New , Confused and need help!

[moogiemoo]

HI to everyone, I am so pleased I have found this site and feel a little ray of hope . Up until recently I have been back and forward to the various doctors having lots of probing and examinations to be told IBS. I decided to have a food intolerance test with a local health store which tested for 81 foods and drink and came back as cows milk intolerance . This was 6 weeks ago and I feel very confused! I have eliminated milk , butter , chocolate and as much as I could with anything with cows milk in and after 3 weeks I must admit the IBS symptons cleared up so at the 4 week stage I started to re introduce things back into my diet which have resulted in being back to square one! I think the hardest thing is not knowing if I am milk intolerance and or lactose intolerant as I believe I am affected by both. So I have started to look for milk and lactose on the back of packets of everything but without knowing I also need to be looking for whey, casein and an E number?! which I have not been doing and maybe that would explain my bad reaction to monster munch last week!. I feel almost frightened to eat anything and feel like when I start to make progress I eat something wrong unknowingly and I am back to square one! I had a very bad tummy bug last sept and wonder if this was the trigger? Last night I ate out - fish in breadcrumbs and I was on the toilet within an hour . The worst thing is when I need to go I need to go which is not good if you are out ! and its mainly mucas when I rush too the loo and the other times I am fairly normal its a different feeling so I can now tell which one its going to be! .
I feel like I am a bit lost, confused abit frightened to why this has happened and am not sure if things will ever get better and should I seek medication? or just live with elimination Help please! , emmie x

[jill]

Hi there Emmie. It certainly seems to me that you have a food intolerance by your symptoms and if you are feeling better after not having milk products then you are doing right to eliminate them. Everyone is different in how much they can tolerate so I would suggest a food diary, writing down what you have eaten so you can try to establish a pattern. Sometimes food that has been eaten can take upto 4 days to have an effect so it is very difficult to determine the problem food.

It took me around 15 years to find out that my problem was down to dairy, having been told it was IBS, all in the mind, with little help from doctors so it can be very distressing. I eventually found out it was lactose intolerance though a hydrogen breath test at the hospital but had worked out for myself that dairy was the problem before the results came back.

I understand exactly how distressing it can be when you have to rush to the toilet, particularly when out. Reading food labels is the norm when you have a food intolerance and it does get easier when you start to find out what you can have. Not sure about having to look for E numbers but whey and caesin are on the list of things to avoid.

A bad stomach bug could have been the trigger, and that is what I believe possibly started me off. Afraid I can't say whether things will get better but it will get easier if you know what you can have. Lots more info on the site and i'm sure some of the others will be along soon to give support and advice. If there is any particularly food you are after give us a shout or search the site - no need to go without chocolate either - we are quite expert on that subject. Hope you are feeling a little more reassured.:)

[Katerina]

Hi. I'm quite new here too, it was good to find this forum.

You poor thing. I've been told by doctors that it can't possibly be food affecting me, but it is/was.

I find these days that lots of 'normal' food has allergy warnings on it, especially own brands. There is a box on the back of the food packet saying 'allergy warnings' or something similar, and it will say 'contains dairy/milk, gluten, soya' or whatever. This makes life a bit easier. Perhaps you could buy own brands more [also cheaper].

I know loads of dairy alternatives, as does everyone here. If you look around on the site there are lists of the foods :)

[Copper]

Welcome to the site moogiemoo.

Your description of your symptoms sounds like me when I developed an intolerance to coconut. It sounds like you have a dairy intolerance to me. It could be the lactose (natural sugar in milk) or the milk protein or both. I have lactose intolerance.

Keeping a food diary is an excellent idea.

Meanwhile I would try and eliminate dairy from your diet. Do not rely on the allergy boxes on tins etc as I have found dairy in a list of ingredients yet not mentioned in the allergy box :mad:

This link takes you to another page on this site which lists all the alternative names for dairy

http://www.dairyfreeuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=738

I think it would be easier if you printed the list out and take it with you when you go shopping. You will soon get used to the words likely to appear on foods.

Most margarines contain dairy so look for Pure or Vitalite which are dairy free. Most if not all shop bought cakes contain dairy now. I am currently eating Tesco cheap and cheerful Bourbon biscuits as they are dairy free. I have found that often it is the cheap and cheerful biscuits that are dairy free now.

If you need any help with any other alternative foods do ask as we are sure to have an answer. We are experts on ice cream and chocolate :lol2:

Please keep in touch and let us know how you are getting on.

[moogiemoo]

Hi to you all that replied, I have now printed of the list and will take it with me to Tesco's today and also look out for the cheap bourbon biscuits as well! I had a yummy choccy bar at the weekend by Lyme Foods - dark chocolate and mazipane so there is hope!. I think it is more when I eat out that I am going to have trouble especially if something is coated so I guess its plain all the way for the moment. Any other suggestions please come back to me! Could anyone also help with now that I am not having calcium what could I have to replace this? I dont eat vegetables but I do eat leafy lettuce if that helps? I also dont take tablets..... thank you emmiex

[rebecca c]

Emmie

What a frightening time you have been having. Hopefully once you are up to speed on everything involved it will get easier. I agree with the others it sounds like intolerence so do keep a food diary and use the list you have printed off. While you are still nervous health food shops will be a big help but you will soon be more confident with your supermarket shopping. A lot of bread also has dairy in it.

Well you are off to a good start calcium wise as almonds and marzipan are good for calcium. I have real trouble with calcium as I have multiple intolerences so I have a list from my dietician: fish with edible bones like sardines (I take the bones out and give the fish to the dog) mackeral, pilchards, salmon (tinned with bones),shellfish, and seafood, whitebait (highest levels of anything) fish pastes. almonds, brazil nuts, peanuts and sesame seeds (tahini is very high and useful source), white and brown bread, white flour products - fortified foods inc fortified breakfast cereals, rhubarb (although I have recently read that acid in rhubarb stops absorption of calcium) dried figs, dried apricots, broccoli, okra, spinach, spring greens, water cress, beetroot, spring onions and vine leaves. cocoa,

so that should help. There are some fortified rice milks and orange juice which are widely available. Many people who have dairy intolerence go on to get a soya intolerence so the secret here is probably to rotate the soya in and not rely on it too heavily.

I know it is hard but it does get easier. Eating out is still tricky and very hard for me with all my intolerences but I do recommend ringing/emailing ahead when you can. You can normally judge by the response you get from the waiting staff whether you can trust them, trouble is it is hard to not eat if you dont and you are with other people.

Beccy

[moogiemoo]

Thanks Rebecca, I could hardly believe it when I went to Tesco and found the bourbons value packet didnt have dairy in them! I scoffed two in the car park! it feels a little too good to be true!. I also brought some alpro soya and alpro soya strawberry dessert tubs. I have not been brave enough yet to try them but if anyone has any suggestions of which brand etc. Also can you use soya to make porridge? I have had two days again without dairy and have been so much better again so fingers crossed! It's very odd though that this has happened and yes it is scary to suddenly go from being normal (ish) to rushing for the loo and reading packets!. I seemed to be alot better earlier in the year when I had mevebane that the doctor prescribed me as I was able to eat chocolate ad ice cream etc without rushing to the loo . I decided to stop taking it as I felt it could be unhealthy to continue with medication but I am considering taking it again, does anyone else take this? thank you Emmiex

[Copper]

I don't take anything as all I need to feel healthy is to cut out all the foods which I am intolerant to.

Bourbons are very nice. I also like the lemon puffs made by Jacobs I think. Tesco cheap and cheerful digestives are dairy free too. I have not checked hobnobs lately but they used to be dairy free too. Not that I like biscuits very much :D

I am one of those people who developed a soya intolerance even though I kept the soya to a minimum grrrrr

Porridge made with soya milk might work. I use oat milk with added calcium to make mine and it is yummy.

[moogiemoo]

thank you for replying, yes i did notice that the digestives were dairy free too but they didnt look as tempting as the choccy bourbons! I will have to try oat milk is that in with the milk in the chilled area? x

[cnc]

Welcome :)
Oat milk is usually found near the other long life milks. I'm fussy about bourbons and only like Sainsburys ones, which despite the fact they say not suitable for milk allergy sufferers, don't seem to have done too much damage to me yet so I keep on eating them :D The ingredients haven't changed they just seem to have got more paranoid.

I know a lot of people that use mevebane long term, but that's the only thing that seems to work for them as they can't find a trigger for their problems.
The packet of hobnobs in my kitchen are dairy free and I bought them quite recently. Party rings are also dairy free I believe.

[Copper]

Ooooo yes I had forgotten about party rings. I must get some of them next.

Tesco have the Oatly oat milk next to the long life milks. There are two versions of Oatly milk and only one of them had added calcium. I always go for added calcium.

[jill]

Mevebene? Not heard of it so did a search on google which came up with meveberine which is an antispasmodic. Is this what you are refering to? I was prescribed antispasmodics but all they did was cut down on the pain so I didn't get as much warning when I needed "to go" not very pleasant.

Emmie I use soya milk all the time and use it in Ready Brek. I use Alpro Soya Sweetened Long Life, it tends to be a little cheaper than the chilled. Milk wise I also buy a Chocolate Milk that I warm up for Hot Chocolate the make is "So Good" which is also Long Life. I do like to add a tot of brandy to the hot chocolate though. If you are trying Soya Milk then I have found that they all taste different, so it will be a matter of trial and error till you find what you like.

If you are near an Aldi then pop a long - some of the chocolate that they sell is nice - Moser Roth Dark with either Cranberrys or Orange and Almond. Also the Rum truffles and the Dark Chocolate Coffee Beans. Holly Lane Mince pies from there have no milk in them as do the Lamb Shanks with Rosemary Sauce.

Dessert wise Alpro also do long life Vanilla, Caramel and Chocolate pots. They can be found in most dairy free sections of supermarkets, also in Holland and Barrett. They are sold in packs of 4.

I take a chewable calcium supplement from Boots but only take half of the recommended dose as too much can also be bad for you.

If you like baking then just substitute margarine/butter with your dairy free alternative. I have never had any problems. Jus Roll Pastry is milk free.

:)Hope you are feeling alot more positive about being dairy free.

[jarael]

i drink rice milk but i find when making porridge it tasted a lot better mixing the rice milk with some tinned coconut milk, makes it taste a lot cremier.

i now react to the coconut milk so therefore dont eat porridge anymore as it dont taste good with rice milk and i cant stand soya milk.

but if u fine with coconut it might be a good idea to try.

[Copper]

I make my porridge with oat milk and that is very nice.