Angela Dowden is our Pure professional. As an expert nutritionist and a freelance health writer, she has years of experience. In 2001 she was voted Health Writer of the Year. She also writes for the Daily Mirror, Daily Mail, Daily Express and Evening Standard and is author of 'Are You Getting Enough Vitamins and Minerals'.
Feel free to ask Angela your questions about living a dairy free life. Every month we’ll post a selection, so look out for yours.
This months quesTions and answers
1) I recently discovered I have a problem with dairy after years of upset
stomachs, bloating, nausea and cramps. I cut out all dairy and noticed a
complete improvement. After a few months of cutting out dairy and having
soya based foods, I am having upset stomachs again and nausea etc., even
though I am not having dairy. Is there any chance it could be the soya
products creating the same problems? Please help, as I don't know where to
go from here.
- Sophie
Are you sure you are cutting our dairy completely? I ask because often when you start to cut out dairy you actually make the intolerance to lactose more acute because any low level lactase enzyme activity you once had becomes more sluggish still. That's not to say that you might not also have developed or unmasked another allergy or intolerance but these things are really difficult to work out without specialist help. If you are allergic to soya it would almost always be the protein element of soya, which means whilst you may be perfectly okay with soya oil you wouldn稚 be with products like tofu, TVP etc. If these symptoms continue I would urge you to get advice from a dietitian - you can ask to be referred by your GP.
2) Hi,
I had a food allergy/intolerance test done a few years back and it came
back showing a milk intolerance. I was always getting a very acidic upset
stomach. Also very tight constrictive feeling in my throat. IBS like
symptoms. Anyway, cut milk out and haven't had any problems with stomach or
throat since. Still get IBS like symptoms though. Also, seem to get some
strange red spots on the top of my legs. Don't hurt although bit itchy.
Seem to come and go.
Anyway, i was wondering if i should be cutting out things like yogurt and
cheese as well. Been trying this fo a week now and the spots do seem to be
gone.
Would be interested in your opinion. - Peter
Thanks for your query. If your test was accurate and you are indeed intolerant to milk then the intolerance could be mild or severe or anywhere in between. It can also change over the years so it's possible that once where you could tolerate reasonable amounts of dairy products, now you cannot.
Yoghurt and cheese are more likely than milk to be tolerated by people with a lactose intolerance, but some people cannot tolerate any dairy products at all including these two. You can also become more intolerant over time so that whereas you were once tolerating yoghurt and cheese, you are no longer coping with them well. I would suggest going to your doctor for a lactose intolerance test to confirm that this indeed is the ongoing problem, though you would have to be eating some dairy products for the test to work. If you can put up with the symptoms, sometime keeping a little dairy in the diet will stop the problem continuing to get worse over time.
3) Hi,
I have got a histamine-intolerance and wanted to know if any of your dairy
free spreads are ok for me to eat? we have got the sunflower spread here.
Thank you,
- Kim
The symptoms of histamine intolerance are obviously caused or triggered by food and drink with high levels of histamine. I知 glad to say that Pure products do not come into this bracket. Foods that do include high levels of histamine include matured cheeses, cured meats, fermented foods and alcohol.
4) Hi, I was born with a little tolerance to dairy be it the lactose and the
dairy protein but as i have grown up i have lost the tolerance completely. I am now 40 and my body totally shut down when I was 27 to this so now i
have to be absolutely meticulous about what food i have have and how it is
prepared because unlike most my condition is extreme and if we get it
wrong i bleed internally and there is no antidote .we have spent thousands
on test and doctors and specialists but now all we do is use products like
pure and others that we know and trust and try to create equivalents we
have used your recipe list to some degree and adapted it to my own needs
any help in creating new foods would be great but also what does annoy me
is ,i didn't ask for this but i deal with it and the alternatives to dairy
are so expensive and that's not fair and if you work for a living their
seems to be no help.
- Gordon
Hello
I can completely understand your frustration, especially given that after all these years and thousands spent you still seem not to have an exact diagnosis. I do agree that it can be quite costly to follow a diet that avoids certain food groups and requires specialist food products, though actually when it comes to Pure specifically, I知 sure you値l agree the products are pitched at a very affordable level. My main concern here is that you get better advice and professional help with your diet. If you have not yet seen a registered dietitian (whose specialist advice is free by the way) I strongly suggest that you do this. Sometimes doctors are reluctant to refer people, but you definitely should be seen by one, and preferably one that specialise in food allergies and intolerances. I wish you good luck!
5) I am trying to eat soya products occassionally as I have been told it can
help with weightloss. Can you tell me if this is myth or true? - Dan
Hi
There is evidence that soy may be beneficial on weight loss - possibly by having an effect on metabolism. There are a number of studies that have happened and are ongoing into this area, but as yet it's impossible to draw firm conclusions. However there is no harm in you regularly including soya foods in your diet and they have other health benefits - being rich in vitamins, minerals and protein. So even if they don't boost your weigh loss much you will still benefit!
6) Hi,
My daughter is a year old and is lactose intolerant since she was 5 weeks,
I was told that it shouldn''t last any longer than 6 months but it clearly
has as I have introduced dairy into her diet and it doesn't agree with
her at all. Now since she is a year old I am finding it hard to find a
lactose free milk to suit her. I was wondering if you could
recommend a milk for me?
Thank you -
Hi
I知 afraid I can稚 really recommend a lactose free milk that your daughter might like because it will be a quite personal taste preference. I知 also a bit worried that if she did not like one she might not like any of them. Have you considered rice or soya milk (calcium fortified) as other options? I would also talk to your health visitor - at the age of just one she may be better having follow on milks and the advice of a professional would be invaluable in this regard.
As she gets older perhaps you could also try adding a milk shake mix to a lactose free milk to make it a more pleasant drink?
