8 Reasons to be Happy to be Dairy-Free

Dairy is to many people, a staple in their diet. Pizza, nachos, yogurt, you name it, there's dairy in it.

But, what happens if you tested positive as being lactose intolerant? Or, realize that dairy is really unnecessary to consume in such large quantities that you bloat and feel groggy? Maybe you want to kick start a diet. I have been dairy free for a few years now (I cheated before, epsecially when I was abroad) and I could never be happier.

Here are 8 reasons to be happy to be or choose to be dairy-free:

1. MILK ALTERNATIVES ARE THE BEST!

There are more milk alternatives now than ever, including; almond, cashew, rice, hemp, soy, coconut, and quinoa milk! There's nothing like a bowl of cereal in the morning with almond milk or rice milk. In my opinion, it tastes way better than regular milk, especially when selecting the vanilla flavors. They even sell chocolate milk alternatives :)

2. You can have your coffee and drink it too~

Many people think that giving up dairy means that they cant have their precious Starbucks lattes anymore, but Starbucks has soy and coconut milk!! Believe me, they taste just as good as the whole or 2% milk the baristas put in your chai latte.

3. Daiya products are AMAZING.

I swear by all things Daiya, because honestly they have created the best dairy free products that I have tried over the years. My refrigerator is always stocked with the Daiya Shredded Mozzarella and whenever I'm craving cheese, that's what I use.

4. You don't need sour cream or cheese in your burrito bowl at Chipotle. It will taste just as good, believe me.

5. DAIRY IS NOT THAT GOOD FOR YOU!!!!!!

As you cut out dairy, you will realize that there are still a world of options left to eat and many terrible options are cut out of your diet. Why is that? Well, I have been reading up on the governmental push of dairy and it really has helped me solidify my choice of being dairy free (not like I had a choice really). The dairy farmers and government push the sales of dairy to the American public and there literally is no escaping a commercial with dairy. Read this article about the promotion of dairy junk products.

6. Washingtonians Only: The Hell Yeah cupcake from Baked and Wired is worth being dairy free.

7. Your stomach will stop hurting!

Since I have Chron's Disease and positive for lactose intolerancy, I have no choice but to stay dairy free for my life. Without dairy, my stomach has stopped the groggy, bloating pains after I would eat an ice cream cone or a slice of pizza.

8. Not eating dairy will help you (hopefully) lose weight!

I am not an expert, and I am terrible at science, but not consuming dairy has helped me and people that I know, lose weight. There are quite a few reasons why that can be true, but any help to shed an extra few pounds sounds great!

Enoy discovering the dairy-free world!