The other day I ordered a Starbucks green-tea Frappuccino, which I usually get with soy milk. I drank it at my desk without thinking much of it. When I had only about two sips left, however, I began feeling . . . funny. I looked at the cup. I had forgotten to order it with soy milk. Crap. I had just consumed an entire grande drink with 2% milk.
Ever since taking an Everlywell food-sensitivity test (my review here), I had been avoiding milk more than usual because the test revealed I was “moderately sensitive” to it. Now here was the real test. As it turned out, it was only the first of two tests in one day. After this day, I’m sold on living dairy free.
Despondent dairy diaries
Shortly after I drank the Frappuccino, I felt drugged. I was sluggish. I wanted to lie down. I found it hard to concentrate. My head was foggy. This feeling, I recognized, was the infamous “brain fog.”
About an hour later, I felt better. That evening, I went to a function, which was lovely. I felt pretty much normal. Then, on my way home, I went to Boston Market and picked up a side-item sampler with creamed spinach, mac & cheese, and steamed vegetables, with a corn muffin. I ate the fresh steamed vegetables first, then the rest. I spent about 10 minutes practicing Chinese on Duolingo, then my husband handed me the Oculus Rift headset and I began playing XING: The Land Beyond. I selected one of the realms and began the journey. It’s a neat game, or so it seems. I can’t say, really, because after only ten minutes I had to take the headset off. I felt sick. Woozy, lightheaded. A bit nauseous. And very, very tired. “I don’t feel so good. I feel sick,” I said, taking off the headset.
I went to go lie down. Had I caught something? I began to mentally rewind recent events. About a week ago, one of my coworkers had fallen ill with a 24-hour bug; but too many days had passed; that couldn’t be it. I worried maybe I picked something up through my interactions that day. I had stopped into the Hallmark store; the cashier seemed healthy. I went to the evening function after work — I shook hands with a couple of people; they seemed healthy though. I went to Boston Market and . . . ohh. I thought back on the Frappuccino. Was that it? I was on dairy overload.
After about 20 minutes, at about 10:30pm, I fell asleep. An hour later, at 11:40, I awoke, still tired, but no longer lightheaded. Though definitely not at 100%, I was less nauseous and no longer felt like I had the flu.
I looked at Boston Market’s website. The spinach was mixed with cream cheese, Parmesan, and butter. The mac & cheese contained cheeses and possibly some milk. Undeniably both contained a lot of dairy. I lay in bed googling the affects of dairy allergies.
At 1:11 a.m., I fell asleep again.
At 3 a.m., I woke again. This night was definitely a contender for the 2018 Worst Night’s Sleep Award. All because of what? The mac & cheese and creamed spinach and a milk-based Frappuccino! That’s it, I thought: No more dairy.
What is it about dairy? The kismet of casein
Everlywell had concluded I was “moderately sensitive” to cow’s milk. It tests for milk’s primary proteins, which are casein (80%) and whey (20%). The major culprit to my brain fog is casein. Cream, half and half, yogurt, sour cream, ice cream, butter, and cheese all contain casein. Substitutes like coconut, almond, and soy milks do not.
Casein contains protein fragments called casomorphins, which — the reason cheese can be so addicting — have an opioid effect. As we all know, milk is a product produced by mothers (whether human or cow) for the purpose of nurturing babies. Milk’s opioid effect helps to calm the baby and “has a drug-like effect on the baby’s brain that ensures that the baby will bond with Mom,” writes Dr. Neal Barnard in Breaking the Food Seduction: The Hidden Reasons Behind Food Cravings.
Does feta or other goat’s milk products contain casein? Because milk from all mothers contains casein, yes. However, because the protein composition differs, so may its allergenic effects. According to Ask Dr. Sears, “goat’s milk contains only trace amounts of an allergenic casein protein, alpha-S1, found in cow’s milk” but “similar levels of the other allergenic protein, beta lactoglobulin” found in cow’s milk. Basically, the effects are via trial-and-error.
However, when you have a sensitivity to casein, the effects are compounded even more. Which is why I need to stay away from milk.
New efforts to consciously avoid of dairy
After this experience, I am paying more attention to what foods I eat and how they make me feel. The adage “we are what we eat” is true in many respects. And I am happiest being clear headed.
I also find that having no dairy gets easier the more I abstain, probably because of its addictive properties (thanks again, casein). As a friend recently divulged, when she has one tiny piece of cheese she suddenly wants more. However, when I don’t have cheese, I don’t miss it.
Yet, that is. I haven’t been offered a slice of pizza yet.
