Tag: organic

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Is it okay to consume dairy if you decide to go primal?

A couple of weeks ago, I went to an Amish farm to buy more goat cheese, one of my favorites! Have you ever tried goat cheese? It is perfect as a snack when you are in a rush. I like to put goat cheese in my salads. It pairs so well with the green lettuces. 

In The New Primal Blueprint, Mark Sisson states, “The Primal Blueprint stance is that certain forms of dairy can provide excellent nutrition and enjoyment for those who can tolerate dairy consumption without digestive distress.”

Which dairy is okay to consume?

According to The New Primal Blueprint, when you want to buy dairy products, you want to get pasture-raised/grass-fed or organic dairy. And the best picks are:

  • Raw
  • Fermented
  • Unpasteurized
  • Unsweetened
  • High-fat

This means you can buy things like:

  • Ghee
  • Butter
  • Full cream
  • Aged cheese
  • Cottage cheese
  • Cream cheese 
  • Greek-style full-fat yogurt
  • Half and half
  • Kefir
  • Raw whole milk

Buying pasture-raised/grass-fed or organic dairy products means that you bypass the conventional dairy filled with hormones, pesticides, and antibiotics. In Food Fix, Dr. Mark Hyman specifies, “Find dairy from heirloom cows that contain A2 casein, which doesn’t cause the same digestive or inflammatory problems as modern cow products.” A2 casein is a protein in milk, “perfectly safe,” as opposed to A1 casein (a lectin-like protein). You also get A2 casein with goat and sheep dairy.

Sidenote:  Lectins are natural plant toxins that can damage the thin lining of the small intestine.

Whey is the other protein you find in milk. And lactose is a carbohydrate you find in milk.

In summary

Buying high-quality products is a must with dairy. If there are no farms near you, there are some online sites you can check. In a previous post, I mentioned US Wellness Meats. There is also an online site called Organic Pastures that you could check out. Consuming dairy is okay, provided the dairy you buy is pasture-raised/grass-fed or organic. See how your body reacts to your food picks and adjust accordingly. Dairy is an awesome treat that I am happy to still be able to enjoy whenever I feel like it!

References

Gundry, Steven R. The Plant Paradox Quick and Easy : The 30-Day Plan to Lose Weight, Feel Great, and Live Lectin-Free. New York, Ny, Harper Wave, An Imprint Of Harpercollinspublishers, 2019, p. 257.

Hyman, Mark. Food Fix : How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, Our Communities, and Our Planet-One Bite at a Time. New York, Little, Brown Spark, An Imprint Of Little, Brown And Company, 2020, pp. 54–55.

Sisson, Mark. The New Primal Blueprint : Reprogram Your Genes for Effortless Weight Loss, Vibrant Health, and Boundless Energy. Oxnard, Ca, Primal Blueprint Publishing, 2017, pp. 237–240.

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Every year, the EWG (Environmental Working Group) issues a list of foods (the dirty dozen) that you should buy organic to avoid exposure to a high amount of pesticides and chemicals. Also, they list the non-organic fruits and vegetables (the clean fifteen) that are alright to buy if buying everything organic is too expensive for our wallet. It is good to keep in mind that the closer we are to buying everything organic, the better it is for our health and the health of farmworkers who are even more exposed to a high amount of chemicals.

So the fruits and vegetables to buy organic (for 2019) are:  

  • Strawberries
  • Spinach
  • Kale
  • Nectarines
  • Apples
  • Grapes
  • Peaches
  • Cherries
  • Pears
  • Tomatoes
  • Celery
  • Potatoes
  • Hot peppers

And the fruits and vegetables that don’t have to be organic (for 2019) are:

  • Avocados
  • Sweet corn
  • Pineapples
  • Sweet peas frozen
  • Onions
  • Papayas
  • Eggplants
  • Asparagus
  • Kiwis
  • Cabbage
  • Cauliflower
  • Cantaloupes
  • Broccoli
  • Mushrooms
  • Honeydew melons

When in doubt, at the store, just consider the thickness of the skin. The thinner the skin of the fruit or vegetable, the more chance it has to be an organic option only.

Of course, it is always better to buy in-season produce at a local farmers’ market, even if it isn’t certified organic. Where I live, there are quite a few Amish farms and farmers’ markets, which is very helpful in bypassing the stores’ offerings. But I am also happy to find some organic options at the local supermarkets.

And in order to consume a wider variety of plant specimens, something that our ancestors were privileged to do, I like to order vegetable powders from Dr. Cowan’s Garden. Using those powders saves a lot of prep time to anyone who has a busy schedule but still wants to eat as healthy as possible. It can also be a great way to have children eat more vegetables without them realizing it if the powders are mixed in, say, the batter of a given recipe.

As an alternative to green vegetables, when not at home, I like to consume the algae tablets that the company Energy Bits offers. They go well with staying in mild ketosis during the day.

Finally, if you can grow a few herbs or vegetables in pots or in a garden, even though it can be time-consuming, it is a very rewarding step to take towards eating healthier.

There is more than one way to increase our consumption of vegetables and fruits (the latter truly to a lesser extent) and to avoid the conventional chemical-laden varieties. It is whatever fits our budget and works with our busy schedule.

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