Hi Arielle. I think Janet provided good information (as always) for you on the topic. Whatever I have to tell you is anecdotal, based on my own experience. I find that if I stay away from a food I think is giving me trouble for at least 3-4 weeks and then reintroduce it, my body will tell me if it's rebelling against it.

I use half-and-half in my coffee and grass-fed butter on my food every day and do have a small portion of other dairy once in a while, like if I'm eating out and they put some in my salad.

I tell you this because you may not have to give up dairy altogether if at all; there may be a spectrum of tolerance, or there may be some dairy foods that sit well with you and others not. It's a lot about trial and error.

Thanks for reviving this thread. It was interesting reading my original posts from a year and a half ago, when I started out seriously low carbing. I ultimately did stick with and find success with Atkins, I needed the structure, but paleo/primal and Atkins OWL have many similarities as far as food choices.