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Rawaholic
Raw Newbie
All my life I have been allergic to pasteurized cows milk. My doctor says I most likely have a genetic defect where my body is unable to produce the enzyme lactase to break down the milk.
Recently I have been doing some research on the benefit of raw goats' milk and how many people who have the same genetic defect as I do, are able to digest raw goats milk very easily.
I've also been looking into the nutrient density and the abundance of good intestinal bacteria you can get from raw goats' milk and how it seems to help people with acne. I get plenty of rest, don't drink coffee anymore, eat lot's of fresh fruits and vegetables with a bit of nuts and seeds on occasion. I've recently started using the Burt's Bees Acne face treatment and that seems to be helping, but I still break out pretty badly.
I found a local farmer who provides raw goats' milk from goats that are pasture grazed/raised and are given no vaccinations, antibiotics, or hormone treatment.
What I would like to know is is anyone on this site uses raw goats' milk, how the use it, how is it working for them, and any sites with more information on raw goats' milk would be great! :)
I also would value the the thoughts and opinions from anyone on this site on whether or not I should give raw goats' milk a go.
Thanks!
Comments
If it calls to you, then go for it! Listen to your body, mind and Spirit. I am recently vegan again, so just recently I was eating raw milk cheese and yogurt from local grass fed cows and it is very delicious. Raw goat chevre was the first non-vegan thing I ate many years ago after being vegan for 8 years and I had no problems digesting it, which was astounding to me.
Many Blessings to you and your quest to find the diet that is right for YOU!
Humans are allergic to the lactose in cow's milk. It is not a genetic defect.
http://www.rawfoodexplained.com/
Well, there could be 3 different kinds of reactions that you could be having, and depending on which reaction you are having you could still react to goat's milk. What reaction type did you have to begin with? I hate to say it, but unless your doctor is an immunologist, they don't tend to be experts in the subject matter and I've met plenty of doctors who don't believe in the IGG reaction, and even a few that write off allergies all together. I was shocked.
Reaction 1: IgE antibody "true allergy". Symptoms can include rash, difficulty breathing and other inflammatory reactions including anaphylaxis. Symptom onset is immediate.
Reaction 2: IgG antibody "slow reactive" allergy - which is also called an intolerance. There is a wide range of symptoms that involve inflammation. Headaches, bloating, gas, irritability, rash pattern acne, etc. can all be indicative of a possible reaction. The reaction time lasts up to 72 hours and is initially hard to notice.
Reaction 3: Lack of lactose enzyme. Most common characteristic is bloating, gas, constipation and/or diarrhea. It's an inability to properly break down the milk.
Goat's milk is considered a good alternative to cow's milk because the protein complex is different than cow's milk. Goats have fewer stomach chambers and the protein string is smaller and easier to break down. Sheep milk protein is very similar to cow. I am truly allergic to all dairy - including goat, water buffalo, sheep, etc - which was a bummer for me at the time. Be sure to try a very small amount (1 tablespoon will be enough to start symptoms) the first 3 days and then wait and see if you have a reaction. Headaches, indigestion, hives - anything. It makes sense that so many of us are allergic to milk from an evolution and biological stand point. I don't know of any other species that get milk beyond infancy and they sure don't wander outside their own species :)
I found my rash pattern acne was tied to parabens found in just about everything. I cut parabens and SLS out, and the acne went away. Food for thought :)
Good luck! I hope it works for you. If not, there are a lot of great enzyme and probiotic supplements and vegan alternatives out there.
Thanks lunamama for that very positive post. I think it relieved my concern over the digestibility of raw goats milk. I've been vegan since I was six years old and didn't try dairy again until I was 16 and I got real sick!
dreamwithin, that was a great site; very informative. Thank you!
camiheartsraw, you really did your research! Thanks for putting so much effort and detail in your post! To answer your question, whenever I drink or eat dairy that originates from cows I get severe asthma attacks. The worst attack I ever has was so bad that my entire air passage closed up and I nearly suffocated. Not fun! So I guess I am reaction number 1. I don't know what parabens and SLS is but I'll look it up. Thanks again! :)
Parabens...most common one is methylparabens, are toxic chemicals found in way too many household products these days. Read the ingredients of most commercial shampoos, soaps, lotions, make-up etc and its almost guarenteed to have parabens in it. SLS, I believe what the previous poster was referring to is sodium lauryl sulfates/sulfites, but even just any form of sulfates/sulfites are generally regarded as bad news, another extremely toxic chemical found in just about everything, even a lot of foods as a preservative!
Raw goats milk would definitely be worth trying, it has a composition extremely similar to human breastmilk. We are waiting for it to become legal in Michigan to purchase raw goats milk, if it looks like its going to be too much longer, we may have found a loophole by buying a "share" of a goat, then its not illegal cus we are just getting our own milk. If the FDA can get away with a buncha stuff through technical loopholes, I guess I can too :D!
I have raw goats cheese, it is totally yummie. I sometimes put it on raw pizza. Some of my unraw friends will eat more raw stuff if I put some of this cheese with it.
If you want to eat it, eat it, but please don't just focus on taste and supposed health benefits of a weaned creature drinking a milk - don't forget the ethical issues involved of taking another species' child's milk away from him/her, or another animal who might really need food, whereas we humans can just go to the produce market.
Just wanted to add my $.02 in here, as I've dealt with breakouts in my life a lot as well. Thought I'd just throw out a few additional ideas. In order to get more beneficial bacteria into your system, you could also try kombucha, kimchi, or sauerkraut. Some raw purists would dismiss these, but at least they are vegan where the goat's milk is not. I would just think that any type of dairy (raw or not) would be mucous forming.
I know that when it comes to acne, the causes are different for everyone. Two things that have helped me keep the breakouts to a minimum:
- Using a rebounder (mini trampoline). It's a really fun way to get exercise in, and it's wonderful for your lymphatic system (you can check out www.reboundair.com to read up on the benefits, they have some very helpful information). My skin looks so much better when I rebound consistently and I definitely notice that I get fewer breakouts.
- Using a glycolic acid toner. This is the one that I use: http://www.platinumskincare.com/10-glycolic-toner.aspx. I know some rawbies are into totally natural skin care, but it just doesn't work for me, I need something stronger! On occasion, I also use a salicylic acid peel (from the same site), which will dry up ANY nasties but is also quite harsh and requires careful timing as it makes my skin a bit peely for a couple of days after.
Good luck in whatever you decide to do! Keep us updated if you decide to go for the raw goat's milk!