gluten-free Rice Milk?

[Sunshine67]

I don't have celiacs, but I have Hashimoto's and was told to go gluten free. I'm also lactose intolerant so I started drinking rice milk (Rice Dream and TJ's brand), but now I've read both contain gluten. The other brands I saw at Whole Foods contained carreagean, which I also cannot have. Other restrictions are soy and almonds. Can anyone tell me which brands of rice milk are truely gluten free and also carreagean and soy free?

[elk]

I've never found a rice milk that doesn't contain chemicals, junk, msg, etc. I know you can make your own almond milk, but I've never tried it (at this point though I'll be looking into it). There should be a recipe on msgmyth.com.

[Sunshine67]

I can't eat almonds. Would it be better than to just drink lactose free milk?

[curiousgirl]

OMG! I was just getting ready to post about rice milk....TJ's brand! I've been having symptoms, too. I REALLY need to read labels ALWAYS!

It's difficult to tell when I'm glutened or having an allergic reaction to something because I don't get D or vomiting (thank God). I have OAS (oral allergy symptoms) to certain foods (watermelon that I KNOW of) and have had OAS recently. I was suspicious of the rice milk, but it could have been my homemade pesto (basic, evoo, garlic, pine nuts, asiago cheese). Since I don't know if I'm allergic to dairy, or tree nuts (I'm suspicious) I couldn't say for sure.

I'm still having problems even after being gluten-free for 4 months. I've switched to gluten-free shampoo, face & hand cleanser, and moisturizer. If I buy "convenient" food, it's always gluten free (but then I don't know if I'm allergic to any of the ingredients in them). When I cook for myself, it's always gluten-free (hence my homemade pesto). I understand that when we go gluten-free, other food allergies could begin to show up. And now that allergy season is here (for me anyway) I'm frustrated with which it is.

I haven't changed out my toaster oven yet, but after all this time could it be one of the culprits????

I've been threatening myself with going dairy free for a long time now (I drink Lactaid milk but am confused about the casean/dairy thing...don't eat ice cream or anything but a little cheese (only 1 ounce in my whole batch of pesto...and i only use about 1 Tbs of that when I use it).

So glad you posted about the rice milk though!

[i-geek]

I haven't tried hemp or coconut milks, but might those be options? I've seen both at Whole Foods recently and I'm betting health food stores would stock at least one. You could try lactose-free milk if you're sure it's lactose that is the problem and not casein. I love the Organic Valley lactose-free milk when my gut is happy and I can handle casein. When I'm glutened, I can't digest it at all.

[curiousgirl]

I haven't tried hemp or coconut milks, but might those be options? I've seen both at Whole Foods recently and I'm betting health food stores would stock at least one. You could try lactose-free milk if you're sure it's lactose that is the problem and not casein. I love the Organic Valley lactose-free milk when my gut is happy and I can handle casein. When I'm glutened, I can't digest it at all.

I'm not sure about either one (lactose or casein). But, you've helped just by identifying that they're 2 different things and thank you. My search continues.......

[Sunshine67]

What's the difference between lactose and casein? I know I'm not allergic to milk, just can't eat anything dairy without it upsetting my stomach and getting bloated and gassy (cheese doesn't have as bad a reaction).

[psawyer]

What's the difference between lactose and casein?

Lactose is the sugar found in milk. Casein is the protein in milk.

[Sunshine67]

How do you know which one is causing the problem? Are there different symptoms?

[curiousgirl]

How do you know which one is causing the problem? Are there different symptoms?

Same question from me. I hope someone will follow-up on this one.

[GlutenFreeManna]

What's the difference between lactose and casein? I know I'm not allergic to milk, just can't eat anything dairy without it upsetting my stomach and getting bloated and gassy (cheese doesn't have as bad a reaction).

This sounds like lactose intolerance to me. Cheese does not have as much lactose in it as milk or ice cream so that's why you don't have as bad of a reaction to cheese. Hard cheeses (like cheddar) are lower in lactose. You may also be able to tolerate yogurt because the enzymes break down the lactose making it easier to digest.

As to you original question I have yet to find a rice milk that is gluten free AND soy free. You could try making your own at home. Here's a blog post about how to make rice milk: Open Original Shared Link

[Sunshine67]

I actually can't tolerate yogurt either. Thanks for the link.

[GlutenFreeManna]

I actually can't tolerate yogurt either. Thanks for the link.

Then either you are very lactose intolerant or it's casein. I don't really know a way to tell them apart. Maybe someone else can explain how. All I know is that I was like that at first (not able to tolerate even yogurt or lactose-free milk) but after 5 or 6 months completely dairy free I was able to add yogurt and low-lactose cheese back in to my diet.

Another thing you can try is goat's milk. Some people are able to tolerate goats milk even though it has the same amount of lactose/casein. I don't know why but goat cheese and goat milk never bothered me. I still use the powdered goats milk in baking things calling for milk.

[elocin71]

Another thing you can try is goat's milk. Some people are able to tolerate goats milk even though it has the same amount of lactose/casein. I don't know why but goat cheese and goat milk never bothered me. I still use the powdered goats milk in baking things calling for milk.

This is explained in the book "The Devil in the Milk". Basically there are two kinds of milks produced by animals. The majority of cows we get milk from are the A1 type. (There are some A2's around but we don't discriminate in the US.)

"What is A1 and A2 milk?

Milk contains many types of proteins. The proportion of various proteins can be quite different in the milk from different breeds of cows and in the milk from other animals.

Of the six major protein types in cow's milk, four are casein proteins and the other two are whey proteins. The caseins usually make up about 80% of the protein in cow's milk. One of the major caseins is beta -casein. There are different beta casein types, but the most common are beta casein A1 (milk high in this type is known as A1 milk) and beta casein A2 (milk high in this type is known as A2 milk).

Certain breeds of cows, such as Friesians, produce mostly A1 milk, whereas other breeds, such as Guernseys, as well as sheep and goats, produce mostly A2 milk. Milk produced in Australia and New Zealand is normally a mix of A1 and A2 milks."

Open Original Shared Link

The book explains why exactly people can drink A2 milk without having the same reactions. Unfortunately I don't currently have the brain capacity to hold on to more than the general idea, but if you're curious, get the book from your library. it's chocked full of research and studies.