Help remind me why I don't need to give DS milk

[capsgirl08]

He hasn't appeared anaphylactic to milk when I've consumed it (so, via BM) and I've not yet given him any milk directly. He is 13mo.

I have failed in getting it out of my diet. I am corn/egg/gluten/latex/nightshade free. And I just am having the hardest time quitting the dairy. I will be good for 5 days, and then I ruin it. I also wind up dreaming and thinking, well, he isn't reacting the way I thought he would (he is sleeping long stretches, no screaming at night, no extra eczema, etc.) so I think, it must be ok...right?

Then I have the pedi GI in our family saying he *needs* it for his brain, the folate...blahblah. I know he can get folate and fat elsewhere, but whenever I pass the yogurt aisle at the store, I forget all that, and today I actually bought some plain organic yogurt for DS. I haven't given him any. I just don't understand my own desire to give it to him...but there's still this fear that maybe I'm doing more harm than good by "depriving" him of milk.

What do you give for fat?

Stuff I do give...I do bone broths, give dark meats, chicken livers 1x/month, broccoli, blueberries, apples, pears, we actually passed carrots...

Anyway, it's late and I guess I just felt like seeing all the reasons we're OK without dairy listed out would help keep me from potentially doing/keep doing something damaging...

Thanks, everyone, more than you know!

[Shirada]

Because he is not a baby cow, comes to mind as a quick answer

[kjbrown92]

Read this entire website: www.dogtorj.net. If you don't have time, just read this part: http://www.dogtorj.net/id23.html. Then get back to me about why you want to do this to him (and yourself).

[deditus]

You're breastfeeding, right? Then that is whole milk, all your child needs. We certainly didn't evolve drinking milk from other species. We are meant to drink mama milk until we wean, and then we aren't meant to drink milk.

For fat, we add fat to just about everything. We use coconut oil, olive oil, lard from pastured pigs, bacon grease, & palm shortening (and CLO and fish oil). I add coconut milk to smooties and dd loves coconut milk yogurt. We have nuts or something with nut butter for a snack and coconut oil smeared on everything. Oh yeah, avocados, too. It's our mayo replacement. We eat tuna, salmon, and sardines.

[capsgirl08]

Oh my gosh. Thanks, Kathy. I didn't get to read all of even the shortened link, but oh my gosh. I knew MSG gave me migraines, and I started to think gluten gave me migraines too, but couldn't figure out the reason and if there was even a link. That suspicion has pretty much been confirmed now. During my gluten binge around Easter, I was getting migraines every few days if I was in bright light. Anyway, I really, really appreciate the link. Need to read it all, still.

Forgot to put that I'm not doing soy or coconut. My lip swells (a little itchy, raised bump) whenever I drink coconut milk/juice or eat anything with coconut oil. I was also hesitant to give coconut oil to DS since he's only 13mo. Bummer because it's so tasty. Good ideas for other fat sources, though.

[capsgirl08]

Deditus, yes, I'm still BFing and want to go as long as possible. Worried, though. DS seems unsatisfied and upset -- like I'm not making enough and he still wants more. Need to look into ways to keep up supply. In the meantime, I'm just chugging water since it's already so hot down in Texas.

[deditus]

Oh, 13 months was a really big growth spurt for my dd, maybe he is just in the middle of that! About that time, I used milk thistle to help my supply and it worked well (I needed extra milk for my niece when sil had kidney stones).

[dannic]

The fact that it is hard for YOU to let go of it signals allergy addiction--gluten and casien being the worst culprits for this...Have you read The Mood Cure? Ross explains this well, IMO. Chromium piccolanate and glutamine are both good for cravings, though I'd check the chromium first...glutamine is also good for gut healing...hope this helps!!!

[Pattyla]

You may need more good fats in your diet. Fat is one thing that passes through you into bm w/o changing. So the more omega 3's you eat the more he gets. Etc. I know one woman who noticed a big increase in her supply from starting fish oil supplementation.

I'm not sure what you can eat. Fish? Palm oil? Lard? flax oil? Hemp? Chicken skin?

[AFWife]

Subbing

MIL is one that believes you NEED cow milk as part of a healthy diet...no matter how many times I say "but we aren't calves"

[claddaghmom]

I feel the same way. I have tried kicking my addiction to dairy and after a few days I give in. It is an addiction. I would hazard to say the majority of Americans are addicted and don't know it.

I remember when my mom switched to a TF/vegetarian diet b/c dairy was the first thing to go. For 2 weeks we suffered. That's how long it took to get it out of our systems. I was a small child and still have the memory of that process. :

I sure would like to get back to that...but until I reach a point in my life where I can completely control our entire diet and meals, it's not gonna happen.

[mamafish9]

For maybe a bit different viewpoint - I think milk and dairy can be part of a very nutritious diet. I don't think they have to be, but I don't think they're evil, either. I think some people don't tolerate cow's milk casein well (but I laugh when I read people talk about casein like it's the devil - it's a major ingredient in human breastmilk too, just a slightly different form).

I personally think the reason cow's milk, corn, wheat, and soy are major allergens is that those are the crops we have engineered and altered the most, and the ones we have dumped in every possible food. But I'm not convinced that older forms like spelt, A2 casein (produced by many cows, just not the milk industry ones here in the US), non-GMO corn, aren't foods that many people could eat in moderation.

I'm trying to introduce goat's milk yogurt and kefir again for my son - I want the beneficial help for his gut. I want him to have a food he loves (yogurt).