A couple of years ago, I figured out that I have a dairy allergy. It was amazing I even connected the dots to realize that my chronically-infected tonsils and rash were from a food allergy and not my other chronic health problems. I really didn’t know for sure that dairy allergy was the culprit until I eliminated it from my diet and found those problems clearing up over the course of a couple of months.
Once I was dairy free for a long period of time, I learned other symptoms resulted if I accidentally ingested dairy. Fatigue and muscle pain which I thought were exclusively caused by my main health concerns, are also triggered by dairy. Indeed, I now suspect my problems with absorbing a medication I use were exacerbated by the allergy irritating my gastrointestinal tract.
Once I put all of this together and saw how much better I felt without dairy, it was easy to go cold turkey and give it up. Well, easy is relative, I suppose. Easy in the sense that I can resist the urge to cheat and eat one of those donuts or chocolates I miss so much. Several weeks of misery after enjoying one treat just isn’t worth it.
Not so easy is to accept that eating out is basically impossible now, except for fast-food chains with stringent quality control and national standards. Talking to waitresses about the allergy doesn’t seem to work. No matter how careful they and I are, I usually end up with a reaction after a restaurant meal. I suspect cross-contamination in the kitchen is the culprit. It only takes a trace, and restaurant kitchens are full of things I shouldn’t have.
Additionally, I’ve learned not to believe well-intentioned people who tell me that their home cooking is dairy free. Dairy sneaks into a lot of products you wouldn’t think contain dairy, often in the form of whey or other ingredients that most people don’t associate with dairy. I was assured by an Indian friend, for example, that Indian food does not use dairy. So why did I react to some food she gave me, I wondered? Months later, I learned that ghee, often used in Indian cooking, is butter.
Also not so easy are the things I still crave that I had to give up. To that end, I’ve put a lot of effort into finding dairy-free substitutes I can make at home. After all that research, I thought it would be nice to occasionally post recipes and tips. Other people on the internet with this allergy have been generous in posting information that has helped me tremendously. I feel I should do my part to contribute, and I will in future posts. Even if you don’t have a dairy allergy, these recipes are worth exploring in their own right. Dairy-free can be delicious!
My son is dairy allergic and lactose intolerant. I find him eating with other people is our biggest challenge. They mean well, but they just don’t get it. And it’s not like a peanut or seafood allergy where the person will die, the person will just suffer miserabely. When eating somewhere else or eating out I usually ask for a list of all the ingredients. Thanks for letting me know that ghee is butter. That was one I didn’t know.
You’re welcome, Bonnie, and thanks for stopping by. Sorry to hear your son is allergic too. Miserable is right. I accidentally got a mouthful of cheese on a hamburger the other week and it was a horrid experience. And it was American cheese–which I’m not fond of. At least if it had been a bite of brie I would have enjoyed myself before feeling awful!
Yeah, people definitely don’t get it. I’m sure it’s harder for kids with food allergies to deal with that. I know I sometimes feel bad that I won’t eat other people’s food (or it sounds so darn yummy), and it’s tempting to say “Oh what the heck, it will be fine.”