I have a friend who is interested in low-carbing but she has a milk/dairy allergy. She is not lactose intolerant, she has a reaction to something called caesin which is in milk and cheese projducts.

I know that according to Atkins you restrict cheese intake for the first part of the diet ayway, but as they say (or at least they say now) a little cheese can go a long way in satisfaction. She also cannot cook using butter.

I am really only familiar with the Atkins diet at this point, though I am reading Protein Power for general knowledge. Does anyone know of a low-carb plan that would be easier for her to do? Or have any suggestions for dealing with the allergy?

I don't know that there is a specific answer to be found, I'm just fishing for information at this point.

Hi Ogden,

I have been "allergic" to milk since I was born. I never have figured out if it's the lactose or the casein. For the past 20 years I didn't eat a single thing with milk products in it.

Then I tried frozen yogurt and tolerated it okay (so long as I took Lactaid and didn't eat too much of it).

I have found, much to my surprise, that since I've been LCing I can actually eat cream cheese and butter without any negative effects! One of the benefits of LCing is that it may reduce the severity of allergies as it helps even out hormone levels.

You can low carb without ever touching milk products. Olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil, mayo, nuts and nut butters are great sources of the necessary fat since she can't do butter. I cook with olive oil, coconut oil, and sesame oil. For margarine as a butter substitute, I would use one of the new ones that doesn't contain any trans fats. I used to get a dairy free margarine at the health food store, but they stopped carrying it.

There are soy substitutes for cheeses, but I don't tolerate soy very well at all so I don't use them.

Your friend probably already takes a calcium supplement--and if she doesn't, she should. And calcium combined with magnesium is important to take when LCing.

hth,
Pokey One

Thanks very much, that's very encouraging! I'll pass the info along!