Unpasteurized milk.

[Basil Ransom]

"If you're putting raw dairy into your body from a cow thats been fed a diet of corn/soy, and who has been pumped with antibiotics, you're likely putting your health at risk."

I think it's the sanitation conditions, not the diet or antibiotics.

"Something else that I find interesting and I think is of special importance is that raw milk contains lactase, whereas the process of pasteurization heats the lactase enzymes and destroys them. So for people who have trouble digesting dairy, raw milk will be a lot easier on your stomach.

I'm pretty sure I'm lactose intolerant as drinking milk and eating anything with cream usually gives me the runs. I never experienced unpleasant bowel movements after drinking raw milk (albeit I've only had it a handful of times), and I credit lactase's ability to break down lactose as the reason."

Try kefir. Its as cheap as milk when you make your own, has no sugar and probably won't give you symptoms because the kefir culture eats up all the lactose.

As for the health risks, I think it would be better to legalize it and regulate it closely, with warning labels and perhaps a recommendation against giving it to children.

 

[evilhei]

We have here in Estonia raw milk machines in some stores where you can fill your bottle, I get sometimes 1litre for breakfast.

 

[Spider]

Try kefir. Its as cheap as milk when you make your own, has no sugar and probably won't give you symptoms because the kefir culture eats up all the lactose.

Good call, Kefir is actually the only type of dairy I consume at the moment.

Kefir from cow's milk gives me acne though, so when I go to Whole Foods I usually pick up this brand of Goat's milk Kefir: http://www.redwoodhill.com/goat-kefir/plain/

Tastes pretty good, sometimes I toss in a packet of Truvia to sweeten it up a little bit. The goat Kefir definitely doesn't break my skin out as much as the Cow's milk.

When I'm home from school, I culture my own Coconut milk Kefir. I purchase Kefir grains and then culture it myself replacing a new cup of coconut milk daily into the mason jar where I have my Kefir grains growing. It's actually really cool to feed your Kefir Grains (whether it's cows milk, goat milk, or coconut milk) and watch them grow.

...Btw I do this for the health of my gut. After years of antibiotic use when I was a teen, my stomach was pretty messed up. Taking probiotics really helped my stomach feel better and I've been able to better digest food ever since I began regularly using probiotics. Adding Kefir, L-Glutamine, and Bone Broth help even more if you've ever suffered from gut issues or think your 'gut micro biome' may be out of balance from antibiotic use, or poor eating/lifestyle habits.

 

[Basil Ransom]

Yeah I think I get a bit of acne from all my dairy kefir drinking (a quart a day). Trouble is goat milk is a lot more expensive, especially if you get it raw. Raw goat milk kefir is probably the ideal.

I heard the grains die eventually if you use coconut milk instead of animal milk - do you cycle it on and off animal milk? Is your coconut milk from the cartons or the cans, or do you juice your own coconuts?

 

[Spider]

I heard the grains die eventually if you use coconut milk instead of animal milk - do you cycle it on and off animal milk? Is your coconut milk from the cartons or the cans, or do you juice your own coconuts?

When the grains arrived in the mail, they were pretty small. I placed them into a mason jar, poured about a cup of Whole Cow's milk on top of the grains, and then loosely placed the lid of the Mason Jar on top without tightening it.

I've read that it's important to rehydrate and 'reactivate' the grains with cow's milk because it is much harder for the Kefir grains to begin growing if you immediately use Coconut milk. A day later, I poured out the milk, and poured a fresh cup of cow's milk on top of the grains. After doing this for 3 days, the kefir grains had definitely gotten bigger and the milk was starting to get really thick and tangy (I took a few small sips of it).

Then I switched to coconut milk and began pouring a new cup of coconut milk on the grains every 24 hours or so. It only took a day or 2 for the coconut milk to take on that thick consistency and provide the sour but enjoyable flavor of Kefir. I think coconut milk is actually a little better tasting than dairy kefir.

I did that everyday for a month and the grains were consistently growing and appearing healthy. When I wanted to take a break using the grains, I would submerge the grains with just a 1/4 cup of cow's milk or whatever just covers the grains, and stick the mason jar in the fridge. I read on Marks Daily Apple and some other Paleo sources that when you don't need to use them for awhile, sticking them in the fridge while submerged in milk keeps them from dying.

When I was ready to use them again I just poured out the milk and refilled with coconut milk, and then continued my usual process leaving the jar lightly covered on the kitchen counter (room temperature). The grains definitely did not die as they continued to produce the same thick tangy kefir.

They might not last a year, but they certainly lasted a few months for me before I returned to school (I threw them out when I left home). I'm looking forward to making homemade coconut Kefir again this summer. I might try to get my hands on some raw cow or goat milk and see how that goes.

...and the type of Coconut milk I used mostly was this: http://www.sodeliciousdairyfree.com/products/coconut-milk-beverages/unsweetened

^ It has some additives that might not make it perfect, but I've found it very hard to find Coconut milk products that don't use Carrageenan or Guar Gum.

 

[Basil Ransom]

Spider, what I don't get is what do the kefir grains feed off in the coconut milk? They are supposed to feed off lactose, i.e. milk sugar, but coconut milk from cartons and cans has very little, about a gram per cup, vs 13 grams per cup of milk.

I split my kefir grains and mixed them with some coconut milk from a can with an equal amount of whole milk, will see how it tastes. The downside of coconut milk is that it has little to no protein. Protein, specifically casein, may be causing the adverse symptoms like acne to begin with.

Also, you could make kefir with fresh homemade coconut milk. If you buy mature coconuts you might have to juice the coconut because they have lots of fibrous material thats hard to digest. If you have a young coconut, you can just scrape out the flesh and blend it then add the kefir, and young coconuts have plenty of sugar in their milk/water.

 

[Spider]

I don't know the science behind it, but I know it works.

This is how I learned to make it: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/homemade-coconut-milk-kefir/#axzz2yR9Dm02c

Coconut milk might not have much protein, but it's full of healthy fat. Regardless, the reason I drink it is solely for the probiotics and healthy bacteria/yeast strains it provides. I know my stomach feels better when I drink it regularly.

Tastes good too.