Is there anything I can do to negate the colicky effect of cow's milk protein so I can have dairy while I'm breastfeeding?

There is a delicious soy milk called Silk. The chocolate is almost sinful! And almond milk, rice milk and ice cream, lots of soy cheese out there.

Look at vegan dairy products.

Hey thanks, you two!! :) I will look into both!

Don’t forget goat milk products as well.

Tofutti makes some wonderful ice cream substitutes, as rich as the real thing. Wild Berry Supreme is the bomb! I find it at the health food store.
And I second Almond Milk. It’s delicious.

If you do soy, I would recommend non-GMO stuff. But (according to my doctor) soy protein is similar enough to cow’s milk protein that you could have problems with it, too.

I would suggest cautiously trying goat’s milk. If that causes problems, then just bite the bullet and do without. Nursing only goes on for a few months. It’s worth a (relatively) short-term sacrifice to ensure the health of your baby. (Plus it’s always good for a teasing guilt trip for the kid later – “I had to live on green beans and rice while I was nursing you, and this is the thanks I get?”<grin>)

I had the same problem – no milk products, no onions, no garlic, no tomatoes – the list went on and on. But, like I said, it’s not forever.

I used to recommend Rice Dream (wonderful ice cream!), but I found out they are owned by Monsanto (evil background music here). There is a coconut milk ice cream that is HEAVENLY, but I can’t remember the name of it. And coconut is really good for you. Maybe check with your local health/natural food market.

Be sure to take your vitamins while nursing when you are on a restricted diet like this! :)

@llewis- The coconut milk ice cream may be this stuff. It’s yummy.

Also, as a clarification, from what I can find, Monsanto doesn’t own Rice Dream. They own stock in the company, which is a bit different. Unfortunately, it’s fairly common for great companies to have some shady stockholders :>(

Yeah, I can understand your wanting to have milk products since its something you really want to have at this time. But if it causes you that many problems, why not get your protein from other sources instead? (It sounds like you already realize that you don’t need to ingest milk products to produce breastmilk, so I won’t go further into that.) Me, I can’t have much in the milk product category either and thankfully, goat’s cheese does work for me. Wish you well, chasy. ;)

Its a beautiful time of life, breastfeeding your young ones—- I breastfed mine until each was almost two years old and I’m sure it set them on a good pathway of receiving the nutrition they needed through me, plus deepening the bonding between me & my babies.

I echo the goat’s milk suggestion.. it’s not bad tasting, just a bit different, and it’s much more easily digestible.

As for the other stuff.. I did a non-dairy month once because I lived in hippie town and everyone was claiming they felt better when they stopped consuming dairy. I got used to the rice milk and soy milk and actually came to enjoy them to some degree, but they are not milk, and that may make a difference to you, if that’s what you’re craving.

@crisw – Yes, I consider if you own stock in something that you partially own the company. You definitely benefit from it. I found out about the Imagine Foods – Monsanto link on another Fluther question. More info here. Since I consider Monsanto to be about the most evil company ever (and PLEASE don’t bother telling me about other Evil Empires, it will just depress me), I don’t want to do anything to support them. Too bad – I used to use a lot of Imagine’s products.

I have an intolerance to dairy protein although it took many years to figure out it was that and not lactose. I have found that I can tolerate fermented dairy (eg cheese, yogurt) and I can drink something like lassi without any issues. I can also tolerate milk if it’s been boiled. Both of these processes help to break down the protein chains, I guess that makes a difference for me.

In fact I only found out it was milk protiens because I as discussing my weird symptoms with a friend who’s a nurse. I told her that a splash of milk in a cup of coffee makes me ill but a full latte doesn’t. She pointed out that the milk in the latte has been boiled/steamed.

@llewis- No problem with that; I boycott quite a few companies myself :>)

Almond milk is a dairy product?? I thought it was purified water with almonds acc to the label. I drink Silk Almond milk and find it a little too sweet and too thick but..I still drink it.

@Aster I like the Blue Diamond almond milk better than the Silk brand. It’s not as sugary and they also have a yummy unsweetened variety that’s even good for making mashed potatoes fluffy and rich tasting.

Wow! Somehow I missed that this Q had new replies!! Thank you, everyone! I’ve discovered that I can eat ice cream with no problem, but I still can’t drink milk. It’s not really a big deal because all I ever used milk for was cereal and I’ve decided I don’t need all the starchy carbs anyway. LOL Thank you all for your excellent help. :)