How to go dairy free?

[Pearls18]

Sorry for the stupid question.

Going on from another thread I am going to try going dairy free to see if it improves DS's feeding.

I am a Dairy Queen (pun intended) I eat A LOT of chocolate, love my cheese, butter etc (I'm not fat btw lol...!) so it will be a big change for me and seeing as I'm comfort eating my through PND and DH being away I want to try my best but it'll be hard.

How many days should I make my minimum goal to see if it has an effect?

How dairy free are we talking? Like not even butter on toast?

Is there a dairy free chocolate substitute.....?!

 

[nyomi1990]

Hi I went dairy free around 3 weeks ago, ive pretty much had too cut out everythinh I would usually eat unless I've made it myself or know that it does not include dairy.

I cant have cakes, pie, puddings, processed meats, cream etc there's hundreds of things I'd just not even imagine included dairy that do but tbh withing 5 days of cutting out dairy my little girl is doing a lot better. Although she is on a formula top up just too make sure she puts weight on ok n gets every nutrient as im still learning u thought it would be best this way.

It's worked ok for me though as my mum braught round a trifle yesterday so evil of her n I couldn't help but taste a little I had two spoonfuls and had agonising cramps... Turns out I'm allergic too lol so im doing both Me and my daughter some good

Give it two weeks too notice a big change as sometimes it can take that long for it too leave the system I noticed a change between 3 too 5 days but at 2 weeks she was a hundred times better. She screens and pulls of the breast if even a little dairy has gotten into my system. So try not too have a any.

Use dairy free vitalite as a substitute for marge uts actually ok lol

As for chocalate there are some substitutes but you can have dark chocalate aswell if you can deal with the bitterness xxxc

 

[Pearls18]

Thanks hun, I have been googling and I'm thinking we've had a fair few signs.

He's almost always fussy on the breast, he rarely gets comfort from feeding, wants to pull off, won't feed for long.

Sicks up nearly all the time, today terribly.

He's got rashy dry skin on his face

Often has a stuffy nose but no other cold symptoms, DS1 never had this.

His weight gain was initially great but he has dropped a centile (it's still 50th though so I'm not concerned, yet).

Does this all sound familiar to you? Should I be popping to the doctors? Will obviously stop dairy right now. I've downloaded a food diary on my iPad. If I'm honest I've know that dairy can cause me problems but it's usually a bit sporadic so not easy to completely pin down, but there's some high diary meals I love that I know cause me discomfort.

 

[summer rain]

Hello there

I went dairy free with second youngest and in the process came to realise I had never outgrown my own childhood dairy allergy and along with worries about the ethics of animal products I decided to go vegan over a year ago now. There are loads of products out there that are completely dairy free, and if you can still eat eggs then there is even more choice. Sainsbury's are excellent as they have lists of all their dairy free own brand products. They also sell mrs crimble products many of which are dairy free and some are egg free too. You should be able to get away with products that say 'may contain traces of milk' or similar as they are only trying to cover their backs and the likelihood of cross contamination is very very small. The one product I would say be careful with that says this are burger buns, one of my children is allergic to dairy and is usually fine with the foods that say may contain traces of or made in a factory producing milk but burger buns make him rashy and wheezy every time. Margarine there is vitalite, three different varieties of 'pure' margarine, most own brand soft spread or soft margarine is dairy free though vitalite tends to be cheaper than them, and there are also health food shop brand dairy-free margarines such as Biona. Chocolate moo free is good and not bitter as it is rice milk chocolate, the choices range of chocolates which Sainsbury's also sell under their own free from label are also ok, the one with the crispy pieces in and the orange flavoured one are better than the chocolate on it's own. The chocolate buttons are ok too. A website called 'alternative stores' sell loads of dairy free milk and 'white' chocolate. Ocado sell loads of dairy free stuff as well. Milk alternatives there are loads out there, the best one I have found up until now is an oat milk called provitamil that only asda and waitrose seem to sell, it's made in the UK and is far superior to oatly, if you drink it neat you will struggle to taste any oatiness at all and in hot drinks, home made milkshakes etc it tastes exactly like 'normal' milk-it's cheap too at £1 a litre in asda and £1.25 in waitrose. The waitrose and Sainsbury's own brand mid priced drinking chocolate are dairy free as well. Tesco do a houmous and falafel wrap that is dairy free and I think some of their other sandwiches are dairy free too. Many of the Sainsbury's own brand breakfast cereals are dairy free. If you need any more suggestions please ask xx

 

[summer rain]

With regard to going to the doctors it depends on your doctor, some doctors don't have a clue about intolerances and allergies and will only give terrible advice, my GP is very knowledgeable about allergies and intolerances and elimination diets but with a young baby that's really all they can suggest as allergy tests aren't really accurate for babies under a year old and stool tests for intolerances aren't either. So the suggested course of action is almost always to cut out one problem food at a time for at least 2-3 weeks and see if things improve xx

 

[nyomi1990]

Our main symptom waa something we ended up in hospital for, she hadn't pooed in 3 weeks but was showing no signs of pain but yet was pumping lots... complete opposite too something that would usually happen with a dairy intolerence but her intestines were reacting and just not working properly but the symptoms you have mentioned are all signs she had but I didn't know we're symptoms until we stopped the dairy.

Stuffy nose which improved but not fully, dry skin everywhere on her ankles and face, pulled and fussed on breast and her tummy would make noises as she was feeding which has also improved.

If you are going dairy free most of the time babies are also just as allergic too soya so my daughters dietician has told me to its a no no xxx

 

[nyomi1990]

I also agree with summer rain my daughter is under paediatrics because she's had so many issues since being tiny shes only 10 weeks now so I immediately went bak too them after speaking too a gp who was more concerned about her skinny legs which even now and when she was born were very tiny ad long... he told us too take lacto lose and still till this day when u ask advice refers too her issue as lactose intolerence which it isn't he doesn't read her notes and even told me he's clueless when it comes too babies :/ so make sure you push what you know on them make sure that they don't try and blame anything else I spent two weeks being told it was my breastfeeding and that they were checking her for signs of starvation I had a breakdown and it was only after visiting two different hospitals we got a diagnosis and even now it's not official

Hope it all works out xxx

 

[Pearls18]

Thank you both so much, I am shopping on the weekend so going to start properly then. I really hope we can sort out these feeding issues because it's so stressful when it's like this

I'm not sure how good my GP will be, we go to a military surgery so I can't imagine this is their remit much I think I will make a start and see how we go.

 

[nyomi1990]

Wishing you luck and hope you see an improvement soon word of advice sometimes it can take a little while for allergens too leave your system so If you only see a little improvement keep going because it could completely improve.... my daughters 11 weeks now n we still have some issues xxxx

 

[mummy3]

We're almost a month in to being dairy/egg and soy free and its hard! We were told to cut them out totally so even down to reading labels. Its made a huge difference to my little guy though, he's vomiting alot less with the diet For butter we use earth balance with the red lid, it tastes pretty good, I like the coconut milk creamers for coffee but for cereal we do granola with pineapple and coconut juice!

Its really hard to get answers. We had to change pediatricians and I had to take him to the ER to get him help. Turns out he was severe failure to thrive (under 12lb and 23.5in at 8m), anaemic and had positive blood allergy tests to milk and egg, he's also allergic to bananas. Finding out about the diet has made a huge difference! He does need to have NG tube and elecare formula at night but we can still bf and he can still eat during the day His symptoms have been worsening vomiting, talking full on exorcist style, congestion building up to cough and wheeze and constipation. Cannot recommend the diet enough, wish I'd known months ago

 

[Calif]

Eat lots of Chinese food. No dairy in sight!

 

[buttonnose82]

This might be long but I am currently dairy & soya free for the 2nd time so been there for a long time!

Firstly, if your considering dairy free then you might also want to go soya free, the proteins are very similar so a high percentage of those that can't tolerate dairy also can't tolerate soya. Also get yourself calcium supplements, very very very important! And ask for a referral to a dietician. Be warned however, some GP's don't believe that dairy can be passed on via breast milk, it can and it does, I had a gp laugh in my face when I suggested it, I mean properly laugh in my face, he told me food doesn't pass over in breast milk, so I asked if that meant I could now go and get drunk because that wouldn't pass either? To which he stopped laughing and I walked out!

Butter - substitute for either vitalite or my personal fav is pure sunflower
Milk - there are loads! Oat, rice, almond, hazelnut, coconut ..... As a tea drinker I find oat the best, however in coffee the nut ones are nice
Cheese - check out vegan web stores, if your in the uk then I use a online store calls alternative stores, I find the best substitute cheese is violife
Chocolate! - again vegan web stores, be careful though, a lot have soya in place of dairy, I however like moofree, they even do Easter eggs and advent calendars!
Bread - most bagels, wraps, pitta bread and part baked rolls are both dairy & soya free, if a store has a I store bakery then ask to see their book, it will list the allergens in all their I store baked stuff, it means you might just find some nice yummy bread you can have still, also just make your own, really easy

You can still eat most things, it is a case of just making yourself. Bake cakes using vitalite/pure sunflower, they taste no different, I even use it to make pastry for pie or jam tarts etc. make your own custard using custard powder, I make it with hazelnut milk and it tastes just like the inside of a kinder bueno ...... Amazing! Also check own brand stuff in stores, you tend to find that branded goods have dairy & soya where own brand might very well not, don't get sucked into the whole 'free from' stuff, you pay throu the nose for it and often isn't that nice and you can find the same stuff on the shelf in the regular part of the store, example being jam tarts, in the free from section they are something like £2.50 for 6! Check the store own brand, sometimes they are dairy & soya free and you can get 9 for 99p! Basically just check check check labels, you will be so surprised what they dump milk powder in as it is cheap, I even found it in some brands of ketchup, and I think it was chewits had soya in, crazy lol

Eating out is hard though, nandos is good, they have an amazing allergy book, avoid Chinese at all costs if you do go soya free as soy sauce gets put into pretty much everything! My local Indian is fab and he makes my own curry that is dairy & soya free which I have with plain boiled rice (their other rice, if cooked traditionally, will be boiled in milk) don't be afraid to ask

Think that's it for now, sorry it's long, if I think of anything else then I'll pop back

 

[Pearls18]

Thank you so much everyone I really appreciate you taking the time to reply.

Sorry to sound like an idiot, but when I am checking labels what am I looking for? Will it say dairy free or do I need to look for lactose and or soya in the labe to know to avoid it? Will all dairy products have it listed or do I need to use common sense too? So do I just know all chocolate ids off limits unless overly stated for example?

Also, calcium tablets, what are they like these days? When I was a kid they we're awful chewable ones I had to take 3 times a day, have they improved?!

 

[buttonnose82]

I'm just getting my little ones ready for a party, I'll try reply again later, they use different names to 'hide' dairy so I'll hunt out that list for you, and they are crafty as well because it won't state something contains soya but it can be used in some vegetable oils and also 2 E numbers! I'll also get you the link to a facebook page that is fab for support in regards to dairy free

 

[nyomi1990]

Buttonnose82 your post even helped me lol im 5 weeks in dairy free n only 2 weeks in soya free and woke up this morning too a very snuffly little girl who's tummy is going crazy when i feed pretty sure something got in without me realising...

Marine wag fingers crossed you can start eliminating dairy and soya and its goes well I wish I'd have wrote this post 5 weeks ago wheb I was told little one had the allergy good luck xxx

 

[summer rain]

With regard to calcium supplements most people on dairy free diets do not need them, firstly most dairy alternatives now contain high levels of calcium, a lot of the advice about needing supplements stems from years ago when dairy alternatives didn't contain added calcium (or anything else). Many other foods are natural sources of calcium so if you eat a balanced varied diet there is no need for supplements and recent research suggests that excessive calcium in the form of supplements may even be harmful because it is poorly absorbed and isn't easily got rid of by the body. My own mother went dairy free over 30 years ago now when breastfeeding me and very rarely has any dairy products, she is in her mid 60s and has no problems with bone density or strength. Xx

 

[buttonnose82]

Really? My dietician told me that you need to drink the equivalent of an entire carton (1litre) of oat milk with added calcium a day to get the correct amount of calcium a breastfeeding mother needs, I dont drink anywhere near that amount of it a day lol

 

[summer rain]

Many dieticians think only dairy is a good source of calcium, they also neglect the other factors in keeping bones healthy, weight bearing exercise, magnesium, vitamin d3 (d2 is ok but less effective) and vitamin k2. It's not really surprising as the corporate sponsors of the BDA (the professional body most uk dieticians belong to) are all dairy and/or formula companies, Danone is an example.

My GP has in the past specialised in various things including nutrition before settling into general practice, and she said most people don't need to take vitamin or mineral supplements and they can be harmful if not needed. I did add up the amount of calcium I get from my diet each day over a week and it was usually over the RDA, if I took a supplement it would be well over and there are negative health implications involved then. As well as having up to 750ml of a dairy alternative milk each day, I also eat a lot of calcium fortified yoghurt and lots of citrus fruits, pulses, almonds and leafy veg. I take high strength d3, and I power walk a lot. However it would seem except in the case of certain medical conditions that mainly affect the elderly, even if your diet isn't as calcium rich as mine there is still no benefit or need to taking supplemental calcium. This article is a bit biased towards dairy being the only good source of calcium but is interesting nonetheless

https://mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/well/2013/04/08/thinking-twice-about-calcium-supplements-2/

This article from the vegan society is also very interesting on non dairy calcium sources

https://www.vegansociety.com/lifestyle/nutrition/calcium.aspx

Lastly I know it's the Daily Fail but this research it mentions is extremely fascinating

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/...es-NUTS-just-important-child-bone-health.html

One thing you may need to take in supplement form though if dairy free, and it's something rarely mentioned, is iodine as the soil in the UK and Western Europe is iodine poor and one of the major sources is dairy as it is added to animal feed, if you eat meat or fish though you'll probably be fine

Xx

 

[summer rain]

Also as the vegan society article notes, the latest recommendations are that breastfeeding mothers have no additional calcium requirements, breastfeeding takes some calcium from your bones but breastfeeding itself offers protection against osteoporosis, recommendations that breastfeeding mothers have greatly increased calcium requirements over other women are based on outdated research

Xx

 

[JayDee]

Labelling... Milk and soya are both listed as allergens on most packaging.
My friend is doing dairy free and said cooking from scratch and dark chocolate are the way forward. Good luck