If anyone knows where the sleep fairy is be sure to send him/her my way. At least I have the Australian Open tennis to peacefully whittle away those early morning hours. Our man Andy looking strong so far.
Had a cool day today, mainly due to popping to the Norfolk/Suffolk border and having a browse round a local farmers market. I decided to pick up some raw dairy while I was there and also had a quick chat with a lady who recovered from Crohn’s disease in the past. I wouldn’t say I learned anything new, as she pretty much touted the ‘heal the gut and the rest will come’ type philosophy, as well as mentioning the importance of probiotics etc. Throw liver issues in the mixer and unfortunately good advice gets a little tricky. However she was really nice, and gave me a good run down on the quality of the raw dairy products sold, what I might react well/badly to etc and some cooking/fermenting tips. I’m curious to dip my toes into trying raw dairy, whether it’s SCD type yogurt, kefir or cultured cream, however I have to wrap my head around proceeding with extreme caution. It’s still dairy at the end of the day, and it’s still likely to have some reactive compounds which I may or may not have a problem with.
The advice I was given, and the general consensus on the web is that butter is typically well tolerated, due to the low/trace amounts of both lactose and casein. Raw unhomogenized, unpasteurized is even better, maintaining the good bacteria and also (apparently I was told) the lactase enzyme needed to digest lactose. To take it one step further, which I did earlier today would be to clarify the butter, seperating the butter fat from the milk solids to make Ghee.
(It looks allot yellower in real life, which is apparently a good sign)
So, in terms of stripping as much allergic potential out of a dairy product, this would be it! It’s grass-fed, unhomogenized, unpasteurized, organic, raw butter with the milk solids and butter fat separated, therefore stripping out the lactose and casein. It smells devine, kinda nutty and I think I might give a teaspoon a crack tomorrow with breakfast. Worth repeating the GAPs mantra, ‘low and slow…’.
I did also pick up some raw milk while I was there, as it was a 2 hour round trip that I don’t want to make too often. It promptly went straight in freezer for when I MAY at some point in the future give kefir a try. That has some potential to pack a real punch so I’d like to make sure my diet is fairly consistent at the time. That way I can closely monitor things.
Also picked up a new book after hearing some good things on The Healthy Skeptic blog.
It’s called Turning Suffering Inside Out and is written by Darlene Cohen who, due to rheumatoid arthritis was forced to stay in bed, lost 40 pounds, couldn’t lift a phone receiver or go to the toilet unassisted.
I’m deeply interested in those that are able to achieve a state of peace when faced with incredible suffering. When I’m feeling cranky due to another lost nights sleep or low energy, the negativity and waves of emotion cloud my ability to relax and open wind me up, further aggrevating any symptoms. There are people with much more sever symptoms than myself and I’m fascinated by the potential ability to maintain a sense of peace in these situations.
Will see how the read goes and perhaps hope to put up a review when done.
Right, off for a veggie broth and ginger tea.
Peace.