The Power of Cheese

Why did I eat so much cheese last night? And I why do I feel so awful today?

You ate so much cheese because it's addictive. You feel terrible because of lactose. Allow us to elaborate.

Cheese contains compounds called casomorphins, which are casein(milk protein)-derived substances that are actually morphine-like. According to Dr. Neal Barnard, quoted in an article from the National Health Assocation,“Casein, the fundamental protein in cow’s milk, breaks apart in the digestive process to release chemicals called casomorphins, and the casomorphins are casein-derived, morphine-like substances." And cheese contains loads of casomorphins. Dr. Barnard says, "It is the process of cheese making, when all the liquid is pressed together, which leaves just pure casein and fat. And it’s the purest form of the casein — and once in your digestive track it breaks down into casomorphins." So the reason you ate so much cheese is that you couldn't help it - it's addictive!

Now, why do you feel so bad? Probably because you're having difficulty digesting the lactose (milk sugar) in the cheese you ate. A lot of adults (including about 30 - 50 million Americans!) have problems digesting lactose, which can cause bloating, cramps, gas, diarrhea, and even nausea and vomiting. How can you avoid a lactose overdose in the future? Take some over-the-counter lactaid with your cheese, which will give you some of the lactose-digesting enzyme lactase in your system, or eat cheeses that are known to be lower in lactose, like hard, aged cheeses.

Related: Gothamist on where to get your cheese fix, aka Murray's Cheese.

Got a question? Need advice? E-mail ask(at)gothamist(dot)com.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Janine Annett in Miscellaneous on May 13, 2005 10:45 AM

Comments [rss]

cheese lovah

To K: Cheese shops in the West Village?

Murray's Cheese on Bleecker is one of the best.

Hellman Jackson

Ah! A chance to use my favorite word: LACTARD! Thankyou!

bob

Enough already! Just cut the cheese!

XX

the french (and other non-americans) are simply less obsessed with their bodies, that's all.

K

Cheese nerds fighting; this is HILARIOUS. Whoever is armed with the roquefort will win...

cheese whiz

Damn! I been busted!! T.A. you got me to the goods, I be a shill for any kind yummy big cheese, for the gold of any old monger of the cheesy stuff.

Licky hopin' you is enjoyin' the joy that is the silver and gold. Pls. don be picky, luvvy. It'll love you all if you all give it the chance.

T.A.

Cheese whiz, are you suggesting that the author didn't get all possible information about the topic into a single sentence up high!?!?!? Whoa! JOURNALISTIC MALPRACTICE!!!!!

It's so obvious that you are a PAID SHILL FOR BIG CHEESE. Disclose your interests, CHEESEMONGER.

catherine

why lactose intolerance is probably less common in france .... well, probably, as with all foods, communities that historically eat more of something than other communities will be able to digest it and also will develop more of a taste for it. many asian communities have a higher incidence of real lactose intolerance because they historically do not eat much dairy.

evolution, people. evolution.

K

Anyone know any good cheese shops in the W Village?

By the way, I lived in France and noticed that lactose-intolerance is virtually nonexistant. Why's that, cheese experts?

cheesey

I have to say from my own personal experience as a lactose-intolerant person, even if cheese is low in lactose, if you eat a lot of it you might not feel well. I'm not taking issue with the info you present, I just think you are being a bit harsh picking apart the post paragraph by paragraph and the comments sentence by sentence. But thanks for the additional info and the link to the lactose chart. Now let's go eat some cheese together! :)

cheese whiz

Hey cheesey,

While the above post may complete a paragraph by suggesting eating hard-cheeses will help the LI 'feel good' about eating cheese, the lede to that paragraph suggests that someone may 'feel bad' after eating cheese due to the lactose content. Hopefully whoever's reading it may reach the last sentence, and gain the clarification. But if they don't they're left with the impression that cheese contains enough lactose to lead to 'feeling bad' after eating cheese if you're LI. Which is rather uninformed (not to mention self-contradictory). Not to mention that we're all left wondering exactly what it means to 'feel bad' after eating cheese.

Insofar as the dairy council is concerned, the process of making cheese is a chemical process that has been well understood for hundreds of years. It's pretty simple and straightforward. Just because the dairy council is presenting this information is neither here-nor-there. If you're really *that* paranoid, then refer to the second link from the Vegetarian Society in the UK, they will tell you the exact same thing.

Note also that non-cow's milk cheeses (goat's, sheep's, et.al.), contain roughly the same amount of lactose as cow's milk cheeses (in other words, essentially none). The milks themselves contain only about a half percent less lactose, most of which is broken down by the cheese making process. You can read more about this here

smiles,

cheese whiz

cheese lovah

From someone who is really and truly lactose-intolerant (Lactaid is my best friend):

I'm not a cheeseologist, but not all cheese is made from cow's milk. Generally, people who are lactose intolerant can handle the milk of other animals like goats, sheep, and buffalo. Pecorino, manchego and feta tend to be made from sheep's milk. Anything labeled "chevre" is made from goat's milk. And of course, mozzarella di bufala is made from the milk of water buffalo.

All are very yummy.

T.A.

Cheeze whiz was absent the day they taught reading comprehension at Dairy University.

cheesey

You really should read more carefully before you say more research needs to be done. The above post clearly states that harder, aged cheese has less lactose - which is the point you make, cheese whiz. And it's a proven fact that many people around the world can not easily digest cow's milk and milk products - it's not absurd at all. Adult humans don't need the milk of other animals. And your information source, the National Dairy Council, just might be a tad biased, no? Even if someone thinks they can't digest cheese but maybe they really can, why would the above advice be bad - to take some lactaid with the cheese or stick to aged cheeses?

cheese whiz

My apologies. I'm mistaken about what I say about rennet. Here's a better explanation

which explains how cheese is actually made.

cheese whiz

You really should do more research before publishing stuff like this. Cheese is actually quite low in Lactose, and most cheeses are perfectly acceptable to people who are lactose intolerant.

The lactose is dissolved in the whey ('water' left over after curdling cheese in the process of making it). The whey is discarded during the aging process. Most of the remaining lactose is digested by bacteria during the aging process.

Most cheese has 0-4% lactose content, and that which is less than 2% can be comfortably digested by those who are LI.

Aged cheeses (brie, blue, cheddar, etc.) have the lowest lactose content, and the older the lower. Fresh cheeses, like Mozarella (which are made by using rennet as opposed to bacteria), are also lower in lactose than many suspect because the lactose is broken down by the enzymes in rennet.

As someone hinted above, a *lot* of people are into self-diagnosing all sorts of absurd food allergies. Please don't give them more ammo.

Here's more information.

s

problem with vegan "cheese" is that it doesnt contain the caseine which will get you high. it also lacks any real flavor and is probably soy based which makes it really bad for you.

tien

i hear jake dobkin loves cheese.

Cheezbum

Toe cheese is my favorite.

jamie beth

In my terribly NON-EXPERT opinion A LOT of people are mis-diagnosed as lactose intolerant because it is very "in" to be lactose intolerant. I actually have a FAT intolerance that is particularly sensitive to milk fat. It's why I can drink Skim or 1% to my heart's content but can't go near cream. Something to look into if you've been told you are lactose intolerant (or have self-diagnosed yourself) over the past few years.

Deb

Follow Your Heart cheeses are actually really, really good for vegan cheese, and are, of course, lactose free. You can indulge as much as you want. You'll probably still get gassy, though, so eat when your significant other isn't around.