Who would have guessed….it was milk all along. Those that know me well…know that I love my dairy. I could go through 2 gallons of skim milk a week by myself. In cereal, in cooking, by the huge glassful….milk was consumed in quantity. And why not? It was “healthy”…we needed our calcium; cheese was always a good snack and was good in topping….almost anything. I never experienced any symptoms that would indicate intolerance of dairy. No stomach cramps, bloating, gas. I never would have guessed anything of the sort. And then I participated in a month long vegan challenge with my fiancé. I wanted to show him that his “year-round” allergy symptoms were probably a dairy intolerance.
A few weeks in and he had to admit that his “allergies” were much better. He didn’t have the daily nasal drip that ended up causing a stuffy nose and sore throat. And then I had to admit that I felt different as well. For the 2nd time in my life, I no longer had hour to hour food cravings. These were no ordinary food cravings. These were a lifetime of going to the fridge or pantry every hour to find something to snack on (usually a carb.) They were so normal to me that I did not think that it was odd or a symptom of anything else really. The only other time that I didn’t snack constantly when I was taking medicine that affected my serotonin levels. I realized the same lack of snacking then and eventually deduced that my body is craving serotonin when I’m carb craving and that the medicine stopped that. I didn’t think to ask why my body wanted more serotonin…just that it was. I was able to lose weight back then….while taking the medicine…because I wasn’t constantly feeling the need to snack. Weight eventually came back on.
And now back to dairy. What about not eating dairy caused me to stop feeling the need to snack? Dairy is supposed to be helpful for those that need extra serotonin because of the amount of tryptophan in it.
The day after our challenge we went to a birthday cookout and had brats, cake and ice cream. The next 2 days were full of me constantly circling to the fridge to see what I could snack on as well as a multi day headache. It was really a light bulb moment. There had to be some connection between dairy and my constant food craving. I used to annoy my mother as a child when I would ask about dinner shortly after lunch was consumed. I was always thinking about my next food option…even as a child.
I started researching online and finally came across numerous articles and pieces of information that indicated that a mild form of lactose intolerance can cause low serotonin for some people because the undigested lactose interferes with the metabolism of tryptophan. It then listed the top 5 symptoms for low serotonin: carb craving, depression, and increased sensitivity to pain, troubled sleep patterns and blood vessel dilation that leads to migraines. I have had all 5 symptoms most of my adult life. Wow.
There it was. A reason….a culprit…an answer.
Not one I expected...not one I wanted...but now a piece of knowledge that will guide my future eating, dieting and health. We are now trying to eat mostly dairy free. We will splurge occasionally for holidays and special occasions and know we will feel a little crappy for a few days but we will mostly eat dairy free from now on. Quite a new adventure that I wasn't expecting.
