Shocking Dairy Detox – This will blow your mind!
I am not a vegan… and not a vegetarian. I don’t have any strange eating habits .
But I have been a milk drinking, cheese eating dairy lover since I was a small child. I grew up drinking milk every single day in my breakfast cereal and as a snack after school and the drink served with dinner.
A while ago I cut out most of my milk drinking and replaced it with Soy milk. Of course now I am told that soy milk MIGHT be bad… mostly it’s one famous doctor who says soy milk is bad, and even though I have not seen any concrete evidence, the anti-soymilk campaign moves onward. That’s okay, because Almond milk tastes great and so does Oat milk… but I’m sure someone is already writing me an email to tell me the evils of these milks also.
*UPDATE: I am watching my carbs, so I now drink unsweetened Almond Milk. It’s yummy.
WARNING:
What I want to tell you is shocking…
I had no idea. Honestly. And I like to think that I am “in the know” about a lot of things.
Yes… I did know that dairy is loaded with fat and cholesterol. That is why I limited my intake of it, reasonably.
About a week ago my wife said she had been talking to a friend of her’s and that the two of them had decided to go a week off of dairy. They wanted to know if I would join them.
She had some printed pages that touted all the health benefits, but without a moment’s hesitation, I agreed to join them.
I grabbed the best dairy free cookbook I could find. (I needed the recipes to be easy to make, and Danielle Walker did just that) and I was ready to begin. Of course I ate a good deal of dairy on the weekend leading up to the Monday we began the 7 days of no dairy.
I wondered how great would I feel after a week of no dairy? Or perhaps nothing would seem different and 8 days later I would be enjoying a piece of cheese.
Mmmmm Cheese….
BOY WAS I WRONG
Giving up dairy was about as hard as I expected for the first couple of days. By the end of day two I was feeling pretty ill, which is out of the norm for me. Honestly, ever since I flipped my life upside down with the law of attraction I have become a high energy and healthy kind of guy. The kind of guy who always feels great.
Day three, instead of rolling out of bed with enthusiasm and excitement for the day ahead, I woke up feeling more tired than I was when I went to bed.
In fact, I felt groggy and brain foggy all day.
I’ll skip the day-to-day play-by-play, and tell you that for seven days straight I have felt terrible, in different ways. I can’t concentrate… I am experiencing headaches, which is something I never have.
I don’t have the deep down energy, and I tire easily. My stomach is bloated and I am retaining water.
My skin has broken out in three different kinds of rashes in three different places on my body. In general I am itchy… and honestly I am cranky. Strange emotions are coming up… anxiety and anger, which I have not felt in many… many years.
I am even late on the 11 cent sale I promised all of you…. because of this brain fog and lack of energy.
Long story short, going off dairy cold turkey causes the body to go into a detox. When I search online I find claims that going off dairy for one week will cause an entire gallon of mucus to exit your body. Obviously, things are not always pretty.
Today it is 10 days later, and I don’t have any desire to go back. Food tastes great without dairy. It seems that at the 10 day mark, for me at least, the cravings have mostly subsided.
Check out the HUGE list of Dairy Free Foods on Amazon. It’s crazy.
Seriously….
My body never went through this kind of hell when I quit smoking. Sure, I have cravings… and it was difficult… but I didn’t get bad breath, skin rashes, headaches, lack of energy, bloating, water retention, and a host of other not-so-pleasant physical problems.
The only craving I have is for cheese. I LOVED CHEESE. Now I know why…
THIS IS GOING TO BLOW YOU AWAY
Cheese is actually physically addictive… no kidding. I must have missed the Surgeon Generals Warning label on the block of cheese.
YOU WONT BELIEVE WHAT DRUG IS INSIDE CHEESE!!!
Check this out:
So here is an excerpt from an article in the Orlando Sentinel July 13 2003:
Of all the potentially addicting foods, cheese may be the most complex. In research studies using vegan and vegetarian diets to control cholesterol or reduce body weight, most participants soon forget the lure of ice cream, sour cream, and even burgers and chicken. But for many people, the taste for cheese lingers on and on. Yes, 70 percent of its calories may come from waist-augmenting fat, and, ounce for ounce, it may harbor more cholesterol than a steak. But that cheese habit is tough to break.Why is cheese so addicting? Certainly not because of its aroma, which is perilously close to old socks. The first hint of a biochemical explanation came in 1981, when scientists at Wellcome Research Laboratories in Research Triangle Park, N.C., found a substance in dairy products that looked remarkably like morphine. After a complex series of tests, they determined that, surprisingly enough, it actually was morphine. By a fluke of nature, the enzymes that produce opiates are not confined to poppies — they also hide inside cows’ livers. So traces of morphine can pass into the animal’s bloodstream and end up in milk and milk products. The amounts are far too small to explain cheese’s appeal. But nonetheless, the discovery led scientists on their search for opiate compounds in dairy products.
And they found them. Opiates hide inside casein, the main dairy protein. As casein molecules are digested, they break apart to release tiny opiate molecules, called casomorphins. One of these compounds has about one-tenth the opiate strength of morphine. The especially addicting power of cheese may be due to the fact that the process of cheese-making removes water,lactose and whey proteins so that casein is concentrated. Scientists are now trying to tease out whether these opiate molecules work strictly within the digestive tract or whether they pass into the bloodstream and reach the brain directly.
(some paragraphs about chocolate addiction snipped)
The cheese industry is miles ahead of them, having gone to great lengths to identify people who are most vulnerable to addiction. It dubs them “cheese cravers,” and tracks their age, educational level and other demographics so as to target them with marketing strategies that are tough to ignore. With a $200 million annual research and marketing budget, the dairy industry is not content to have you just sprinkling a little mozzarella on your salad. It is looking for those Americans who will eat it straight out of the package, whatever the cost to their waistlines or cholesterol levels.
At a “Cheese Forum” held Dec. 5, 2000, Dick Cooper, the vice president of Cheese Marketing for Dairy Management Inc., laid out the industry’s scheme for identifying potential addicts and keeping them hooked. In his slide presentation, which was released to our organization under the Freedom of Information Act, he asked the question, “What do we want our marketing program to do?” and then gave the answer: “Trigger the cheese craving.” He described how, in a partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the dairy industry launched Wendy’s Cheddar Lover’s Bacon Cheeseburger, which single-handedly pushed 2.25 million pounds of cheese during the promotion period. That works out to 380 tons of fat and 1.2 tons of pure cholesterol in the cheese alone. A similar promotion with Pizza Hut launched the “Ultimate Cheese Pizza,” which added an entire pound of cheese to a single pizza and sold five million pounds of it during a six-week promotion in 2000. The presentation concluded with a cartoon of a playground slide with a large spider web woven to trap children as they reached the bottom. The caption had one spider saying to another, “If we pull this off, we’ll eat like kings.”
I am sharing this with you because I care. I wish someone had told me how harsh detoxing could be.
I wish someone had told me how addictive Cheese can be. Or even mentioned the morphine compound found inside.
I’m the kind of guy who turns down pain pills, even after a surgery…
I never knew I was ingesting Morphine with my cheese and crackers.
So if you decide to clean your body up… and want to cleanse yourself without all the horrible side-effects that I have had… you really need to READ THIS NOW.
Overwhelmingly I support the Master Cleanser if you want to purify your body. (It’s just three bucks too!)
Me… I just made a split second decision to join my wife and her friend… I decided to make myself the subject of an experiment if you will…
For those of you wondering about my wife and her friend. YES… they had a rough ride also, including migraine headaches (much worse than mine), irritability, skin breakouts (body acne), and emotional instability (although don’t tell my wife I pointed that out… at least not until she is over the detoxing)
And that is what they cared to share… most people are not as forthcoming with their dirty details like I am. What can I say… I try to live my life like an open book… for all to see, observe and hopefully learn from my mistakes.
Oh yes… there has been a positive thing about this diary detox so far…. I have lost 5 pounds even though I feel like I am eating more than usual, and my wife has lost 4 pounds.. her friend didn’t offer up any weight related conversation.
SO… if you want to go off dairy please don’t let this scare you. Instead, just do it slowly. If I had known then what I know now, I would have simply cut my intake of dairy items down over a 2 – 3 week period and went off it slowly.
Knowing what I know now… I just can’t bring myself to ingest anything dairy.
Wishing you the best day,
The Audio Now!
I am now on day 9 of my “love of cheese” detox. It seems to me that after reading the comments, I would have to say that Jez seems to have had one of the easier times of getting off dairy. Could it be a dairy and wheat connection? I became a vegetarian about 6 months ago. I was never sure what to eat Besides fruits and vegetables, dairy became my favorite food group. I am now eating 60% raw without dairy But even now, I’d have to say a salad would still be better with a big hunk of cheese on top.
Thanks for the article and comments! I am currently at the end of my 3rd day dairy-free and it has been awfull! Flu-like symptoms, super low-energy, grumpy, brain-fog, bloated, and breaking out/skin rashes. I am going to stick with it until the worst is over. I have been a vegetarian for 14 years but have been having severe allergies for the last year. I am really hoping going off dairy will help with my allergies and general health and well-being.
I am on day 2 of no dairy,I getting mild pains in bottom of my stomach,very regular bowel movements and bizzarely appear to have black eyes
I am on day 3 of dairy free and gluten free. I removed sugars about 2 months, but I’ve always been plagued by severe under eye circles. I mean like two black eyes and NOTHING has worked to date, not even makeup can cover it using color wheel correction techniques (like orange, green and blue theater makeup). Going back to strict low carb has produced even more prominent eye circles that I can’t ignore. MOst likely b/c my diet is HIGH in cheese and cream. Decided to go GFCF for 2 weeks to determine if I see any improvement. I’m on day 3 and the only thing I’ve noted is nausea at night. Strange. I googled dairy detox and found this, so thanks for the insight. I totally forgot the casein connection. My dd was diagnosed with autism 3 years ago, so I’m familiar with the abilities of casein and GFCF (gluten free/casein free).
People may also want to note that gluten works the same way. It’s the peptides that are believed to leak from the gut, typically due to a yeast problem, and then seep into the blood stream and affect the brain by binding to the opiate receptors.
Also, my dd has been GFCF for years and we’ve tried just about every DF cheese on the market. There are two that I can recommend that are GFCF (no gluten or dairy). One is soy based and is by Galaxy, it does really melt. http://www.galaxyfoods.com/Products/SoyCheese/Vegan/index.html
and
Daiya Cheeses, http://www.daiyafoods.com/
Good luck.
Day 25 of no dairy. Honestly, no difference other than weight loss. I only drank a tiny bit of no-fat milk in my coffee before, but ate a lot of cheese and yogurt. I plan to keep dairy out of my diet though. The longer you’re away from it, the more you realize how unhealthy those chunks of fat-packed, bowel-blocking cheese really are. The dairy industry has done a great job of convincing Americans how vital dairy is to our diets (money rules all). I’ll be curious to see my latest cholesterol level as I was trying to drop it down from 205.
I am on day 2 of very low dairy, wheat and refined sugars. I’m hoping to reduce symptoms of stomach bloating, period pains, lethargy and hayfever. Have only been eating fresh fruit and vegies and wholegrain pasta and rice and reduced wheat bread. I have nutalex instead of margarine/butter and honey iinsead of sugar. I have been feeling like I have morning sickiness all day! So have been eating cruskits and dry crackers, but this is not helping. My stomach is unsettled all the time and feels hungry constanty, but whatever I eat won’t satisfy and makes me feel worse. I hope it gets better. Reading your article and all the responses has ispired me to continue
You’ve got all symptoms and you’re only in day 2? I too am on day 2, but haven’t felt any different so far. I expect to only feel/look better as the days go by.
where to start. at fifty yrs old my lovely pink complexion became angry red, w bumps and pimple like things i never had, the doctor said ROSACEA. tried everything, EVERYTHING, i was a dog with a bone on this…..went on a 7 day fast w fresh green juice and wheat grass and sprouts and everything cleared up. no meat, no sugar, no nothing. had major detox, from caffein, meat, sugar, dairy withdrawals, etc, didn’t know from what. anyway, went back to my diet, slowly, and everything came back. lethargy, foggy brain, rosacea. uggh. found a doctor in ventura county and research scientist of 25 years, and dermatologist and ucla professor who told me unequivocally i had a dairy allergy, just by looking at my face. and my symptoms are mild compared to many others. many other doctors over the years never checked and didn’t tell me this. she showed me hundreds of her patients with dairy in the diet pictures and without dairy in their diet pictures , sometimes in just weeks or months the difference was ASTOUNDING !! anyway, it’s a little challenging, but i am off. about a week, no withdrawals yet, but that’s maybe because i have done this before. i know it may take up to a year or two to reverse things, but i plan to be here for the long run. it’s hard but i want to tell everyone with skin problems GET OFF THE DAIRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oh oh, for some reason she says goat and sheep cheese is okay! i use almond milk unsweetened in my cereal. and any vegan things at whole foods are dairy free of course. olive oil instead of butter…….Thanks for the great work, i didn’t even know what to expect. the doc didn’t tell me what to anticipate. took two months to get an appt with her, btw.
Searching the interwebs to find others having dairy withdrawal symptoms and hit the mother lode here. Ditto to all of the above. End of day two and I am miserable. Constant headache, blood sugar swings, lethargy, burning scalp, and cravings, cravings, cravings! I jumped off the milk and cheese and yogurt bandwagon just to see if my recurring IBS might be lactose related. But now having experienced this I’m not going back on dairy whether the IBS goes or stays. I gave up nicotine three years ago and caffeine one year ago and they were nothing compared to this. Thanks to all for sharing your experiences.
Yet another one with a long laundry list of withdrawal symptoms after only day two. I too am on day two and don’t expect to have any symptoms other than feeling and looking better. Gotta be optimistic!
WOW, this information has blown me away. I decided to cut down on dairy as a new years resolution. Am doing quite well so far. I found this site by googling ‘cutting out dairy allergic reaction’ as I’m getting very itchy patches especially on my hands. I will pursevere. Maybe we should start a cheeseaholicks annonymus.
I hear ya!!!
I just had to mention that when my husband and I had our daughter in to see our naturopath for food allergies, she mentioned that the proteins in wheat and dairy (gluten or gliadin and caesin) actually cross the blood brain barrier, and cause a “stoned” effect! This ties in to your morphine comment, there is definately something there. I have celiac disease, and am also allergic to dairy and am in the break up process! Wish me luck, I am also going cold turkey as I have no other choice really~it is too painful. Thanks for sharing.
I found this looking to see if there was such a thing as “dairy detox” and if so, is a symptom skin breakouts. This is happening to both my daughter and I and we are over two weeks dairy free. Weight is dropping fast, energy improvements have been noticed, as well as some weak and dizzy spells and tears. I mostly wanted to let readers know that many substitute products for dairy, have carangeenan (a seaweed) in them. Though seaweed is “natural” it is MSG, an excitotoxin. It will first excite the brain, make the product taste great, and get you addicted to the “excited brain” feeling, all the while, brain cell death is the result of the excitation. In short, it too is addictive and causes central nervous system damage. Look out for it and demand that manufacturers take it out. FYI, mercury in the brain, represses the brains ability to remove excess glutamic acid ( aspartic acid) . Both gluten and casien create glutamic acid in the brain. Without the excess being able to get removed, the brain gets inflamed, cells swell and then cell death occurs. mercury toxicity may be the main reason behind dairy and gluten allergies. The body is trying to get you to stop the brain damage these proteins are causing because of the mercury messing with the removal system. demand mercury be removed from EVERYTHING!!!
This is great info. I’m on day 5 of total dairy detox. Prior to which I was on the Primal Diet, so dairy is my only real dietary hang-up. I’ve suffered sinus infections my whole life and only in the last three years, I can barely get through a few weeks without one. Sick of taking sudafed, and already cleaning out my diet to only meats, vegetables, fruits, and greens – diary was the final thing. I’ve been bloated and head-foggy, and emotional, and today nauseated, with bad stomach and bowels. I just barely started to throw off some mucus but underneath it all, I have a sense of wellness creeping up on me. It’s hard to explain how I can feel so bad but sense how right it was to quit the dairy. Thanks for posting this article and thanks to other viewer comments. Before reading this, I thought something was terribley wrong – and now I realize this is wonderfully RIGHT.
I’ve been off dairy for about 10 days now. I never experienced any of the awful detox symptoms that some others are having. I have had sinus problems for years, and with every sinus infection, I am left with a lingering cough that will last for months. People look at me like I have TB or something. I’ve known for years that I was most likely lactose intollerent. I never eat ice cream and rarely eat cereal because I always feel so bad afterwards…and have terrible stomach issues. What I didn’t realize was what the milk was doing for my sinuses and respiratory system. Within 24 hours of going comptetely off dairy (including my precious cheese), I could feel a difference. And, within 3 days I was already feeling like a new person. I have more energy than I’ve had in years!! I’ve lost weight and mostly if can tell how much my waistline has gone down. I’m going to the bathroom like crazy, and I finally feel like I’m getting a healthy gut. My cough has gone away that has been with me for 2 months now. Yea!
I went gluten free with my son a month ago and have found it pretty easy. Tried going off dairy for a week and only made it 2 days. I thought my nerves were going to make me jump out of my skin. I had trouble sleeping and concentrating. I was so shocked at how my body responded to no milk that I had to do some research. I thought milk was my friend all these years. After reading all of these posts, I am determined to try again but more slowly.My body is not real fond of soy……..going off dairy is sooo much more difficult!!!
Hello there. Glad I found this thread. Everybody seems to have different experiences, but nevertheless the withdrawal symptoms are definitely there. I’m on day 7 and have so far experienced extreme lethargy, flu-like symptoms and grumpiness, whilst at the same time feeling “clean” inside my body if this makes sense.
Been a vegetarian for most of my life and have always eaten plenty of cheese and yogurts in order to get lots of protein. Then went on a very slow and sensible weight loss programme where I reduced my sugar intake a great deal. But even though I lost 3 1/2 stone and did feel better physically as a result, I still had this constant underlying feeling of being ill without knowing why. I’m now hoping that removing dairy from my diet will help me to become healthier. Will post again in six months or so. 🙂
I am soooo happy I found this web-page!!!! I have been living on whey protein drinks for too many years & have been feeling very convicted about it. I know I should stop. I just got a vegan/gluten free/raw protein powder to replace my whey. But I love love love cheese. Even though I only eat fat free cheese & skim milk I know it is still bad. I am scared of the withdraws I may get, but I know I need to do it! This article has convinced me! My diet consists of whey protein powder all day & then salad with feta cheese and some chicken. Oh & when I binge, it is tons of cheese, cookies, cakes all the way, all with dairy in them! I am hoping getting off the dairy will help my weight issues & oily skin problems??? I am seriously addicted to cheese. I hope I am strong enough to refrain from it forever!! Anyone use any cheese substitutes??? I know silly to ask. I am not a soy person at all. Sooo Lets see how this goes. I hope there will be more testimonies on here or on other blogs/websites….
I have been off dairy for five days now. (Never big on drinking milk, but a dedicated lover of cheese and ice-cream) I have not struggled with the sacrifice as much as I expected but it might have something to do with the fact I am incorporating more raw foods into my diet. So I have been downing a lot of green smoothies and snacking on fruit. This seems to give me a lot of energy. So far my sinus issues have improved and my skin looks better. Unfortunately, I have been experience some headaches which could possibly be dairy withdrawal, at least according to this site.
morphine isn’t just in the cheese. it’s in the crackers too: gluten.
pizza zombies:
http://www.13.waisays.com/zombie.htm
If you want to help yourself be put off by cheese, also do some research on how much puss is allowed in dairy products! Uugh!
Wow. Now it’s been a little over a week without dairy and gluten for me and without dairy for my husband. We are both so exhausted! day 1-2 I felt uncomfortable in my stomach but the bloating feeling disappeared. We both had runny noses for 4 days. My husband stopped snoring completely.. so altogether great changes. I am hoping the tiredness will disappear soon.
I don’t think I will go back having dairy any time soon.
I’am a vegetarian for 1.5years ( now being April 2011 ), and in December 2010 i’ve decided to be a vegan, starting with January 2011. The first 3 days were tricky, but after 7 days, I got used to it, and I was feeling great, light, and full of energy. It’s something I recommend to active people. My only problem was that I got bored., and so, I’ve quit. Don’t do that.
Please! Will you cut out this crap!? Dairy is addictive wooooo! Go vegans, die of protein deficiencies! We are… wait for it…omnivores! That means we have evolved to eat …everything! Yes you can give up dairy products if ou want to, you can give up all meat proteins if you want to, but you will not be healthier because we have evolved to process meat proteins, we are good at it, and it is good for us. Please, please, learn the science and give up the crap!
why cut meat? no dairy is good and it doesn’t mean no meat too 😉
You know, I could have wrote this a little while ago, before I felt like I was drowning in that gallon of Mucus. No one loves(loved?) cheese more than me! But not all animal products are the same! Dairy is a delicate protein, and cooking doesn’t help it. THink about the piece of cheese when you are gasping for air, like me.
It’s true we evolved to eat meat proteins. However, we did NOT evolve to consume dairy products. That is relatively new (at least in the scope of our evolutionary timeline). I am a die-hard meat eater, but I am giving up dairy after reading the research that whey protein causes (in some people) a disproportionate spike in insulin (the fat storage hormone). I did the dairy free week long challenge and lost 5 pounds without dieting at all. It’s also true that dairy contains morphine compounds; wheat does as well. Just something to keep in mind when you mix up a bowl of mac & cheese.
Mark, thanks for trolling.
Mark, That’s the addition talking.
Wow, this article is getting over 400 visits a day!
Thank you Stumble Users. 🙂
I am glad that I am able to help any fellow dairy detoxers.
I’d love to hear some of your success stories, so be sure to come back in a week or two and let us all know how you feel.
After all the nasty detoxing was over, my energy went through the roof. I’d love to know if that is the norm for most people who go off dairy.
– John
53 Comments! Be sure to visit page 1 of the comments if you missed them. 🙂
Mark,
Did you read the article before you started bashing me as a Vegan?
The VERY FIRST LINE of this article is:
“I am not a vegan… and not a vegetarian”
The rest of your comment appears to be about eating meat. I hate to break it to you Mark, but this post is NOT about meat. It is about dairy.
Just in case you need a definition of the word “not” I will include it below.
not
–adverb
1.
(used to express negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition): You must not do that. It’s not far from here.
Hope that helps Mark.
For the record, I have nothing against Vegans. I just don’t happen to be one myself.
Hello
I looked this up because a week ago today, my sons doctor suggested highly that he go dairy free. We decided to do it together as a family and for us that is a huge deal.. We cheese everything. While I must say I have not actually struggled with this, today I am SICK!!! My head is killing me my neck and and shoulders feel as if I have been beaten. I am a mmigraine sufferer and this is entirely different. I feel miserable but weak and wierd. I am thinking do I need a doctor or is this the lack of casein, and or other dairy villans.
I was looking for info on dairy because I tried to give it up and I actually went a month off it. I had finally gotten over the nasal stuffiness. My problem was like your wife’s. Emotional instability.. it kicked in around the fourth week. OMG, I was having anxiety and then I started getting paranoid! I was freaking..and I just gave up and went back on dairy.
Then the emotional.. and mental issues just stopped. Never mind 7 days. This all happened after being off an entire month! I think my detoxing was lasting a lot longer!
Greetings! Very useful advice in this particular post! It’s the little changes which will make the largest changes. Thanks for sharing!
Wow…I can’t believe comments I read sometimes…if u are an omnivore who cares! But don’t make annoying comments about how people need to learn about “science” and realize meat is good for you because humans have evolved. I mean honestly, this article is not even about meat it’s about DAIRY PRODUCTS. Second, most humans have NOT developed to process their digestive tract to succesfully process meat the way a true omnivore does. Don’t fool yourself. But also it’s not to say that you shouldn’t enjoy meat and dairy products, as long as you know how it affects your body!!