<p>Well, if you think about it, we are the only mammals that continue to consume dairy products after we are weaned.</p>
<p>Lactaid caplets work well for me. Some people may need to take as many as three at a time, which I think is the max dosage. They’re necessary if I want to eat ice cream or cheesecake. Yogurt and hard cheeses don’t bother me. I buy the calcium enriched fat free Lactaid milk to drink and use on cereal, and substitute whole Lactaid milk for half n’ half when cooking.</p>
<p>I inherited the family lactose intolerance, in my version I don’t suffer if I drink milk, everyone else does. 
Used to use lactaid, but I have had better luck with Digestive Advantage.</p>
<p>I seemed to develop lactose intolerance after some sort of infection. Lasted about six months. So happy I can have my latte again! (I hated the soy alternative …)</p>
<p>bethie - lactose is only in cow’s milk products and it decreases with the age of the product so aged cheese contains none. Cabot kindly even states that on the labels of its cheeses - cheddar will say “contains 0 grams lactose”.</p>
<p>You should be fine with goat cheese, sheep’s milk feta, and aged cheeses of all types. There are lactose free yogurts but they’re hard to find. I make pie crust and frosting for my D2 using Earth Balance (tub and sticks) and they are a great substitute. Some other margarines contain a little bit of whey and that’s enough to upset her stomach. There are two vegan bakeries relatively close to us and one has even won Cupcake Wars against conventional bakeries - no dairy products needed.</p>
<p>The Daiya brand of vegan soft cheese is pretty good too on pizza.</p>
<p>Watch out for chocolate too, many bars of dark chocolate contain a bit of milk fat and that may be enough to upset your stomach. We love the Salazar chocolate made here in Maryland - dark chocolate with sea salt and no dairy. Also, Ghiradelli chips, I think the semi-sweet ones are OK but the dark chocolate ones contain milk fat. You’ll be reading labels alot!</p>
<p>I really don’t like most sheep or goat cheese. I’ll have to read labels more, no doubt.</p>
<p>cnp55–I have had this happen. Months of GI problems and then gradual recovery.</p>