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I've been doing paleo with dairy for some six months now. Call it Lacto-paleo or pastoral (am I the only one who hates the term 'archevore'?). Apart from that I eat close to zero-carb.

Anyway my weight loss hasn't been as dramatic as some, which is a bit disappointing, but I can't deny the obvious improvements to my health overall.

I have pure cream in my decaff coffee, probably about a tablespon per cup, six times a day. It worries me a bit because I absolutely love it, and I have a very addictive nature.

I'm thinking now of stopping the cream, to see if it makes a difference to how I feel. I might have a slight intolerance and not even know. There's always an adjustment period, so I'm thinking it might be a few days before I notice whether I feel any different or not.

How long do I need to stop taking dairy before I can definitely say it wasn't having any adverse effects?

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 You are not the only one who hates the term archevore. It sounds like some weird dinosaur... I wish Kurt Harris would not have gotten all riled up by people taking "Panu" the wrong way. – permiechickie May 24 2011 at 13:50

4 Answers

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30 days. That's the magic number :)

Seriously though, whilst a lot of people suggest 30 days for elimination, and I have no idea how they arrived at 30 days as an appropriate period (we're used to month as a time interval, so that may have a lot to do with it), anecdotally it seems to be long enough to notice most dietary changes.

Mind you, due to a gradual improvement, you may not really notice anything significant until you add the dairy back in 30 days later.

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good point re one month, one week, X pounds, etc. These are all arbitrary numbers and amounts really. Our body doesn't know 2.5 lbs versus 5 lbs, one week versus one month. I mean, i DO believe that using one month as a general time for eliminating things is usually effective but its good to keep in mind that these are arbitrary measurements we use for all this measuring. Nothing wrong with that, but its good to keep in mind. Especially for heavier lifting it helps me mentally attack the weight: realizing that the body musculature doesn't "know" 1.25 lb plates from 2.25 lb plates. – ben61820 May 24 2011 at 13:05
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30 - 45 days. though six cups of coffee may be enough to give you some cortisol issues! that could be a factor in you not seeing the more dramatic results as you expected. Just a thought.

Edit: didn't realize the coffee was decaf... still 6 cups a day is soooo excessive esp. with cream in each one.

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no kidding. six cups a day? and that means 6 T of cream. You can do the math but thats a serious whack of calories the OP might not realize. – ben61820 May 24 2011 at 13:03
OP said the coffee was decaf - would decaf coffee still lead to cortisol issues? – permiechickie May 24 2011 at 13:52
I don't have lunch, and the 6tbsp is about 700 calories. I think that's ok. And yes, the coffee is decaff, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did still stimulate cortisol or insulin. – Wozza May 25 2011 at 4:27
700 calories just from cream? WOW haha My gut feeling is that all that cream is cock-blocking your results. If I were you I'd try to drink my coffee black for a month and see the difference it makes. It's the only way to know for sure. – Leanne May 25 2011 at 12:51
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I actually notice the difference after I re-introduce dairy.

I'll stop dairy for just one week, then slip and have it again. 2 Days after re-introducing it, I have full-blown migraines, nausea and bloating, and I realize how good I felt when I was off!

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When I was first considering giving up dairy, it was suggested to me to give it up for 2 weeks.

Of course, at this point, its been so long I can't tell you if I actually stuck to that or not.

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