Why hello again to all my filtered blood (that's what milk is) craving Paleo Pals. In Part 2 of this series we are going to talk about Steve Urkel's favorite treat, Cheese. Let's start by making a very important distinction; I am talking about real cheese. Not the stuff that comes shredded in bags or the stuff individually wrapped in plastic, which is basically only one molecule away from being what it's wrapped in. Those are fake cheeses, and are usually more man made than cow made. For one they are usually made with non-fat or skim milk. As we discussed in the last installment on dairy; skim/low fat/non-fat dairy is a waste of your time and nutritionally inferior. When I say cheese, I mean real cheese, aged cheese, the stuff made with full fat milk that comes in blocks or wheels that you have to cut into slices with a machete, axe or other cutting implement. Let's face it aged, full fat cheese is WAY tastier and it's damn sure better for you.
Before we go any further, I just want to put my standard disclaimer out there; the consumption of diary should be assessed on a case by case basis. There is no such thing as a "one size fits all" way of eating. If eating cheese/yogurt/milk/etc. makes you void your bowels quicker than a striped ass ape (how fast is that? Well have you ever seen a striped ass ape?), DON'T EAT IT!! With that out of the way, let’s look at some of the science behind cheese and some reasons to keep it in your diet and some reasons to get it out of your go-to foods list.
Here's a pretty good site about how Cheese is Made. I wanted to throw that out there so you don't have to take my word on my next point. When cheese is made, lactic acid is used to curdle the milk so it can be separated into curds and whey. Lactic acid virtually eliminates the presence of lactose in the cheese, acting almost like a form of lactase, which is the enzyme that down regulates (significant decrease in production of) in humans causing lactose intolerance. Generally the longer the cheese has been aged the less lactose it has in it, and sometimes even a small dose for those who are lactose intolerant can cause problems, so if you are part of the 2/3 of the world population that is lactose intolerant and want to try cheese make sure you get the stuff that's been aged the longest (and make sure it's grass-fed which we'll discuss in a bit)
So the lactose is out of the way, which means less of an insulin response (YAY!). So no more lactose, no more problem right? Not completely, for those who have developed an allergic reaction to casein, one of the dairy proteins, there is still a huge problem. When cheese is made it is separated into curds and whey, the whey is then drained off to produce the desired moisture in the cheese. This leaves very little whey and quite a bit of casein. Now for some of us this isn't a problem, we can handle casein just fine. For those of us who are gluten sensitive (and most of you know my opinion on that) it can cause problems if you haven't taken the time to heal your gut lining. Casein can bind to the same sites as gluten in your gut causing the same problem that gluten does: tearing of the gut lining and destruction of the tight junctions.
This is one of those things you are going to have to play with yourself (ha that's what she said). I can't tell you for sure who will have a problem with this and who won't. I can guess but not with 100% accuracy. My best advice is if you really like cheese, heal your gut first. This means at least 30 days absolutely no grains, legumes, or dairy and drinking a little of the canned coconut milk that is gluten free. Then, add cheese back in for a week or two and see how it makes you feel and perform. Again there is no "one size fits all" model of eating here, but a good ol' fashion elimination diet (as prescribed by Mr. Robb Wolf) can really help you to find out what foods are problematic for you personally and what foods are ok to throw back in once the gut lining is no longer torn up.
One last problem to talk about that should lead us into the part on quality of cheese. Betacellulin, a dangerous epidermal growth factor that has been linked to cancer, is in a lot of the cheeses, but this is only a problem in most grain-fed pasteurized cheeses. Grass-fed cheese (especially if its also made from raw milk) has a much higher content of CLA, which has been shown to knock out the effects of Betacellulin by cleaving its chemical bonds before it can wreak havoc on your body. This makes a strong case for choosing grass-fed cheese, especially raw grass-fed cheese if you can find it, over cheese made with conventional milk.
Another upside to choosing grass-fed cheese is the Vitamin K2 content of grass-fed dairy. Vitamin K2 is being looked at more and more these days and has been shown to be important for bone and dental health. In this study, it has also been shown to be very helpful in preventing Cardiovascular disease. It is now being studied as something that could be preventative for a whole slew of other modern neolithic maladies. Here's a sweet article written by the Health skeptic Chris Kresser about Vitamin K2. In it, he posts a list of food high in Vitamin K2, three of which are hard cheese, soft cheese, and butter, all of which are animal products. Sorry vegans, your bones, teeth, and cardiovascular systems are doomed... again.
For those of you who love to eat blocks of cheese like Tom Damian eats cookies, even though you start running for the bathroom before you finish chewing, you can always try goat's or sheep's cheese. Goat and sheep cheese are basically lactose free, and usually have a form of beta casein that is more easily tolerated by us bipeds. Again this is one of those things where you are going to have to try it out yourself and (1) see if you like the taste (I think it's delicious), and (2) see how it effects your sensitive tum-tum.
Cheese, in my opinion, shouldn't be an everyday food, and you should play with how much you can tolerate. For myself I have played with it enough to know that any more than 2-3 servings a week I start to get some deleterious effect in my ginger tummy. Also if you are going to eat it, try to make sure it's grass-fed at the very least, and try to go for the cheese that's been aged the longest. Kerrygold cheese is delicious and grass-fed and can be found at almost any local grocery store. Bigger blocks can also be found cheaper at Costco. And if you are eating it, make damn sure you are enjoying it.
Before we go any further, I just want to put my standard disclaimer out there; the consumption of diary should be assessed on a case by case basis. There is no such thing as a "one size fits all" way of eating. If eating cheese/yogurt/milk/etc. makes you void your bowels quicker than a striped ass ape (how fast is that? Well have you ever seen a striped ass ape?), DON'T EAT IT!! With that out of the way, let’s look at some of the science behind cheese and some reasons to keep it in your diet and some reasons to get it out of your go-to foods list.
Here's a pretty good site about how Cheese is Made. I wanted to throw that out there so you don't have to take my word on my next point. When cheese is made, lactic acid is used to curdle the milk so it can be separated into curds and whey. Lactic acid virtually eliminates the presence of lactose in the cheese, acting almost like a form of lactase, which is the enzyme that down regulates (significant decrease in production of) in humans causing lactose intolerance. Generally the longer the cheese has been aged the less lactose it has in it, and sometimes even a small dose for those who are lactose intolerant can cause problems, so if you are part of the 2/3 of the world population that is lactose intolerant and want to try cheese make sure you get the stuff that's been aged the longest (and make sure it's grass-fed which we'll discuss in a bit)
So the lactose is out of the way, which means less of an insulin response (YAY!). So no more lactose, no more problem right? Not completely, for those who have developed an allergic reaction to casein, one of the dairy proteins, there is still a huge problem. When cheese is made it is separated into curds and whey, the whey is then drained off to produce the desired moisture in the cheese. This leaves very little whey and quite a bit of casein. Now for some of us this isn't a problem, we can handle casein just fine. For those of us who are gluten sensitive (and most of you know my opinion on that) it can cause problems if you haven't taken the time to heal your gut lining. Casein can bind to the same sites as gluten in your gut causing the same problem that gluten does: tearing of the gut lining and destruction of the tight junctions.
This is one of those things you are going to have to play with yourself (ha that's what she said). I can't tell you for sure who will have a problem with this and who won't. I can guess but not with 100% accuracy. My best advice is if you really like cheese, heal your gut first. This means at least 30 days absolutely no grains, legumes, or dairy and drinking a little of the canned coconut milk that is gluten free. Then, add cheese back in for a week or two and see how it makes you feel and perform. Again there is no "one size fits all" model of eating here, but a good ol' fashion elimination diet (as prescribed by Mr. Robb Wolf) can really help you to find out what foods are problematic for you personally and what foods are ok to throw back in once the gut lining is no longer torn up.
One last problem to talk about that should lead us into the part on quality of cheese. Betacellulin, a dangerous epidermal growth factor that has been linked to cancer, is in a lot of the cheeses, but this is only a problem in most grain-fed pasteurized cheeses. Grass-fed cheese (especially if its also made from raw milk) has a much higher content of CLA, which has been shown to knock out the effects of Betacellulin by cleaving its chemical bonds before it can wreak havoc on your body. This makes a strong case for choosing grass-fed cheese, especially raw grass-fed cheese if you can find it, over cheese made with conventional milk.
Another upside to choosing grass-fed cheese is the Vitamin K2 content of grass-fed dairy. Vitamin K2 is being looked at more and more these days and has been shown to be important for bone and dental health. In this study, it has also been shown to be very helpful in preventing Cardiovascular disease. It is now being studied as something that could be preventative for a whole slew of other modern neolithic maladies. Here's a sweet article written by the Health skeptic Chris Kresser about Vitamin K2. In it, he posts a list of food high in Vitamin K2, three of which are hard cheese, soft cheese, and butter, all of which are animal products. Sorry vegans, your bones, teeth, and cardiovascular systems are doomed... again.
For those of you who love to eat blocks of cheese like Tom Damian eats cookies, even though you start running for the bathroom before you finish chewing, you can always try goat's or sheep's cheese. Goat and sheep cheese are basically lactose free, and usually have a form of beta casein that is more easily tolerated by us bipeds. Again this is one of those things where you are going to have to try it out yourself and (1) see if you like the taste (I think it's delicious), and (2) see how it effects your sensitive tum-tum.
Cheese, in my opinion, shouldn't be an everyday food, and you should play with how much you can tolerate. For myself I have played with it enough to know that any more than 2-3 servings a week I start to get some deleterious effect in my ginger tummy. Also if you are going to eat it, try to make sure it's grass-fed at the very least, and try to go for the cheese that's been aged the longest. Kerrygold cheese is delicious and grass-fed and can be found at almost any local grocery store. Bigger blocks can also be found cheaper at Costco. And if you are eating it, make damn sure you are enjoying it.
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