost twice as much here in my country as compared to US. There are lactase enzymes however in capsule form, not sure if those are safe.

Still though... wouldn't the lactase enzyme in lactose free milk break down the lactose in ordinary milk? I mean its just a thought and a cheaper alternative if I mix it in.

I've been drinking milk for months, and its frustrating to see that I am still not producing enough lactase. Is it that important to increase one's intake of milk slowly for it to produce?

I mean I've been drinking a liter knowing that it can cause me diarrhea and I just bear with it.