Kefir and gas....

[clkingtx]

Sorry if this is TMI, but I am having a really strange reaction to my kefir shakes, and was really wondering why, and how to remedy it, without meds.

I am trying to drink kefir every day, and the most enjoyable way to have it is in a smoothie with about 12 oz kefir, one banana, and 1 or 2 ounces cream cheese. I blend it as smooth as I can in my ancient blender, and drink it like that. I really like the flavor, but it gives me horrible, painful gas. If I take 2 gasX capsules when I drink it, I don't have trouble. I haven't been able to drink much kefir plain until tonight, so I don't know if it will have the same effect plain.

It seems that it can't be doing good for me if it is causing that much gas, isn't it supposed to get things working better in that way? I wondered if the sugar in the banana causes it to ferment the sugar in my tummy, causing the gas, but I don't know if it works that way. If so, that is not a good thing, right?

It would be great if someone maybe understood why I am having that problem, and knew what to do about it(other than take the med). Maybe someone else had the same experience?

Thanks!

 

[Wifezilla]

To see where your problem is you are going to have to try the kefir by itself first. Do that for a few days. If no gas, then add in the cream cheese again for a few days. Then try the banana.

 

[freemotion]

I agree. It is unlikely that you can tolerate cream cheese but not kefir.

 

[keljonma]

Anyone in your family lactose intolerant?
Do you know your family heritage?

Recent studies have shown that lactose intolerance affects as much as 50% to 70% of people with Asian, African, Native-American, Mediterranean, or Eastern European backgrounds.

Could you try removing the cream cheese from the drink and adding some goat milk cheese instead?

 

[Dace]

How long have you been consuming kefir?

I know that for some people they need to start slowly and build up. It does cause a sort of 'cleanse'.

We consume 8oz in our shakes. My bro in law started with 8 oz and had a similar reaction as you.....he backed down to a few oz let his body adjust. Then he gradually upped the amount to 8oz.

 

[clkingtx]

Wow, thanks for all the responses.

To answer all the questions:

I drank about 8-12 oz of kefir last night plain, and I didn't have the painful problem as when I drink the shakes.

I have been drinking kefir off and on for 2 or 3 months. It is still kind of off and on because it really slows my system down, and a few times I had to skip it for a day or so to be able to have a bm. I wondered if that could have been from the cream cheese, though. I started with just a taste, and worked up to where I was having 12 oz or so, but I was ignoring the gas.

I do know my family history, and no one that I know of back to my grandparents were lactose intolerant. The only person who had any kind of issue is one of my mom's brothers, who would break out in a rash on his legs as a child when he drank milk. Chocolate milk didn't cause the rash, though. Strange. My mother's family is mainly mixed, Black Dutch, Cherokee, and not sure what else. My Dad's side is mixed also, some German, some Irish, not sure what else.

I will have to see if I can find some goat milk cheese. I have noticed in the past that if I eat too much cheese(not cream cheese, though) I have some tummy distress. I'll have to pay more attention to that kind of thing.

Thanks again!

 

[Dace]

That is interesting because usually kefir gets the bowels moving and cleaned out.

Are you drinking homemade or commercial kefir?

 

[clkingtx]

I am making it myself. It seems to make really quick for me, so it is usually quite a bit less than a day, never more than a full 24 hours. Usually it is pretty separated, the whey in pockets when I strain it. Sometimes it is completely separated, with the whey on the bottom. It mixes back together when I strain it, and then I keep it in the fridge until I use it, and just stir it before I pour it.

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

If your kefir is being made with raw milk, and the cream cheese is store bought, then its likely the cream cheese causing the issue.
That, or its the reaction between the two happening in your gut.
Do you have a source for raw cream? You can sub that in for the cream cheese. And freeze the banana as well, to make the shake nice and thick.

 

[lwheelr]

Maybe you've hit on a new way of producing bio-fuel?