Don't Say "Cheese!"

Grumble….gurgle…blerghhhhh.   Ahh the sound of dairy + me.  Like everyone else, I am, to a degree, lactose intolerant.   That really puts a damper on my cheese eating, I tell ya.  Well, no it doesn't.  And therein lies the problem.  

I'm Italian.  I could - and pretty much do - live on a diet of cheese, bread and wine.  Sadly, my body doesn't agree to this regimen.   I can't handle the dairy.  Oh, and I have a gluten intolerance to boot.  Well, a girl can't live on wine alone….

A few years back, when I first learned about this gluten issue, I tried to go gluten free.  You know what sucks?  Gluten free bread products.  Disorders like Celiac Disease can be quite dangerous, if gluten isn't avoided.  Luckily I do not have Celiac, but an intolerance.  It's mostly just uncomfortable.  Sometime debilitating.  But, not dangerous.  So, after a few weeks without gluten, I just gave up.  The quality of life was just not worth it.  Opportunity cost and all that…

Over the years, I've gotten much healthier in my eating.   But, I still partake in dairy and gluten.  I would actually rather give up gluten than dairy.   I can eat cheese by itself, you know…. I love me some Chobani.  And sometimes a girl just needs some chocolate milk.  I don't drink a lot of milk, and what I do in my home is lactose-free.  Cheese, on the other hand… and yogurt.  I think yogurt's bacterial flora helps to balance things out, mostly, but not entirely.  (gurgle)

I'm trying to pay better attention to my body. I'm not feeling so hot.  My weight is stagnant.  And I'm overly tired.  So, I'm gonna try to get rid of the dairy.  I purchased some Blue Diamond Almond Breeze for cereal and cooking and stuff.  I got some Silk creamer for my coffee.  I'm ignoring the fact that I just bought a twelve-pack of Chobani at Costco, and that cheese drawer doesn't exist. 

I think, in the past, I've focused on too many eliminations at once.  I've done South Beach/Atkins where I eliminated or greatly reduced my carb intake.  That means no bread, no cereal, no oatmeal, no rice, no grains, no potatoes….. not for me.  I've tried to go vegan, before taking a step to go veg.  It's just too much.  Focusing on dairy only should give me a good balance.  Now, instead of cheese and crackers, maybe I'll go for some hummus.   My coffee's fine this morning - in fact, I prefer soy milk in my coffee anyway.  

I came across the website www.godairyfree.org.  Many people are opting for this lifestyle change as a means to overall better heath.  It's not just about lactose, but dairy in general.  While there's little convincing research that links dairy definitively to cancers, there have been some connections.   So what's to lose?