Pierre, I had no idea that casein was in several vegetarian cheese products. That is horrifying to me so thanks for bringing it up.
I personally think you're absolutely on the right track with your decision to try and find alternatives without casein because, ethics aside, casein can be considered the #1 health reason to cut dairy. Aside from teh cancer link Dr. Campbell points out in The China Study, casein breaks down in the body into casomorphins (as in morphine!) and reacts with opiate receptors in the brain, and the body gives of the same reactions (although milder) as it does to other opiate drugs. In some cases (like with me) you can be literally addicted to cheese! When I tried to cut cheese out I had headaches, terrible cravings, and basically was a huge grouch.
So, since casein is basically a drug that makes you crave cheese, when you have a vegetarian substitute that has casein, you get the same relief to your addiction. It's a sneaky thing to do including it in a cheese substitute. =(
When I was first transitioning I liked Follow Your Heart, Teese, and Daiya, but to be honest we don't even eat the processed fake cheese anymore! That's huge coming from a former cheese addict, so don't give up! It's definitely worth it.
Here is a video of Dr. Barnard discussing casomorphins in more depth (and other stuff) if you'd like and have the time:
http://bit.ly/lqLwpg
3 Comments