With summer in full swing, there's no better way to stay refreshed than with your favorite blended drinks!  From now until August 25th, a purchase at The Naked Shoppe of $20 or more will automatically enter you into a drawing to win a Free Vita-Mix 5200 blender, a $449 Value!  The winner will be selected on August 28 and announced right here on August 29.

http://www.thenakedshoppe.com/

Everyone’s talking about lactose intolerance, either you are intolerant, or someone you know is. The truth is we are all lactose intolerant. Long since our bodies stopped producing the enzyme lactase at about the age of four, we have been muddling through the intolerance as a simple annoyance.  Don’t feel like you have to defend yourself, we are all doing the best we can with what we know.  It is our right to do the things we wish to do, eat the things we wish to eat and live the way we wish to live.  I certainly have my own reasons why I live life my way.  Let me tell you why I don’t eat dairy.   I love to tell stories, and this one may have you smirking with recognition.

First of all, I want you to know that I am a classically trained French chef.  My love for rich buttery sauces and creamy delicious desserts far surpassed the norm.  Anything that fulfilled the palate with a sweet smooth reassuring texture was definitely on the menu in my home.   Just thinking about a creamy drink, soup or dessert excites me still.  But, the sad, sad truth is that I’ve had to give up dairy, or at least relinquish my desire for the animal-based version. Now, instead I desire, crave and am fulfilled by the raw alternatives; truly delicious, nutritious nut milks, creams, cheeses, and ice creams that are all part of the Naked Nourishment lifestyle.  I am deeply satisfied by all these nut based treats, and for all the beneficial side affects of the healthy substitutions, have not looked back with longing eyes.  So, how did I finally get to this place, where I was willing to let go of one of my favorite food groups, EVER?

Well, when I was in my teens, my stomach would begin to cramp for what seemed like no apparent reason.  I thought I had gas or air in my stomach, but it was so bad at times that I could barely stand up.  This cramping would keep me in the fetal position for hours, waiting and hoping that it would soon pass.  Sadly it became part of my every day routine, that I started to write off as an annoying discomfort. It never ever crossed my mind that I could possibly be lactose intolerant; that perhaps the thing I loved the most was causing me pain.  I wouldn’t even entertain the thought that milk, cream or cheese could be the bane of my existence.  So, I ignored my symptoms, and endured the suffering for a good portion of my life.  But as life has a funny way of showing up for you and letting you know when something isn’t right, I had to make changes.  Sure I was healthy enough, by standards that I had placed on myself, not really knowing that there was another way of being.  I had the average amount of ailments, disorders and irritations, for example, a chronic rash around my mouth.  I had been to many doctors and dermatologists who over and over again prescribed a cortisone or mild steroid cream in order to suppress the outbreaks. They dubbed it Rosacea, hormones, or some other such skin irritation.  The diagnosis worked for me, I bought the cream, and chalked it up as another annoyance of life.  It was just easier to run with that theory, and I did for years.

But, I do remember, on one sunny day as my rash was ever so prominent in the daylight, someone said to me, “I get that rash around my mouth too when I eat dairy” I chuckled dismissively,  thinking, “Oh yah, bummer for you. I won’t ever give up dairy.” And the cramping and rashes continued. That little interaction played in my head for days, weeks and months as I panicked at the thought that it may be true for me. I tried to dismiss the comment, but it came up again and again until one day I had to address it.  I finally agreed to get an allergy test so that I could rule dairy out as the culprit of my discomfort.  But, that same someone insisted that a blood test, or allergy test would not show proper results.  “Test yourself,” she urged. “But, how do I do that”, I asked. The answer was simple: stop eating dairy for three days, and if the rash disappears, the test results are in.   Well, I struggled with that thought, avoided it as long as I could until my maturity rose above my stubbornness, and I decided that I could certainly handle three days without my milk products.  So, I switched to rice milk, which seemed like the only non-dairy choice at the time.  And, guess what? Instantly, my skin cleared up.  But, an added bonus I didn’t expect was that the air in my stomach, the cramping, the pain subsided as well.  In one fell swoop, my body was relieved of the digestive pain that had plagued me for years.  Just removing that one café latte lightened my burdened health. No more latte, no more rash, no more cramps—I figured I could live with that.

The beauty of this story is that whenever I encounter someone with a mild case of Rosacea on their face, I spring into action as a Superhero (tee hee), and share my story with them.  I suggest they stop dairy for three days to see if it’s the culprit, causing the rash.  And, every single time, IT IS!  Now, I’m not a scientist, but I do treat myself as my own science experiment.  We are all our own subjects, and the more we experiment with our diet and lifestyle choices to test the integrity of how we are living, the more we may uncover truths that set us free—free to be healthy, free to be beautiful, free to enjoy life. Cut out dairy for three days, and see if something amazing changes in you!