Cow dairy rBGH allergy?

[Anna Friedman Herlihy]

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone else was experiencing the same thing, or had friends/family experiencing the same thing.

After many years of being "lactose intolerant", I've found that I can eat rBGH-free dairy products with no side effects, but even a tiny bit of big ag milk gives me cramps, gas, and the hershey squirts (please excuse the graphicness, but anyone with the problem can relate) within several hours.

I've tried to be "scientific" about this, and it really does seem that the culprit is rBGH (or perhaps some other industrial chemical--it's also possible that the problem is with some antibiotic or something similar).

For example: I have no problems with "organic" milk, and our local Oberweis milk (which is rBGH- and antibiotic-free, but not organic) is also fine. Same for cheese products imported from countries that have banned rBGH. In the past year I spent two blissful months in England on research eating whatever I wanted with no problems. But I ate one (ONE) christmas cookie made with regular supermarket brand-name butter (will not mention the name for fear of corporate reprisal) at a family Christmas gathering this year, and spent the last hour of the gathering in and out of the toilet (no one else had any problems, so not food poisoning).

I became American cow-dairy intolerant (can eat goat and sheep with no problem) when I was in grad school for the first time, so around 1995. Coincidentally (or perhaps not coincidentally) Monsanto introduced rBGH into the food supply in 1994. Is there a connection? My brother also became cow-dairy intolerant around the same time. He discovered he could eat dairy again during a year-long fellowship in Italy. I decided to experiment with organics and foreign products after his experience.

Granted my family has a long history with allergies, so I am more sensitive to such things than most humans.

But, I"m wondering, is there anyone out there on egullet with the same or similar experiences with dairy???

[JasonTrue]

Do you have an allergy to any antibiotics?

My understanding is that the problem with rGBH was that it was associated with more frequent infections in the cows, and that these are typically treated with large doses of antibiotics. rGBH isn't in the milk itself, but some antibiotics do get into the milk.

[Bantams]

All milk is rigorously tested for antibiotics, because they would interfere with the cultures/bacteria added to make cheese, yogurt, etc. So antibiotics wouldn't be the problem.

It might have to do with the cow's diet - could you be allergic to something the cows at the big dairies eat?

[Soupcon]

Try drinking eating dairy products from Canada. Being from Chicago you aren't far from Detroit and Canada - perhaps sks in Windsor can oblige. Dairy cows in the Great White North are not fed rGBH by law but probably consume approx the same diet of grass/hay and grains/legumes. So if our milk does not give you the same physical s&s, then rGBH is probably the culprit not that Monsanto will agree.