The Ugly Truth About Milk & Cheese + Dairy Alternatives

Okay, so you maybe know the truth about eggs, if you have read my article about them. But are you ready to go further? Because I know a lot of people love dairy products, I was one of them too! I loved cheese so much, almost every kind, and I couldn’t imagine that I would ever get rid of it… Or a good hot chocolate or cocoa drink. But what happened to me? Why did I change my mind? I am about to tell you now, and also offer you the best vegan dairy alternatives.

Disclosure: Bear in mind that some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a small commission. Keep in mind that I only recommend products because I love them and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. You will buy the product(s) on the same price, and the decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.

Disclosure 2: I am no doctor or dietitian, and these are my own experiences and all the information I share with you can be found in the book: How not to die, or in The Complete Guide to Even More Vegan Food Substitutions, if not, I link the source.

Where is milk coming from?

I am sure that if you really think about it, you will know the answer. And no, not from the store or from your “milkman”… 😀 Where they get it from? From the cows. But the cows only give milk when they brought a baby calf to life. Just like with any mammal animal or in the case of human females.

How do they get pregnant? Not the normal way, there are people to do this job with an injector or something similar. I don’t know if this job is better or smashing male chicks… But I wouldn’t choose either of them.

After the calf is born, they take away it from its mother. The mother cow cries for days after her baby… Yes, they can feel emotional pain too. 🙁

The calves, who really need their mother’s milk, they won’t get it, because the men take it to sell. Those who really need milk, only get a replacement, and those – the people -, who don’t have to drink another species’ milk that is perfectly and exclusively designed for the calves, and also makes people sick, they even pay for it!

How is this okay? How does it make sense? 75% of the world’s population is lactose intolerant and a lot of people are allergic to milk. That is not a coincidence. We should listen to these facts!

What’s wrong with milk?

Nothing at all. It is full of good stuff and it is perfectly nutritious. But not for humans! Milk has too many hormones, even added antibiotics, which are not good for people. It has a lot of sodium, saturated fat and cholesterol and I could continue. And I will in these points:

1. It can cause acne and other skin problems

Have you always suffered from acne or eczema? Try to avoid milk and dairy products!

Because of the hormones in the milk, acne can appear on your face. And sometimes skin problems could be a sign of milk allergy.

If you want pure skin, you should leave milk out of your diet.

2. Bones can break more easily

But milk has Calcium and Calcium is good for your bones, right?

Though, studies had shown that consuming milk contributes to bone fracture if you are a woman. So drinking milk while you are pregnant is definitely not a good idea!

3. You will most likely gain weight

You know water has zero calories, but a cup (236 ml) of whole milk is 149 kcal. And if that is not enough, it contains a lot of fat (even trans-fats!) and of course a lot of cholesterol.

While plant-based dairy alternatives have usually 40 kcal in 200 ml. And much less fat and no cholesterol!

So if you are struggling with weight loss think about these facts next time you reach for your glass of milk. 😉

4. It helps cancer grow

You know milk has fat and it is not just fattening, but leads to cancer.

Consumption of all animal fat was significantly linked to the risk of pancreatic cancer, but there was no correlation between consumption of vegetable fats and disease.

writes Dr Gregor in the book ‘How not to die’

There were researches that showed milk stimulated the growth of human prostate cancer cells, on average 30 percent. While almond milk reduced the growth of cancer cells by more than 30 percent!

So which one would you choose? 🙂

5. Just like egg, milk contributes to develop asthma

Animal foods are associated with a higher risk of developing asthma, especially in case of children. It works the other way around as well, if you leave out milk and dairy products from your diet and start eating more vegetables and fruits, your asthma gets better.

6. Insulin resistance and Diabetes

What is insulin resistance?

Your digestive system breaks down the carbohydrate you consume into glucose, which enters your bloodstream as glucose and then stores it in your muscles, from where you can use it as energy, if necessary.

Without insulin, blood glucose stays in the bloodstream.

Then the blood sugar level increases and vital organs can be damaged during the process. In Type 1 diabetes, the body destroys the pancreatic insulin-producing beta cells, so there is very little insulin to allow the blood sugar to enter the cells.

Source: How not to die

The problem is not that your body hasn’t got enough insulin. But your muscle cells will be resistant against the effect of insulin. And that is insulin resistance.

The fat in the bloodstream, whether derived from your fat deposits or from your diet, can be deposited in muscle cells, where you can produce toxic degradation products and free radicals that block the insulin signalling process. No matter how much insulin you produce, muscle cells that are “deformed” from fat cannot use it well.

Where is fat coming from?

Palmitate – the saturated fat that is found in meat, dairy products and eggs – causes insulin resistance.

And what about cheese?

Cheese is considered one of the most addictive foods in the world. People always craving for more and more. Why is that? Yes, it tastes delicious, it makes everything better and how could you eat pizza without cheese?

Even though I am lactose intolerant I ate a lot of cheese in the past. Cheese with chicken, pizza, pasta, lasagne, in a sandwich or on its own. I felt really sick after consuming, but somehow I couldn’t stop.

And it was not only my fault. I blame the cheese. 😀 Why? Because it can cause addiction just like drugs…

What is cheese? How do they make it?

I think everybody knows that cheese is made from usually cow’s milk. But did you know that they add bacteria for fermentation and rennet for coagulation, which is basically an enzyme that is from the newborn calf’s stomach… Yes, you read it right.

After that they also add a lot of salt (+sodium), and the calories, cholesterol and fat increases.

Why can’t you say no to cheese?

Because people like salt and fat, and cheese also contain casomorphin, which is an opiate, that means it’s in the same chemical class as heroin or morphine.

Now, I am not really good explaining this, you should rather watch Dr Bernard’s speech.

The thing is there is something in cheese, which makes you craving for more. And the dairy industry takes advantage of this…

They want to sell more cheese, and everywhere you go to eat there is always an option to add more cheese to your meal. Just think about it. Even in the restaurant where I work now, you can add cheese on the top of baked potatoes. Why? Because cheese makes everything better, right? 😀

But it is not good for your body and health. When you eat cheese, you basically eat fat, salt and cholesterol. Yeah, of course with some protein and calcium, but the benefits are less than the disadvantages.

Milk is dangerous

If you are a man, I have bad news for you. Milk and dairy can cause erectile dysfunction, which is actually a sign of narrowing arteries. This is very important because that is the first warning your body gives you and if you don’t listen it gets worse. Not just your performance in bed, but it can lead to coronary artery disease and then death…

I am sure you don’t want any of this. But why does it happen if you consume milk or other dairy products? Because they contain cholesterol and fat. The fat subsidies on the wall of your arteries and it causes atherosclerotic plaque.

In order to drastically reduce LDL cholesterol, you have to reduce the intake of three things very strictly:

The trans fats found in processed foods and naturally in fat and dairy products; saturated fat, mainly found in animal products and fast foods; and somewhat lower levels of cholesterol in foods that are fed into your body exclusively by the consumption of food of animal origin, primarily eggs.

From the book ‘How not to die’

Even if you are sick now, you still have a chance to recover, just change your diet and eating habits. Let your body heal, don’t put the toxic in your system every single time you eat.

I understand how hard it is, but you will benefit from this hard choice and you will thank yourself later. I don’t want you to suffer or feel bad all the time. What I want is a better life for you. 🙂

I could talk about the side effects of milk and dairy for hours and hours but I think this should be enough for now. If you are curious, just read Dr Greger’s book or watch the video above.

Dairy Alternatives

It is time to see the best dairy alternatives because milk and dairy products are a huge part of people’s diet. While you are transitioning you can’t get rid of them. I mean you can but you should find good alternatives.

If you read my article about egg substitutes you know that at first, it seemed hard to replace eggs but we did it. 🙂 Replacing dairy products is much easier! So don’t be afraid, you can still enjoy your favourite desserts and meals with dairy alternatives. 😉

1. Plant milk

Obviously plant milk is for replacing cow’s (or goat’s) milk. I tell you now, they don’t taste the same. I think they taste better, especially almond or coconut milk! 🙂

What kind of plant milks are there?

• almond
• coconut
• cashew
• oat
• soya
• hazelnut
• rice
• etc.

Why are they good?

• They don’t contain cholesterol
• They are cruelty-free
• A source of calcium and vitamins B2, B12 and D.
• 100% plant-based
• Naturally low in fat
• Source of vitamin E which is an antioxidant. It contributes to the protection of cells from oxidative stress
• Easy to digest as naturally lactose-free

At least most of them are like this. Or even gluten-free. You can buy these dairy alternatives in bigger supermarkets just like Aldi/Lidl or Sainsbury’s. In Hungary: Spar, dm, Tesco, Auchan, etc.

And the best part is that you can make them at home! I tried to make coconut milk from desiccated coconut and water, it was quite good. But here is an awesome video that helps you how to make them.

2. Vegan cheese

Yes, the cheese! You can’t give up on cheese, can you? And as a vegan, you don’t have to. Nowadays there are a lot of alternatives to cheese. In bigger stores, you can buy different kinds and flavoured cheese alternatives.

My favourite is Violife, I think their products taste the best and they have a lot to offer. Just look at these pictures. Unbelievable. :O

And a lot of stores has their own brands and they sell vegan cheese too. I am not saying that these dairy alternatives are super healthy, but they are definitely healthier than cheese!

Usually, the ingredients are Water, Coconut oil (21%), Starch, Modified Starch (non-GMO), Sea salt, Flavourings, Olive extract, Colour: B-Carotene, Vitamin B12.

So you can see that the only problem with this vegan cheese that it contains plant fat, which is still better than animal fat.

But here is the nutrition for you:

100 g Cheddar cheese contains:

• 404 kcal,
• 56% fat,
• more then 0,9 g trans-fat (that’s not good),
• 22,9 g protein,
• 99 mg cholesterol,
• 71% (of your recommended daily amount) Calcium,
• 65% Phosphorus,
• 52% Selenium,
• 46% Zinc,
• 44% Sodium,
• 53% Vitamin A,
• 46% B12,
• 39% B2

Okay, that’s pretty good, but remember what I said earlier, what can cheese and dairy cause! You can choose other sources to get the minerals and vitamins. 🙂

Let’s see the Violife’s Cheddar Flavoured Block.

100 g contains:

• 270 kcal,
• 21% fat (no trans-fat),
• 2,3 g salt,
• 100% B12,
• 0 g protein,
• 0 mg of cholesterol

Who is the winner? The vegan cheese has only 270 kcal, while the cheddar cheese is 404 kcal. And the proportion of fat is lower in vegan cheese. So if you eat vegan cheese you will gain weight slower…

If we look at the B12, vegan cheese has more than twice as much B12 than cheddar. And zero cholesterol!

I would say that you should eat vegan cheese if you are craving for cheese, and eat it with lots of vegetables and seeds to get enough vitamins.

About protein, I wrote an article before that recommends several protein sources, but in my next post, which will be about meat and meat substitutes, I will talk about protein more.

Anyway, if you can don’t eat vegan cheese all the time because there are healthier options!

3. Cashew cheese

I have wonderful news for you! You can make “cheese” from cashew. 🙂 I haven’t tried it yet, but I am curious. I will share the recipe with you if I suceed. 😉

The ingredients are cashews, yoghurt, nutritional yeast, chia seeds, oil and the juice of a lemon. It doesn’t seem that complicated.

4. Vegan yoghurt

Fortunately there are vegan yoghurts in the stores and not just plain yoghurt but different flavoured as well. I tried several brands, but my favourites made by alpro.

I promise you this article is not sponsored, it is based on my honest opinion and I think alpro is the best when it comes to dairy alternatives. 🙂

But of course, you can try other brands as well. Or you can make your own.

The key ingredients to make vegan yoghurt are soymilk/coconut milk and yogurt starter powder or vegan probiotics.

There is a pretty good recipe in The Complete Guide to Even More Vegan Food Substitutions. And a lot of cheese recipes as well. 😉

5. Vegan chocolate

This is a sensitive subject for me because – as you may know – I love chocolate. But I don’t have to give up on it. I can eat chocolate and sweet treats.

Of course, you can also buy them in stores, dark chocolates are usually vegan. Or there are brands who make vegan chocolate in different flavours. I really like chocolates made by veganz. I am not sure though if it is available in the UK, I used to eat this sometimes in Hungary.

As always you can make your own sweet treats. Just like these vegan truffle balls I made last time.

The recipe for this delicious, sweet snack is on my insta. 😉 Follow me for more (vegan) food inspiration. 🙂

It is super easy to make and really worth it! Mm, I would make it again now. 🙂

Make your own chocolate

If you don’t want to buy expensive vegan chocolate in the stores or you prefer homemade, here is an easy recipe for you.

You only need cocoa/carob powder, some kind of sweetener and coconut oil.

Melt the coconut oil on low heat in a sauce pan, add the same amount of cocoa powder, then add the preffered amount of sweetener and mix well.

You can add vanilla extract or chopped nuts, puffed rice/quinoa or anything you like. Pour the mixture in a chocolate mould and then put it in the freezer for 15 minutes. Keep the chocolate in the fridge until serving because it melts quickly.

This was inspired by this recipe. Thank you for sharing! 🙂

6. Canned coconut milk

This is my current favourite ingredient to use for desserts! It works like double cream or cooking cream.

Last time I used this for the incredibly delicious no-bake chocolate cake and of course the truffle balls I mentioned above. 🙂

You can make smoothies creamier with this or use it for anything to replace double cream. Note: it tastes like coconut! But it is really good in curries. 😉

7. Vegan butter or coconut oil

Yes, there are vegan butters, I think in any store. So it won’t be hard to find.

Coconut oil is even better but more expensive. You can use this for so many things and unlike coconut milk, it doesn’t really have a coconut flavour.

8. Vegan ice cream or nicecream

It’s summertime and ice cream is a must in summer. 🙂 Again, there are vegan ice creams in stores and sometimes you can ask for plant-based ice cream in an ice cream shop. Most of the fruity ice creams are water based but always ask if they contain egg!

Oh, I am so obsessed with ice cream right now! I watched videos on how to make vegan popsicles and it’s so easy and good! So I must share it with you.

Okay, this guy is incredibly talented! I also follow him on instagram, he has the best ideas! 🙂

And he is the king of nicecreams as well! Just look at this 😉

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 A bejegyzés megtekintése az Instagramon
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
J o s e (@naturally.jo) által megosztott bejegyzés, Máj 3., 2019, időpont: 6:20 (PDT időzóna szerint)
 

Making nicecream is not that difficult though. You need some frozen bananas and anything you would like to add.

Here is my recipe for Oreo nicecream.

Banana is one of the best dairy alternatives when it comes to ice cream. Literally, you can make any kind of (n)icecream with banana and it is healthy! Do you need anything better?

So, these were the best dairy alternatives, they are really good and so much healthier than dairy! Why would you keep drinking milk?

How to get enough Calcium and vitamins from plant-based sources?

First, let’s see how much Calcium does a cup of dairy milk contain.

Yes, it’s quite good, but milk has unhealthy effects. While almond milk has only benefits. 🙂

Wait, what? Does almond milk have more Calcium? And it is just 58 kcal, while dairy milk is 149 kcal. Okay, so I can drink almost 3 cups of almond milk for the same calories and I will have 80% of the recommended daily amount of Calcium. Wow!

Maybe you don’t want to buy those expensive plant milks. What can you do then? There are a lot of plants that are high in Calcium.

Here is the top 10 for you:

1. soybean,
2. white bean,
3. spinach,
4. sesame seeds,
5. edamame
6. chickpeas,
7. chia seeds,
8. orange,
9. adzuki beans,
10. broccoli

And they are also high in other minerals and vitamins like Copper, Manganese, Omega-3, Phosphorus, Magnesium, Iron, Zinc, Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Vitamin B, etc.

For example 1 cup of cooked soybeans contain:

It is pretty amazing! 🙂 I love plants so much and they love me back. 😀

You see how good they are, and you can get your daily amount of minerals and vitamins easily from them.

Now that we have seen the disadvantages of milk and the best dairy alternatives, the question is, when will you stop consuming dairy products? Right now, tomorrow or a week later? However you decide, I am here to help, you know where to find me. 🙂

I hope you enjoyed reading this article and don’t be afraid to share it with those who need it. 🙂

Let me know what you think, what is stopping you to give up on milk or if you have other dairy alternatives in your mind!

Love,
Suzie