Casein Vs. Lactose Intolerance

[Katsby]

I react to dairy, that's all I know. It's an extremely violent intestinal reaction too which is terrible that takes a few days to get over. It's been going on for a couple years now, but lately it has gotten worse or maybe I just think it's worse because I'm no longer reacting to other things now that they're out of my diet.

This might sound crazy, but I had a terrible reaction to parmesan cheese the other day, and I thought parmesan was ok since it had little lactose in it. I thought I was just lactose intolerant, though I've never been tested. I can't even stomach butter anymore. I've been avoiding any and all baked goods too lately because most contain dairy.

I want to get tested, but I thought that if I had a problem with casein I'd have more than just digestive issues. I'm so confused because lactaid doesn't seem to help me. I have problems with milk, icecream, hard cheeses, soft cheeses, everything. I can't seem to stomach anything. It's really upsetting because it all tastes so good, but I don't want to be sick.

So my question is are the reactions different? What do they test for when they test for each? Do i need to see an allergist? Can I get my GP to test for these things (since I can get in quicker) or should I go to my GI Dr. who takes 2 months or more to see? Thanks for any help.

[MySuicidalTurtle]

My reactions to both were similar and painful. I am not sure about testing but if you know you get sick from eating them even with lactaid then you already know you have a problem. My doctor said testing was not necessary if I felt better when I was dairy-free.

There are alternatives if you still want to eat those types of food. Rice/soy milk for cooking, baking, or drinking and dairy-free butter is pretty good. There is only one brand of vegan (casein and lactose-free) (Open Original Shared Link) that I like but a lot of soy/rice ice creams are yummie. There is dairy-free chocolate, too.

Good luck and I hope you feel better.

[Mango04]

The reactions aren't always different. Both lactose and casein can cause intestinal distress. Casein often causes other problems as well (especially sinus-related issues) but does not have to.

It sounds like cutting out dairy completely would really benefit you. I've never heard of a casein intolerance test, except the one from Enterolab. Honestly though, if you know it makes you so sick, you might want to just take it out of your diet for now and explore some alternatives. If it seems too hard, think of it as a temporary dietary change. Reintroduce the low-lactose/high casein dairy foods after about six weeks and see how you feel.

[Katsby]

The reactions aren't always different. Both lactose and casein can cause intestinal distress. Casein often causes other problems as well (especially sinus-related issues) but does not have to.

It sounds like cutting out dairy completely would really benefit you. I've never heard of a casein intolerance test, except the one from Enterolab. Honestly though, if you know it makes you so sick, you might want to just take it out of your diet for now and explore some alternatives. If it seems too hard, think of it as a temporary dietary change. Reintroduce the low-lactose/high casein dairy foods after about six weeks and see how you feel.

Thanks I think I will do that.

[Katsby]

My reactions to both were similar and painful. I am not sure about testing but if you know you get sick from eating them even with lactaid then you already know you have a problem. My doctor said testing was not necessary if I felt better when I was dairy-free.

There are alternatives if you still want to eat those types of food. Rice/soy milk for cooking, baking, or drinking and dairy-free butter is pretty good. There is only one brand of vegan (casein and lactose-free) (Open Original Shared Link) that I like but a lot of soy/rice ice creams are yummie. There is dairy-free chocolate, too.

Good luck and I hope you feel better.

Thanks for the suggestions. I will go to whole foods and look up the dairy free butter. That's mainly the one thing I feel like I can't live without, but if there's a good alternative I'll be fine.

[tom]

While it maybe shouldn't be tried immediately, many of us w/ casein problems w/ cow's milk are fine w/ goat casein.

All milk has casein, but the molecules are all different. I've read that smaller mammals' milk have smaller casein molecules, tho I don't remember whether that was in a reliable source of info.

Anyway, I've found some great goat cheeses - there's the basic Chevre that is usually 1st thought of when anyone says 'goat cheese', but I've found fantastic fetas, goudas, & a mozzarella. Mmmmmm-MMM!!