Is Dairy ‘Allowed’ on GAPS ?
It depends on the dairy, and depends on the person! To properly answer the question, it’s important to establish that modern, commercial dairy products have vastly different properties and effects on the digestion and immunity of a human than organic, raw, grass- fed dairy products, which humans have been nourished by and benefited from for millennia, which certain cultures around the world still flourish on, and which GAPS patients can, and should consume liberally in the appropriate form and context.
Modern commercial dairy ( dairy you could grab at the local grocery store), has undergone significant processing called homogenization and pasteurization. Homogenization pushes the milk through incredibly small mesh to break up the fat globules and evenly distribute them, and pasteurization heats the milk to a temperature capable of killing the infections and organisms which would otherwise wind up in the milk, because it’s an unfortunate fact that commercially raised cows live with chronic mastitis infections which pass into their milk. The homogenization and pasteurization processing of commercial dairy changes the chemical structure and the original composition of proteins and fats in the milk, kill the beneficial bacteria originally present in the milk, AND destroy the live vitamins and enzymes originally present in the milk, essentially neutralizing the milk of everything it originally contained to benefits us, and rendering it altered and difficult to digest, which is why commercial dairy is fortified ( has synthetic, inabsorbable vitamins added back in) and one of the reasons why colic, lactose intolerance, and milk allergies are now profoundly common.
Lactose is a sugar found in milk, which humans with a healthy, dynamic gut biome are capable of breaking down with the native probiotic bacteria living in our guts. When a person is unable to break down and process lactose, it is a sign of abnormal gut flora – they are a GAPS person! A GAPS approach to lactose or dairy intolerance and it’s symptoms, ( bloating, indigestion, constipation/ diarrhea to name a few) is not to trade commercial dairy for commercial dairy alternatives, but rather to eliminate all dairy for a time in order to to focus on restoring probiotic bacteria to their digestive system with the GAPS diet. When adequate rebuilding of gut ecology has occurred, grass fed, non commercial dairy can be reintroduced with the GAPS DIP protocol.
DIP stands for Dr. Natasha’s Dairy Reintroduction Protocol, designed to help a GAPS patient systematically and successfully reintroduce organic, grass fed dairy products back into their diets when, and as,( after a period of time on the GAPS diet), they are eventually able to tolerate- a process your GAPS practitioner and I can happily coach you through!
Takeaway :
- Commercial, processed dairy is never appropriate for GAPS patients, but the GAPS protocol is not anti- grass fed, organic dairy, in fact the GAPS diet includes and encourages it!
- The GAPS diet will rebuild your gut biome and systematically reintroduce grass fed, unprocessed dairy according to the DIP protocol.
- Grass fed cows from local farms , living with clean conditions and plenty of good space, water and sunlight, do not live with chronic infections or parasites, ergo their milk does not need to be pasteurized, and in the absence of intolerance and upon adequate gut restoration, raw dairy from Jersey cows can and should be enjoyed by GAPS patients in the form of ghee, butter, sour cream, yogurt, kefir, hard cheeses, and raw milk for all the vitamins, enzymes, and healing fats they contains.
- Find GAPS legal real/raw milk in your local area here.
- Interested in learning more about the history, health benefits, politics, propaganda and suppression of raw milk? Check out ‘The Untold Story of Milk’ by Ron Schmid, a naturopathic doctor who has amassed and organized significant and revelatory documentation on the topic. Find a book review here.
Resources:
Campbell-Mcbride, N. Gut and Psychology Syndrome. Natural treatment for autism, dyspraxia, add, dyslexia, adhd, depression, schizophrenia. Revised and expanded edition. 2010. Medinform Publications.
Campbell-Mcbride,N. Put Your Heart In Your Mouth. Natural treatment for angina, heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke, atherosclerosis, arrhythmia, peripheral vascular disease. Revised edition. 2016. Medinform Publications.